Consumer complaint received 2017-05-27
Company: SELECT PORTFOLIO SERVICING, INC.
State: MI
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage

Complaint:
Good Afternoon. I am submitting a request for a formal complaint in regards to the loan modification that was handled by SPS Servicing back in XX/XX/XXXX, modifying the terms of the note/security instruments signed by both my husband and I. This was the " alternative to going into foreclosure ''. This was due to some back tax payments that were on the account. I still do n't know that we ever got a full explanation as to even what happened there to begin with. We just wanted to make sure our home was secure for our children, so we did whatever they advised us to do and that this was the option we had at the time. <P/>The issues with the modification that we 're disputing are the following : *The modification was not signed off by both note signors. I am clearly shown as an obligor under the note, and my signature is clearly present. I am now going through paperwork and seeing that not only did they not include myself on the modification, they did not demand me at anytime during this process and never include me on notices that were sent. This is required as a note signor to be given any notices. The servicer and/or investor can not modify the terms of the note, without the actual note signors agreeing to it, unless there was divorce decree, or other circumstances that would have led to myself to not being part of the agreement. This is not the case. <P/>*The company clearly took advantage of the mortgage crisis, and put both my husband and I in a worse position, because they actually made a modification for us, that has us now paying a mortgage through XX/XX/XXXX. Please be advised we were XXXX years old when this was made. This would mean that we would be deceased when this modification was done, and on top of that, they put a balloon on the end, so that when we are then deceased, our children would be responsible for this? This situation clearly defines predatory lending to the fullest. How many people have these bad mods, and do n't know it? How many older people were put into this situation and now will be XXXX or XXXX years old when it 's matured? I would like to know who decides on this type of extended mortgage to a borrower who is simply trying to reduce their interest rate. We 've lived in this house for 28 years now. If we add this modification to the amount we 've already paid in this house ( which is 400,000 or so to date ), and if you add this modification, that puts us to pay around 1 million dollars for this house. My current house is most likely appraising right now at roughly 130,000. Do the math, this is the definition of predatory lending. Nothing was taken into consideration on this besides getting more money from your borrowers. More steps should have been taken while throwing out modifications to everyone during the crisis, instead of just giving them to everyone without fully explaining this. Do you honestly think that someone would do a mod, knowing they could never move, never refinance or do anything for the rest of their lives and that they would be putting their children into this crisis when they were gone? <P/>The only reason we actually knew we were locked into this mortgage for the rest of our lives, was because I called a mortgage company to refinance to get down to a lower rate, and that 's when we were informed that we had a 40 year mortgage now on our property and we were n't ever going to be able to get out of this. We were absolutely taken back. We are not attorneys, mortgage loan officers, and this clearly this was n't explained to us when we did the modification. We did n't even know this! We would have NEVER signed something that expired when we were XXXX years old. This clearly would have left a burden on our children. They dropped our interest rate, but absolutely stuck it to us on the maturity date ( by the way, it was n't disclosed/explained in conversations about the extended time of the note/mortgage terms ). This would have never been signed. I ca n't tell you the amount of people I 've talked to that are so taken back in regards to this situation. <P/>Once I was advised of this I called our mortgage company absolutely baffled as to what was going on with this XX/XX/XXXX" maturity '' date. I asked for paperwork to be sent, the note specifically. The note I received in the mail, had no endorsements/allonges to show the current holder of my note. I still have n't gotten it. I also requested a full payment history on my account. That was about a month ago, never got one. We had to modify in XX/XX/XXXX, because I was diagnosed with XXXX XXXX. Now this modification, was 20 years. Also, my signature is clearly on that modification. Why is not on the 2nd one that was done? To me, that makes the modification absolutely null and void. <P/>I 've called the mortgage company on several occasions asking for information to be sent. I never get the full information sent. I even called back again, asking who held my note, she advised she did n't know. I called again and asked for info, and informed the gentleman that time that we were n't sent the full note and he said he understood and would get it out. We still did n't get that. On one particular call with a CRM, they advised me that they do n't go over these modifications in detail, because they do n't have time because there are so many. She, in fact, told me that they do n't do this because there 's 20 more people waiting to talk to them. That 's a very bold, and inappropriate statement by a CRM, and to my knowledge CRMs were put in place as CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGERS, right? for the customers? That statement clearly shows not. <P/>We are beyond frustrated, and considering hiring counsel at this point to look into the fact that we were n't noticed properly, and the mod is flat on it 's face without both note signors on it. Unless you can show me where there 's something showing that I signed off on my obligations. You wo n't find it. I was under the impression that this is just how the paperwork came, until we looked into this further and found out that I did sign the note, the mortgage and the prior mod. When you 're dealing with customers who are n't part of the mortgage industry, it is the servicers DUTY and OBLIGATION under their contract with their investors to make sure they 're disclosing what they should be to their borrowers/customers. Looking at the mod, it just says " maturity date XX/XX/XXXX ''. We had no idea what that even meant, because again that would n't have been signed knowing we would be dead before it was done and we could n't do anything or move ever again. <P/>We 've made every payment under this modification. We have been customers for a long time. We definitely feel that we have been clearly taken advantage of and or/mislead with this modification. This was not handled properly at all. In the process of trying to " fix '' the mortgage crisis with their borrowers, SPS and their investors took advantage by writing bad modifications. They 're extending these mods beyond what anyone could ever pay. Another roughly 500,000 under this mod? How is that helping anyone, besides the investors?

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation