Consumer complaint received 2023-01-14
Product: Mortgage — VA mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — 
Company: M/I Homes, Inc. (TX)

We closed on our home XX/XX/XXXX with MI Financial, around 2 months later our loan was purchased by XXXX. My husband and I came back from the holidays to pay our mortgage on XXXX XXXX of XXXX and it almost doubled. Our original mortgage was {$1400.00}, our mortgage increase to {$2200.00}. We called the XXXX of the branch managers at MIFinancial and were were explained that we signed a document stating taxes can raise and if they do we are held responsible, which my husband and I agreed and did not argue with him. Continuing the conversation I was asking the XXXX why our escrow payment went from {$180.00} to {$1000.00} a month. He had replied that my husband and I should have known we were going to have an escrow shortage due to the house taxes originally not being assessed with the home built, just the land. He kept restating that yes we did know because all of our previous mortgage estimates ranged between {$1900.00} to {$2100.00}. I asked did any of the documents we signed state when your house is assessed you new mortgage will be that amount, and he never answered just kept referring back to the tax document we signed. I was trying to gain answers to why our multiple mortgage estimates always had an escrow payment of {$740.00}, but at closing we received the closing disclosure which explained the {$1400.00} payment and of that the escrow decreased to the {$180.00}. Amongst this phone call I asked why did our mortgage not start around {$2000.00} since they knew we were going to have a shortage to prevent said shortage. He explained that if we were to have started with that mortgage amount we would have an overfund in escrow which he said was not allowed and in addition pay more at closing. In addition to this conversation he stated since everyone including him and those at closing knew we were going to indeed have a shortage it was our responsibility to put aside around {$600.00} a month to make up for the shortage, but as my husband and I were unaware we would indeed have a shortage we were unaware we had to pull aside money as that is what the escrow account is for and like I said we were unaware of any shortage and he could not prove we knew as he could not disclose any document stating we IN FACT knew of said shortage. I was confused as that would've prevented this whole issue and expressed to him my husband and I were always prepared to pay at closing as all previous loan estimates stated we would have to pay either {$1400.00} or {$2100.00} per the documents, but instead received a payment back at closing for {$890.00} and were told at closing it was due to us paying the {$2500.00} XXXXarnest money in the beginning along with the VA and MI promotion covered the remaining costs. I spoke to two lenders who stated that an overfund in escrow is allowed and what the manger stated to us on that matter was incorrect. The lender explained that the lender should have had a discussion with my husband and I on if we wanted to do improved taxes, which would have made our mortgage around the {$2000.00} a month in addition to paying at closing so that we did not have a shortage when the house was assessed and taxes came out and it would've reflected the previous loan estimates as you can see in the documents were the escrow was originally {$740.00}. The other option would've been the unimproved taxes, which lowers the monthly mortgage and cost at closing and is what created the shortage we are discussing now. This is the option MIFinancial opted for WITHOUT consulting my husband and I. I have tried to call the branch manager multiple times and leaving endless messages with no response. The shortage in discussion is {$5300.00}, when I called our new lender they expressed that if my husband and I were to pay the {$5300.00} then our mortgage would definitely decrease to {$1800.00} as our escrow would no longer be in a shortage. The main issue right now is if my husband and I were to be involved in their decision of the improved on unimproved taxes like we should have been per our realtors lender then we would not have this issue now. I do not believe my husband and I should have to pay the shortage as it was not our fault and they made the decision on our behalf which is not allowed since it is our decision. I would appreciate help as I can not get into contact with MIFinancial and this issue could have been prevented from the very beginning if they kept the original loan estimates instead of changing it per the closing disclosure at closing. I have not received an answer as to why THEY chose to decrease the mortgage and closing costs which decreased the escrow and caused this shortage since my husband and I were not involved in that decision making as we trusted them when doing all calculations on our behalf since it is not our job to create this estimates. Like I said the main issue is this could have all been prevented if my husband and I were allowed to do the improved taxes, but they did communicate this choice with us nor did they give us that choice and on that phone call spoken about earlier with the XXXX it was not allowed to do so proving they made that choice on their own to do the unimproved taxes which cause the shortage. Thank you.