Consumer complaint received 2025-10-22 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — VA mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — Applying for or obtaining a modification, forbearance plan, short sale, or deed-in-lieu
Company: Shellpoint Partners, LLC
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
In XX/XX/XXXX I contacted the lender Newrez to explain that my payment dates have changed with my employer because my employment changed. This was going to cause my pay days to not line up with the payment dates of the mortgage loan. I would have to at that time pull my loan out of their automatic payment plan. 
I asked if there was any way to change the loan payment due date. They said no only if I refinanced the loan. Due to interest rates that wouldn't have been a wise decision. 
I explained my main concern is that my monthly payment would become late. Then I would get a late fee of {$120.00} added to my due dates which would prevent me from being able to make my full payment. 
I stopped the automatic payment plan set up with Newerz and set up auto pay with my personal bank XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX. Unfortunately, my credit union mailed the loan payment checks to Newrez and by the time my checks cleared for Newrez I started to receive late payment fees of {$120.00} on XX/XX/XXXX. 
I called Newrez in XXXX and asked if they could waive the 1st late payment fee. I explained that with the elate payment fee on my account it is preventing me from setting up automatic payments with Newrez. Their system will not let you make modifications to the auto pay or set up auto pay if there is a late fee on the account or past due money owed. 
They told me to just pay the late fee and then I would be able to set up the auto pay. 
I explained it was my first late payment and that their policy states they can waive the first late payment fee. The representative I talked to in XXXX told me they would waive it after I made my full payment of what was due for the month. I explained to her that If they didnt waive it now then I wouldn't be able to set up auto payments on their website to come out semimonthly ( once every 2 weeks ) and by the time may bank sends them the payment for the month it will be late by on day past their grace period and then there will be an additional late payment fee added to my account and that would once again prevent me from setting up auto pay and also it would prevent me from having enough money the next month to pay the full loan payment with the additional late payment fee.

I told them Im trying to do the right thing ; Im wanting to pay what is owed. I want to set up auto pay semimonthly so my payments will not be late. 
I was told by the Newrez rep to call back after the XXXX payment went through, and they would waive the late payment fee. 
I called back in XXXX after the payment cleared. It did clear late and there was another late payment fee added to my account. This time the rep told me they can only waive the first late payment fee and not the second one. I tried to explain that I was previously told they couldnt waive the first late payment fee until my loan payment was current and the only reason the 2nd late payment fee was added to the account was because I couldnt set up the auto pay on their website until there was no late payment fee so my bank mailed the payment check and by the time it clears it was late. I told them I was told by their rep all I had to do was call back after the payment clear and they would help me. 
Well, they didn't help me. I was charged a late payment fee in XXXX and XXXX. 
I called back in XXXX and explained the above to a new rep from Newrez. She said they dont do waivers of late payment fees. I told her that is not what I was told in XXXX or XXXX when I called. She said there was nothing she could do. I asked to talk to a supervisor. I was transferred to a supervisor. I explained all the above and told her Im trying to set up auto pay but cant on their website when there is a late payment fee. I explained that I paid the late payment fee with my XXXX payment but since I wasn't able to set up auto pay in their system the pay in XXXX was late by one day and now there is another late payment fee and ow I cant set up auto pay again and Im getting trapped in this endless cycle and I just need them to please waive the late payment fee of {$120.00} so I can set up auto pay in their system. She told me she would send up the notes of my problem to a manager and see about getting the late payment fee waived.

The call ended and a few hours later I called back to check the status, and I was told by the first rep I talked to that they dont waive the 2nd late payment fee. I painfully explained my story to that rep again, she said there was nothing she could do, and she transferred me to a supervisor. That supervisor told me she sees the notes in the account, and it looks like I now need to send in a written request for them to waive the late payment fee but would need to make the account current before they would set up auto pay. I explained that was never told to me before that I had to write a written note requesting why I need them to waive the late fee. I explained Ive been calling about this issue for the past 3 months, and Im told something different every time. She told me if I paid the late payment fee it would fix the issue. I explained that I had been told that 3 times before and it never fixes the issue because I cant afford the late payment fee, I cant pay the loan from my bank on time because of how long it take the check to process that they send and I cant set up the auto pay with their bank ( Newrez ) until there is no late fee on the account. She basically said there was nothing she could do and she was sorry. She did ask me to send in a payment at that time, and I explained I couldnt afford it. 
On XX/XX/XXXX I paid the last late payment fee of {$120.00}. I then went on Newrez website to set up the auto pay for semimonthly. At this point in time, I had to pay 3 late payment fees over the course of 3 months and each month I was told by Newerz reps the fee would be waived when I made the account current and each time, they never did that. THEY LIED TO ME EVERY TIME. 
On XX/XX/XXXX I filled out and application on the Newrez website for loan assistance. I had to change home insurance companys this year because my previous company was going to drop my coverage because they no longer provide Dog Bite coverage. I had to find a new home insurance company that offers dog coverage. When this switch happen it caused Newrez to make payment to the new insurance company which put my escrow in the negative. Currently Im {$2600.00} behind on my escrow balance and with my current income compared to what I owe monthly to other debts I can no longer afford my current mortgage payment, and I can not pay into the escrow to make the account current. If they revise my current mortgage and escrow and adjust the monthly payment to increase to pay the balance owed in my escrow it will definitively make my monthly payment even more expensive which will force me to stop making the monthly payments. I have about {$9000.00} in debts I need to pay off so I can afford my mortgage again. I will be able to pay off those debts in 3 months if Newrez is willing to pause my mortgage payments for the next 3 months. I will be able to pay the escrow balance in that time also. If Newrez was to let my not pay my mortgage payments for 4 months I would be able to pay off the {$9000.00} in debts and the escrow balance. If they review my escrow balance in XX/XX/XXXX, which is when they say they will, they will determine the need to increase my escrow monthly payment which will increase my mortgage payment which will effectively put me in a position where I will not be able to pay or afford my mortgage. 
I have not heard back from them on my application for loan modification or payment pauses. I also have no faith in them helping me as they lied to me over and over again about helping me with the late payment fees. Which they never did help me with. 
On XX/XX/XXXX I logged into the Newrez website set up the semimonthly auto pay and Im hoping all will be ok now.

I just need some type of health. If they are willing to pause my payments for 4-5 months it would let me pay off the other debts, I have that will free up the month I need monthly to make the full mortgage payment and pay off the escrow before they increase my monthly escrow payments.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation