Consumer complaint received 2024-05-29
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — Escrow, taxes, or insurance
Company: MORTGAGE SOLUTIONS OF COLORADO (TX)

On XX/XX/year>, I was widowed. On XX/XX/year>, I was able to sell the condominium that was the security for the mortgage that is the subject of this complaint. 

On XX/XX/year>, Mortgage Solutions Financial issued an escrow refund check in the amount of {$1100.00} to my husband 's estate and to me. I can not deposit this check because my husband died intestate and there is nobody available to sign for this non-existent estate. 

The title company assured me that they would communicate to XXXX that I was the only owner of the home and that the escrow check should be made out to me and me alone. In any event, I am attaching the Warranty Deed with Vendor 's Lien that shows that I, and I alone, transferred the property. 

On XX/XX/year>, I tried to resolve this issue with Mortgage Solutions Financial. XXXX attended me. During that call, XXXX refused to issue a new check and refused to send me a direct deposit of the escrow refund. XXXX initially refused to connect me with a manager. As was the case the last time, XXXX seemed to be following an informal policy of refusing to connect customers to people with decision-making power. 

Therefore, I waited for over XXXX minutes to speak with a supervisor, XXXX. I was connected with him at about XXXX minutes. I asked XXXX to have the money routed electronically to a joint bank account that I share with my deceased husband, and he refused on XXXX 's behalf. Initially, he said that under the law, he was not authorized to send payment in any form but check, but I told him that was untrue because other banks are in the XXXX century and deal in electronic refunds and also that I knew that XXXX had a policy of sending electronic transfers when a mistake has been made. I told him that it could easily be classified as a mistake to send the sole owner of a home a check in the name of XXXX people, but still XXXX refused to initiate an electronic transfer of funds. XXXX asked me to hold, but at XXXX minutes, I was provided with the customer service survey and disconnected ( against my will ). 

To add insult to injury, this is literally the second time in 6 months that this has happened. I made a complaint to the CFPB ( No. XXXX ) against this same mortgage company for the same behavior after receiving a similarly endorsed check. That complaint is obviously documented among the same XXXX parties here and resulted in XXXX finally doing exactly what I had asked for initially : crediting the escrow check to my loan. In the resolution letter, XXXX stated, " At XXXX, we strive to exceed our customers expectations with every interaction. XXXX fell short of this goal and sincerely apologizes for the delay and the resulting confusion. '' The fact that I have to file another complaint shows how shallow and meaningless XXXX 's apology was. In addition to gross insensitivity toward grieving people, what it looks like to me is that XXXX 's internal policies regarding escrow refunds are designed to wrongly enhance its bottom line at the expense of the recently bereaved. That is, if a widow or widower is to ignore XXXX 's malfeasance and not deposit the check, where does that money go before eventually being categorized as " unclaimed ''? Where does the interest that XXXX made on it go? Which executive is paid off the backs of the bereaved? This, when combined with XXXX 's obvious policy of discouraging customers from speaking directly to the management team, is something that is worth the CFPB 's continued attention, even after XXXX resolves this complaint.