Consumer complaint received 2020-11-30
Product: Mortgage — VA mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — 
Company: Freedom Mortgage Company (GA)

On XX/XX/XXXX, my husband & I refinanced our VA mortgage through a company called XXXX XXXX. Our home is located in XXXX XXXX, XXXX Our VA refi closed on XX/XX/XXXX using a title company called XXXX XXXX and an attorney called XXXX XXXX  XXXX. At the time of closing, {$2500.00} was collected for property taxes due to XXXX County GA where our residence is located. Our rep from XXXX XXXX had informed us that our mortgage would be sold immediately to Freedom Mortgage and that an account number would not be available until late XXXX. I called XXXX back in late XXXX as I had not heard anything from XXXX and obtained my loan number and set up auto payments online. I set the first auto payment for XX/XX/XXXX and this was the first payment made on the new loan. On XX/XX/XXXX I logged into Freedom Mortgage to make sure the payment was applied correctly. I noticed that my escrow balance was only {$510.00}. I knew something was wrong because they collected {$5000.00} for escrow at closing of which part was for the property taxes and part for homeowners insurance. After conversations with Freedom Mortgage and XXXX Country property tax dept. I found out that the same {$2500.00} was disbursed to XXXX County twice. Once by the closing attorney, XXXX XXXX  XXXX, on XX/XX/XXXX. The second disbursement was on XX/XX/XXXX by Freedom Mortgage. I discovered the error on XX/XX/XXXX and reported it to Freedom Mortgage both verbally and through their customer service portal that day. The same day I called XXXX County and they verified to me over the phone that they had received two payments and that they had already sent the 2nd payment back to Freedom Mortgage on XX/XX/XXXX. 
As of today XX/XX/XXXX, I have not been able to resolve this issue. My escrow is now short by {$2500.00} and will be short when my homeowners insurance is due in XXXX. 
On XX/XX/XXXX when I first alerted Freedom Mortgage to the situation they said they were going to escalate the situation and it had a final resolution date of XX/XX/XXXX. When I called back today ( XX/XX/XXXX ) they said that the date had been moved to XX/XX/XXXX but that the issue was not related to property taxes. I told them I didn't know what else it could be related to. Today I spoke with 5 different reps in Customer service at Freedom Mortgage. My understanding right now is that they do no know if they received a payment from XXXX County but they would escalate the situation. They told me there is a note on my account that was made on XX/XX/XXXX that says the check was issued by the County and was sent to " XXXX  '' which I believe stands for XXXX who is their 3rd party that processes property taxes. The last person I talked to was a supervisor in the property tax dept named XXXX. She but could not tell me if the {$2500.00} was received from XXXX County or not. I asked what would have been sent to XXXX unless it was the refund check for the property taxes. She agreed but said there was no check number and that someone would need to call the county and verify they actually sent the check. I told I would have thought that would have been done shortly after XX/XX/XXXX when I first report this situation. Basically my complaints are as follows : 1 ) I can't determine who made the error by sending the check twice. When I first spoke to Freedom Mortgage about this on XX/XX/XXXX they said that the disbursement was not listed on the buyer 's disclosure ( I think that's the document -- it's the document in big print that's for the consumer ). She said only the disbursement to XXXX XXXX to pay off our current mortgage was listed and so Freedom Mortgage could not know that the closing attorney ( XXXX XXXX XXXX/ XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX had already made the payment on XX/XX/XXXX and that's why they submitted again. She said I should contact the closing attorney. I did contact the closing attorney who came to my house to do the refi and she said that XXXX XXXX sends her the documents and all she does is notarize and sign etc. She said that actual documents are prepared by XXXX and the error was theirs. So, next I called XXXX and spoke to a rep who said that Freedom Mortgage should have known that the funds would be disbursed by the closing attorney as it was listed on the Buyers Final Closing statement. It is listed there but does not indicate when it is to be disbursed. The mortgage is listed on this page as well but was also listed on the buyer 's disclosure so why wouldn't the disbursement to XXXX County be listed on the buyer 's disclosure? So, my complaint here is no one admits to the error yet one occurred. I would like to know where this process broke down. And, if my closing documents are incorrect, I want new ones. 

2 ) But certainly my biggest complaint here is the incompetence of Freedom Mortgage. Mistakes happen but their lack of understanding, their lack of documentation, their lack of follow up, their lack of response to emails via the client portal are inexcusable. I should be given a complaint # or ticket number so that an error like this can be tracked and followed through the system. I would expect regular email updates or updates posted to my client online account. They originally told me this would be resolved XX/XX/XXXX but now it's XX/XX/XXXX but the reps can't tell me what it is that is going to be resolved! Every time I call I get a different answer. ( I actually got one rep on the phone today who could not understand the situation at all. She was incapable of understanding what I was telling her XXXX XXXX # XXXX XXXX. I just asked to speak to a supervisor at that point and of course was cut off and had to call back. They have no idea where my {$2500.00} is at this moment yet they have had 28 days to work on the situation. 
Freedom Mortgage tells me that there is a note on my account that references somebody in property tax verifying that the county sent a check on XXXX. And the same note references sending something to XXXX XXXX but XXXX couldn't tell from the note if it was a check or something else. I said what else could it be? She didn't know and said she would escalate. I asked could we get the person on the phone who made the note and ask them. No, we can't. I asked could we get XXXX XXXX on the phone and ask them. No, we only deal with XXXX XXXX by email. Okay well someone made a note on my account and nobody can explain what it means. Total incompetence. 

3 ) Freedom Mortgage is telling me that once they get the funds back it could take 4 to 6 weeks to apply them to my escrow account. Well, they've already wasted 28 days. So guess who is going to have an escrow shortage and have to cough up funds for the homeowners payment in XXXX? Me. 

4 ) Last Monday, XX/XX/XXXX I checked Freedom Mortgage again to see if my escrow balance had been corrected and it had not been corrected. At that point I emailed both my mortgage broker at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX and the local closing attorney, XXXX XXXX, asking where they thought the error occurred and how to get corrected closing documents. I did not receive a response. I did not receive a response from XXXX because he has left the company but it did not bounce back. I did not receive a reply at all from the closing attorney. 

I don't know what's going to happen when my homeowners insurance comes due in XXXX and there is not enough to cover it. I guess Freedom Mortgage is going to ask me for {$2500.00} and that is a big problem. 

I would love it if the CFPB would contact Freedom Mortgage and light a fire under them. Here is the contact info for everyone involved in this situation : Freedom Mortgage : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. XXXX  XXXX, XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX XXXX Attorney  XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX GA XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ( branch I dealt with in CA ) XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX CA XXXX XXXX XXXX, Local Closing Attorney XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, GA XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX