Consumer complaint received 2023-09-27 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — FHA mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — Escrow, taxes, or insurance
Company: PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES, LLC.
State: PA

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX, my mortgage servicer, PennyMac Loan Services , LLC ( " PM '' ) conducted an escrow analysis on my escrow account and determined that my monthly mortgage payment needed to be increased approximately {$700.00} per month. 
After doing some initial research, I realized that in a prior escrow analysis, PM concluded that I had too much money in my escrow account and issued me a check for {$3800.00}. I can't recall ever receiving a check from PM, so I called them and confirmed that the check was never cashed. PM then told me that it would call me within a week once they got this amount credited to my bank account, and at that time I could transfer the money back to my escrow account, and another escrow analysis could take place to determine what my monthly payment would be. I paid my XXXX mortgage payment at the prior amount XXXX  $ XXXX, and waited to hear back from PM. 
After not receiving a call back from PM, I called them today and spoke with a person named XXXX. XXXX said that PM made two mistakes : 1 ) they miscalculated the amount of school tax ( they were off by approximately {$3500.00}! ) I owed in XXXX which resulted in the prior escrow analysis occurring and the check being issued, and 2 ) my mortgage payment being adjusted lower ( it was previously ~ $ XXXX ) for a lower amount being contributed to my escrow account month to month, which resulted in me having a negative escrow account balance because the amounts being disbursed were not being covered by my monthly payment. XXXX was using two statements detailing these escrow analyses which I've attached here to help explain what happened, and there are so many things about these statements that don't make sense to me- for example, the negative escrow account balances for XX/XX/XXXX- why didn't they conduct an escrow analysis then? XXXX said he would submit a " ticket '' and that they would get back to me within the next 5 business days, where they would review my entire account and provide an explanation, and propose a possible solution. I asked XXXX what I should do about my XXXX mortgage payment which is due in a couple of days, and he told me not to pay it since I have 15 day grace period. I was honest with XXXX that I felt that I was being deceived by PM in some sort of way and asked if this was normal. XXXX assured me that this wasn't normal and he was sorry for the issue on PM 's behalf. I also asked XXXX if I should call my local Tax Collector to ensure I wasn't delinquent on my taxes. XXXX said that probably is not a bad idea, since judging from my tax statements it was difficult to determine if PM actually paid the taxes they were supposed to pay on my behalf. 
After I hung up the phone with XXXX I was asked to take a survey on his service. XXXX was actually very great and I could tell he was sympathetic and wanted to help me solve the issue, so I wanted to convey his performance thru the survey. At the end of the survey, I was asked if I wanted to be transferred to a senior representative because I answered in the negative that XXXX didn't help me solve the issue. 
I then was on the phone with a PM rep named XXXX, who again attempted to explain what was going on. XXXX was a bit more defensive, and tried to resolve the issue by " figuring out a payment amount that could work for me. '' I told XXXX that I don't think something was right with my account based on the information I was seeing in my account statements and that I truly don't believe that my payment should increase beyond the original mortgage payment amount. XXXX wasn't as helpful as XXXX, although he did provide a Payment History breakdown, which I've attached here. 
After looking at the Payment History breakdown, something seems off with my escrow account since the very inception of my mortgage. Right away, PM issued me an Escrow Refund for almost the entire account balance of my Escrow Balance, and gave me an Escrow Advance, putting me in the hole. I never knew this even took place, and my mortgage payment was never readjusted. 
This is as far as I've gotten with trying to resolve the issue and I'm going to continue to try and figure out whats going on - but I am not an accountant and this stuff is like a foreign language to me. Additionally, now I have to contact my local tax collector and determine if I am delinquent on my local taxes. 
All I can say is that something does not seem right here and I have lost all my trust in my mortgage servicer.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief