Consumer complaint received 2024-03-10
Product: Mortgage — Other type of mortgage
Issue: Closing on a mortgage — Closing disclosure or other related disclosures
Company: FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF PENNSYLVANIA (MD)

At the beginning of XX/XX/XXXX, we applied for a construction to permanent loan with XXXX at First National Bank of Pennsylvania in XXXX Maryland. We received our initial disclosures and application to review XX/XX/XXXX. The terms we signed and agreed to were XXXX XXXX interest rate locked in with a 10 year ARM with no points and the promise to close in 30 days or less. On XX/XX/XXXX we received our commitment letter. 
On XX/XX/XXXX I received the second appraisal after we opposed the first appraisal. However we never saw documentation of the first appraisal, I was told via phone conversation that it came in very low at {$750000.00}. XXXX assured me that he would review, make comments and request a new appraisal. XXXX XXXX performed both appraisals and with a simple XXXX  search I found he has been disciplined by the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX and XXXX. A week later after hearing the first appraisal of {$750000.00}, we got the second appraisal to sign on XX/XX/XXXX and it was increased to {$810000.00}. I thought it was extremely concerning that in a weeks time our appraised value changed {$60000.00}. 
Then on XX/XX/XXXX we received our closing disclosures and thats when everything went really down hill. We saw on our closing disclosure that we were now being charged XXXX XXXX of a point and required to pay mortgage insurance. When we questioned XXXX and his team, they always referred to XXXX to answer questions and he would always say just enough without saying too much. My husband had a phone conversation with XXXX and he stated its better than the XXXX XXXX point we were going to charge with the {$750000.00} appraisal. My husband exclaimed what do you mean?! We were never told any of this. After many heated conversations and emails with no real answers I asked to speak to management. XXXX manager was simply CCed to the emails but never intervened. After going round and round of why was it never disclosed that with a low appraised value we would be required to pay points at closing, XXXX finally stated we did send you the disclosures. However we never knew those new loan terms were sent to us on XX/XX/XXXX. They were not opened in the required amount of time and never signed. They began avoiding our direct questions of if this was sent on XX/XX/XXXX and you saw it wasnt signed or viewed when all other documents up to that point were signed most of them same day we received them, why did you never reach out to make sure we reviewed and understood our new loan terms? No answer. I believe we were caught in a complete bait and switch that was going to cost us almost an extra {$5000.00} to close at the benefit of First National. Let alone the very suspicious activity with the appraisal. Basically we were finally told that because our appraisal came in lower than needed in order for us to keep the XXXX XXXX interest rate we initially agreed to we now had to pay points. We were completely shocked to find out this information and these new loan terms we were about to agree to days before closing. If it wasnt for my husband and I going line by line picking apart the closing disclosure that was sent to us and merely asked to sign with again no explanation we would have agreed to something we had no idea we were agreeing to. At this point they were pressuring us to close because we were at a deadline of the rate unlocking in a week, on XX/XX/XXXX. We made the extremely difficult decision to go with another lender on the basis of simply not being able to trust First National.

The other lender, XXXX we applied with them on XX/XX/XXXX, it took two weeks to do the appraisal but it was extremely thorough. That appraisal came back XX/XX/XXXX at {$870000.00} meaning we would not even require mortgage insurance. We are closing XX/XX/XXXX at 30 year fixed rate of XXXX XXXX and no points or mortgage insurance and significantly lower closing costs and closing in 30 days. 
First National Bank of Pennsylvania had a complete lack of communication, absolutely no transparency, extremely poor customer service especially when management was asked to get involved and ethical misconduct in my opinion.