Consumer complaint received 2017-11-22
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — 
Company: Onity Group Inc. (CA)

I am XXXX years old and my wife is XXXX. The mortgage on our former home is in her name. A little less than ten months ago on XX/XX/XXXX, our XXXX-year-old son XXXX XXXX and suddenly in this house. Living there without him and with all the memories of him was like XXXX on earth. ( See hardship letter attached ). We had to get out of there as quickly as possible. 
Since our property was and is under water- the pay -off quote on our mortgage as of XX/XX/XXXX is {>= $1,000,000} ( document attached ) and the appraised market value of the property as of XX/XX/XXXX is XXXX XXXX ( document attached ) the only ways to free us from the property were and are through a short-sale, a deed in lieu of foreclosure or foreclosure. 
Neither of us had the strength or the ability to go through the arduous and timeless process necessary to complete a short-sale and an even longer and drawn-out foreclosure process seemed untenable for both us and the lender, so we believed and believe that our only option is and was to pursue a deed in lieu of foreclosure. 
After my sons XXXX and a two -week grieving period, we began the procedures to apply to the for a deed in lieu and simultaneously to apply to the IRS for a discharge of a tax lien on the property which we knew would be necessary for the deed in lieu. 
In applying for the deed in lieu we informed the lender that we would cease paying the monthly mortgage since we would soon be transferring the property to the lender and we were planning to move to XXXX to be close to my remaining son and his family. The cessation of these payments was necessary to replace the income lost because I had to wo give up my job and the fact that my wife is no longer XXXX, XXXX and XXXX capable of carrying out her duties and responsibilities in her capacity as a XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. 
At the time the lender seemed quite understanding of this situation and amenable to pursuing the deed in lieu process with us. After some back and forth between us, the lender and the attorney we engaged to help us with the IRS in terms of the discharge of the tax lien on the property, we received a 30-day conditional approval for a deed in lieu offer on XX/XX/XXXX ( document attached ). 
As we knew, Final approval would be subject to satisfactory completion of the following items : An independent valuation of the property may be completed to determine fair market value of the property. A clear property title ( i.e. no other claims or liens are attached to your property, also known as subordinate liens ). Approval from the investor or mortgage insurer of your loan to proceed with the transaction, if applicable. 
In XX/XX/XXXX, we submitted to the lender and they accepted a County Assessment of the propertys value and an independent appraisal of the propertys market value as meeting the first condition for a final approval of the deed in lieu offer. On XX/XX/XXXX we received a renewed 30-day conditional approval for a deed in lieu offer from the lender ( document attached ). 

It was not until XX/XX/XXXX, after providing supplemental information to the IRS, including a second independent property appraisal referenced above, that the Service provided us with a 30- day Conditional Commitment to Discharge the Property from a Federal Tax Lien . Of course, this Discharge is subject to verification that the bank or lender has taken title to the property. At this point, the lender in the form of a relationship manager and various deed in lieu department staff, informed our attorney that our request including a Hardship Letter and the IRS conditional commitment had been forwarded to their underwriter for approval and that it should be processed in a few days. 
For the next twenty-five days, we and our lawyer had continuous communication with the lender as to the status of our request with no clear explanation as to why it was being held up other than comments from one or two staff members that a deed in lieu would never be approved if there was lien on the property. We continued to explain that in its conditional approval to discharge the lien, the IRS was committing to remove the lien once the lender took possession of the deed. 
Finally, at the end of XXXX, because we had gotten indication through our lawyer that the lenders approval of the deed in lieu was imminent and because living in the house had become unbearable for us, especially my wife who emotionally at the end of her rope, we cleaned out the house, packed up and drove across country to XXXX. Before we embarked on our trip, I notified the lender that we were vacating the house but would continue paying the electricity temporarily. The lender said they would secure, winterize and make sure the property was insured. Unfortunately, it was not until nine days after we left XXXX XXXX that the lender secured the property. 
The IRS 30 -day conditional commitment to discharge the lien ran out on XX/XX/XXXX and by the end of the month there was still no approval of a Deed in Lieu from the lender. Our attorney at the time told us that there was nothing more he could do to get the lender to respond and we were forced to hire another attorney. This attorney was successful in getting the IRS to renew their 30-day conditional commitment to discharge the lien on XX/XX/XXXX ( Document Attached ) but unsuccessful in getting the lender to respond or address our situation in any meaningful way. This lack of responsiveness and failure to resolve this matter on the part of the lender has gone on far too long and represents a tremendous and unnecessary additional burden on my wife and I as we continue with my sons loss. 
The house in XXXX XXXX remains vacant and at risk of storm damage and vandalism especially during the winter months. My wife feels she still has responsibility for the house because her name is on the mortgage and her worrying increases with every day that the lender does take the deed to the property. In our present economic state, we are never going to be able to the mortgage payments much less make up the arrears. We will never contend foreclosure procedures but why should we or the lender endure this lengthy process and continuing expenses when we are willing to turn the property over to the lender immediately. We dont know where else to turn. We need your help.