Consumer complaint received 2020-07-15
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Closing on a mortgage — 
Company: CITIZENS FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. (NJ)

I spoke to XXXX XXXX from Citizens Bank in XXXX when I was interested in purchasing my second home in XXXX XXXX. While shopping for loans, I considered Citizens as an option, having never worked with them before. The deal fell through, and for several years XXXX continued to reach out to me attempting to win my business for any future home purchases. In XXXX of XXXX, I was interested in purchasing a home in XXXX XXXX, XXXX  - a XXXX XXXX beach/shore town - as a permanent home/residence ( I own an existing property in XXXX XXXX, XXXX  ). I received a pre-approval from XXXX and my existing bank. XXXX, after several calls and emails, convinced me that Citizens could meet XXXX XXXX  pricing and could move quickly, as my offer was based on a fast, 30-day close. 

The home, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, NJ XXXX, was currently under contract when I put in my offer. The seller 's agent had informed my agent that they believed the financing of the original buyer would fall through based on conversations with them. We also learned that there were multiple other backup offers on this home. The selling price for the home was {$260000.00}, and I offered {$280000.00}, with {$5000.00} back for closing costs - {$7000.00} over asking price. As is very common in real estate, on 'hot ' properties with multiple offers, it is extremely common to go above asking. 

The assigned appraiser appraised the home and attempted to contact the seller 's agent multiple times. The appraiser became frustrated because he was unable to reach the seller 's agent - why? Because he was calling his fax line instead of his actual phone number. When he finally reached the seller, he expressed his frustration being unable to get a hold of him. He also informed the seller 's agent that he " felt something shady was going on '' because the home had been reduced twice, then my offer came in above asking. The reasoning was that the home was listed in XX/XX/XXXX and, as a result of COVID-19, the home was unable to be shown for several months. The seller is an investor, had performed a 'studs out ' renovation, raised the home 10+ feet for flood protection ( XXXX cost ), and updated the home with all new everything - appliances, walls, flooring, piping, sewage, etc. With that, he was motivated to sell the home, which he had own for 1 year as of XX/XX/XXXX, and had reduced it twice in an effort to sell the home quickly ( given the COVID-19 situation, where in-person showings were not allowed ). When the in-person showing opened back up, I visited homes in the area that first weekend as did many others. In addition to my offer, which was a backup offer as the home was already under contract, six ( 6 ) other backup offers were submitted during this process, many of which were at or above asking - a testament to both the rising home prices in the area and the market in general. The appraiser did NOT factor in many items, including the raising of the home - which significantly increases the value of the home. The comps were not close, based on the raising of the home or the market value of homes in XXXX XXXX. We submitted a number of comps that backed up our price. 

Following the appraisal, I quickly moved forward with a new bank/loan officer and the home was appraised at a value that 1 )  reflected the actual market value, 2 ) considered the FEMA-compliant home elevation into the home value, and 3 ) included the full home renovation into account. With this new bank, I was able to successfully close on the home. 

I am requested a full refund of the appraisal fee of {$520.00}, as well as an additional {$1800.00} for time spent. I will be following this complaint up with a XXXX XXXX XXXX  complaint as well as a suit in small claims court should this demand not be met.