Consumer complaint received 2024-06-17
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Closing on a mortgage — Changes in loan terms during or after closing
Company: TOLL BROTHERS INC (NJ)

I initiated the home-buying process with Toll Brothers XXXX XX/XX/XXXX, and as per the agreement, I was required to obtain pre-approval from their affiliated mortgage company, Toll Brothers Mortgage XXXX within 14 days of the application. All necessary documents were submitted, and I received pre-approval on XX/XX/XXXX for a loan amount of USD XXXX to purchase a property valued at USD XXXX, with an interest rate of 7.375 % and 2 % points. 

The property was under construction with an anticipated closing in the first week of XX/XX/XXXX ( the closing date was scheduled for XX/XX/XXXX ). As the closing approached, I began reviewing documentation with Toll Brothers Mortgage and received competing offers from XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. Toll Brothers Mortgage maintained the pre-approved conditions, leading me to dismiss the other lenders and lock in the rates with them on XX/XX/XXXX. 

Unexpectedly, on XXXX XXXX days before the scheduled closingI received a request from Toll Brothers Mortgage to provide proof of my bonus income for the current year. This request was unfeasible, as my employer only discloses bonus information at the end of XXXX or the beginning of XXXX each year. 

As a result of this last-minute request, the closing was cancelled. I re-engaged with XXXXXXXX XXXX and am considering their terms, as Toll Brothers Mortgage has now presented new conditions that are significantly less favorable. The revised terms require me to finance USD XXXX at a 6.75 % interest rate, with an increased point cost of 3.625 %. 

Adding to my distress, Toll Brothers sales has now placed me in " default '' and is threatening to terminate the contract within XXXX days if I do not secure the loan. 

I contend that Toll Brothers should exhibit greater flexibility and allow additional time to resolve this issue, given that their mortgage company introduced new requirements at the eleventh hour for documentation that was never previously requested. The pre-approval letter stipulated the need to provide " written verification documenting a consecutive XXXX history of receipt and a statement from the employer that income is likely to continue. '' I have furnished all bonus statements from XXXX to the present and have also offered to provide a " likely to continue '' statement from my employer, which Toll Brothers Mortgage has unreasonably refused, insisting instead on the actual amount. 

Furthermore, I have been informed by XXXX XXXX that the title company, recommended by Toll Brothers and previously agreed upon by me, is delaying the provision of information and is not communicating with the lender. 

This sequence of events suggests that Toll Brothers initially secured my commitment by outcompeting other lenders, only to later alter the terms and pressure me into closing by threatening contract termination, without affording me sufficient time to secure alternative financing. 

In my view, Toll Brothers is engaging in practices that could be construed as abusive, causing significant distress and constituting harassment in what should be a good-faith customer-vendor relationship. Under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act ( RESPA ), consumers are protected from such abusive practices, and lenders are required to provide timely and accurate disclosures. The abrupt imposition of new, unattainable requirements, coupled with the threat of contract termination, appears to violate the spirit, if not the letter, of these consumer protections.