Consumer complaint received 2018-08-04
Product: Mortgage — FHA mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — 
Company: CENDERA FUNDING, INC. (CO)

My wife and I bought a house in XX/XX/2017. During which we were using Cendera Funding out of XXXX XXXX. We really liked the house and went through the process of buying it. The realtor that we were working with told us when we were interested that the house may be in a flood zone but she was going to talk to our lender to see if we would need flood insurance. We told our lender and realtor that if the house was in a flood zone we weren't interested in buying the house. After a couple of weeks of Cendera trying to figure out if we would need flood insurance he sent us a flood certificate from XXXX XXXX at FEMA stating the house was out of a flood zone. So we went ahead with the buying of the house. During the day of closing we were signing papers and they brought up a paper stating if the house was ever in a flood zone that we would buy flood insurance. Before we signed that paper my wife and I both asked if the house was in a flood zone one last time before we closed. Both our lender and realtor said no. So we signed the paper. A month and half went by and we received a letter in the mail stating our lender had sold our mortgage to a different lender ( XXXX XXXX ). My wife and I didn't think much of it until about a month after that letter we received a letter from the new lending company ( XXXX XXXX ) stating that our house was in a flood zone and we needed to get flood insurance. My wife and I were both a little upset at this point but sent them fia fax the paper we had gotten from our original lender ( Cendera Funding ) from XXXX XXXX at FEMA stating the house wasn't in a flood zone. The new lending company ( XXXX XXXX ) never replied to us to tell us whether they received it. So XX/XX/XXXX my wife called and they said they never received it. So I sent it again after receiving another letter from the new lending company ( XXXX XX/XX/XXXX ) stating our house was in a flood zone and needed flood insurance. During this time not knowing that they had forced flood insurance on us and were pulling the money out of our escrow account. After receiving this same letter for the third time I then included an elevation certificate stating that if the house ever did flood that the house wouldn't be affected by the flood which I received from the previous owner, I also included Lat. and long. of the middle of the house and the elevation at which it sits. I also included lat. and long. of the middle of the road where the possible flood would come through and the elevation for that. We also kept in contact with the original owners and they weren't in a flood zone when they were selling the house and were also very upset that this all was taking place. After still not receiving a response from the new lending company we called them and they told us that the FEMA Certificate we received from the original lending company wasn't the most current certificate. We then called and emailed XXXX XXXX at FEMA and got the latest Flood Certificate for our house and in fact the house was in a flood zone. XXXX XXXX also said " when she was working with the realtor, I did state that the floodplain if very close and it could be in. It really was too close to call. '' But as I looked closer at the new FEMA Certificate I noticed someone had put in a request for recheck XX/XX/17 three days before we closed on the house. I called FEMA asking who put in the request for recheck and they told me that XXXX XXXX from Cendera funding had put in the request and knew that the house was in a flood zone three days before we closed on the house but never disclosed that information to us on the day of closing when we point blank asked if the house was in a flood zone. After finding this out we tried to seek legal council but the attorney wouldn't take the case until we had {$5000.00} up front and another {$45000.00} to take the case. My wife and I didn't have that kind of money so we didn't push it any further. During the time we were fighting the new lending company they had forced placed flood insurance on us at the tune of {$220.00} a month on top of a {$1900.00} mortgage. They took it upon themselves and took the money for the forced placed flood insurance out of our escrow account which drove out escrow into the negative. When the new year came around we got our first mortgage bill for the new year and the new lending company had upped our mortgage payment to {$2200.00} a month. Which my wife and I when we bought the house told the original lender we couldn't afford anything more than {$1900.00} a month. So because of this and the fact we also had a son during this time, we can no longer afford to pay for the house and are being forced to fill bankruptcy because of this issue. We have tried several times to get XXXX XXXX to work with us. They never return our phone calls and would put us on hold for 45 minutes plus and still never answer the phone. No one there seems to ever know what's going on. We also called Cendera and tried to get them to work with us and they said that they were just the lender and couldn't do anything for us and said it was no longer their problem. Which in fact it was their problem for putting us in this entire situation from the beginning. When we were very adamant that we didn't want the house if it was in a flood zone.