Consumer complaint received 2023-02-06
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — 
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. (NY)

In XXXX, we applied for the COVID-hardship forbearance program, offered by our lender Citizens Bank , as we were experiencing hardships like many New Yorkers during the pandemic. Our property in XXXX XXXX  is a two-family home, where we were living in one unit and leasing out the second unit to tenants. We lost our tenants during the pandemic and faced hardship paying our mortgage. We could not find XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX and were also XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX at that time. We tried putting the property up for sale but did not get a single offer. With so much uncertainty surrounding our financial situation, we were grateful to be approved for the XXXX forbearance program in XXXX. Since then, we have relocated and are now renting out both units at our property in XXXX. The property is now fully tenant-occupied. We have been trying to resume our regular mortgage payment without success since XXXX, XXXX when we received notice that forbearance was being extended 180 days. The letter we received XX/XX/XXXX was our first notice of forbearance period ending, but was also an automatic extension without our approval. At that time, we spoke with a Citizens rep who confirmed that the forbearance amount would be deferred to the end of the loan period, which was how the program was explained to us upon our initial application. We requested to resume regular repayment of our monthly loan amount, but were told the forbearance had been extended so we could not resume repayment. We have always operated paperless with the servicing of our loan, but since the forbearance period began we have not been able to access any mortgage information or documentation online as it is no longer available to us on the portal. Communicating with Citizens Bank by phone is extremely challenging. Since then, we have had to make repeated phone calls to Citizens bank to try and resume our mortgage repayment, without success. In XXXX, we were told that we must submit a formal application for deferral ; that it was not granted automatically. This was in direct contrast to the terms of the program as explained to us upon our initial application, and confirmed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Nevertheless, we provided extensive documentation including paystubs, bank records, and tax forms to comply with this requirement. This was provided to Citizens bank in XXXX and again in XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX we received a letter stating that our application for loss mitigation assistance was not approved. We had no intention to apply for further loss mitigation assistance. As previously communicated on several occasions, we are ready to resume repayment of our loan. We are simply requesting confirmation of a deferral of the forbearance amount to the end of the loan period, as were the terms of the program as explained to us and confirmed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. According to CFPB, under this program the mortgage servicer is not permitted to ask for proof of hardship and homeowners who receive XXXX XXXX forbearance are not required to repay their paused payments in a lump sum once the forbearance period ends. We are ready, able, and eager to resume monthly repayment of our regular loan amount and are willing to consider a repayment plan for the forbearance amount, although deferral to the end of the loan period were the terms of the program as explained to us. However, we face significant hardship in paying the full forbearance amount as a lump sum at this time. Doing so would liquidate all of our savings, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, and leave us without the necessary savings we must retain to cover unexpected maintenance costs for our rental properties. We filed a formal appeal on XX/XX/XXXX, but were informed on XX/XX/XXXX that the appeal had been denied and that we are not eligible for Deferral of the forbearance amount.