Consumer complaint received 2015-03-30
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: CA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional fixed mortgage
Issue: Application, originator, mortgage broker

Complaint:
We have a loan through B of A ( Bank of America ) already. We received in the mail from them a letter stating that the interest rates have come down and that we could go from a FHA loan that has PMI on it to a conventional loan at the lower interest rate and save approximately {$450.00} a month on our mortgage. We started the process and everything was going fine until the Bank wanted to see EVERYTHING and I mean EVERYTHING that we paid out for utilities, gas, food, internet services, Cable, who we paid and how much and why. When they asked for seeing if we had bank accounts, I sent them the information on the first page of the bank statement which showed deposits, withdrawals and daily balance, which should be enough. But no, that was not enough! They wanted to see how much we paid and to whom and why including my canceled checks. I 'm sorry but that is an invasion of privacy. NO BANK NEEDS TO KNOW WHO AND HOW MUCH I PAY TO ANYONE!!! IT IS NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS!!! When I questioned that I was told that it is the law. When I asked them for the law so I could look it up and read it, the Bank could NOT provide me with that information. So I did my own research, made several calls, including to XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX, XXXX to several agencies there, and no one had heard of this law. I did find a FEDERAL " GUIDELINE '' that is used, but it is only a " guideline '' not a " law ''. No where in that guideline does it state that the bank has the right to see who and how much I pay every month to anyone. The guideline is found in the Federal Code of Regulations Title 12 section 226 Subpart E in the paragraph 226.34 ( A ) The only thing it states is to verify amounts of income or assets which by providing W-2 's, pay stubs from employers and XXXX info should be enough. When the Bank wanted to see our checking account I was told it was to verify we had a checking account so I sent the front page that had deposit/withdrawal/daily balance and that should have been sufficient. Then I get the phone call back stating no that is not enough the bank needs to make sure we can pay them and the bank needs to see how much we spend on our bills every month. THAT IS NONE OF THE BANKS BUSINESS how much I spend every month!!!!! When I sent them all the pages of my bank statement, which included the copies of my canceled checks they wanted to see, with the amounts and who I paid blacked out the Bank stated that was unacceptable and they needed to see everything. When I told them it was none of their business I was again told that the under writers need to see who and how much I pay and again was told it was the law. When I told them it was only a guideline and quoted the Federal Regulation, they stated they still need that information to prove I can pay back my bills including the mortgage. When I told them I was not going to send them the amounts and who I paid the bank stated then we ca n't do business with you and canceled my loan application. A few days later I received a letter from them stating it was I that canceled my loan application not them. I could see if we already did n't have a loan with B of A, however, we have had this loan with them for 5 yrs and had an opportunity to get a lower interest rate and get rid of the PMI on the loan to save us about {$450.00} a month on our current mortgage payment. I fail to understand how a banking institution can manipulate words to fit whatever they feel they want to see in the personal lives of people when it really is none of their business. Their actions has made us wonder how many other people this has happened to and if other banks are doing the same thing. IT IS AN INVASION OF PRIVACY no bank should have any business knowing for a loan, especially when you provide W-2 pay stubs retirement account information etc.

Company public response: Company chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation