Consumer complaint received 2026-02-19 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — VA mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — An existing modification, forbearance plan, short sale, or other loss mitigation relief
Company: Ocwen Financial Corporation
State: DC

Complaint narrative:
ISSUE : PHH Mortgage is engaging in abusive and deceptive servicing practices by denying a permanently approved loan modification. They have ( 1 ) blamed me for the malfunction of their own internal scanning equipment, ( 2 ) refused to produce the physical original documents to prove their claim, and ( 3 ) imposed a physically impossible 6-day mail turnaround deadline to manufacture a reason for denial. TIMELINE OF EVENTS : 1. SUCCESSFUL TRIAL : I completed my XXXX trial plan perfectly, paying over {$12000.00}. Payments were made early or on time in XXXX, XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX, PHH issued a Final Modification Approval. XXXX. THE " SCANNER '' DECEPTION : I mailed the original wet-ink signed agreement to PHH, which they received on XX/XX/XXXX. PHH denied the modification, claiming the bottom of the pages were " cut off. '' In their response letters dated XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX wrote that this issue " originated from the scanned version submitted from [ my ] end. '' I submitted the original physical paper documents via mail, not a digital file. I did retain a copy of the original paperwork for my records. The scanning error occurred on PHH 's own intake equipment. When I challenged this, PHH refused to retrieve or produce the physical originals I mailed them, instead only providing a copy of their own bad scan to justify the denial. XXXX. IMPOSSIBLE DEADLINE ( SET UP TO FAIL ) : In their letter dated XX/XX/XXXX, PHH admitted that they mailed replacement documents to me on XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXth a strict return deadline of XX/XX/XXXX. This allowed only 6 days ( including a Sunday ) for the mail to travel from the servicer to me, be notarized, and travel back to the servicer. XXXX. FALSE ASSURANCES AND MOBILE NOTARY : I contacted PHH to explain that the mail would not even reach my home before the XX/XX/XXXX deadline. Realizing the mail would not make it on time, PHH sent a mobile notary to my home to expedite the signing. I specifically asked the PHH representative if the package would be considered " late '' if the notary came to my house on the due date itself. The representative emphatically said " NO. '' I relied on this verbal assurance and the appointment set by PHH. 5. WRONGFUL DENIAL : Despite their explicit promise that the notary appointment would satisfy the requirement, PHH denied the modification on XXXX XXXX XXXX day after the deadline. They penalized me for a delay they caused and a timeline they admitted was impossible. XXXX. ADMISSION OF FAULT : PHH representatives admitted to me verbally on the phone that this XXXX timeframe was insufficient for US Mail XXXX Despite this, they denied the modification on XXXX XXXX XXXX day after the impossible deadlineeven though I utilized a mobile notary sent by PHH to attempt to expedite the process. XXXX. REFUSAL TO CORRECT : On XX/XX/XXXX, I sent an urgent escalation to the PHH Ombudsman and Escalations Team, citing the impossible math of their deadline and their equipment failure. PHH has refused to reopen the file, stating simply that documents " were not received by the deadline, '' while ignoring that the deadline was physically impossible to meet and that they had authorized the notary process. 8. VIOLATIONS : -- DECEPTIVE ACTS : It is deceptive for a servicer to blame a consumer for the malfunction of the servicer 's own intake scanners, and materially false to claim a paper submission " originated '' as a bad scan from the consumer. It is also deceptive to assure a borrower that a mobile notary appointment will resolve a deadline issue, only to deny the loan for lateness the very next day. -- UNFAIR PRACTICES : It is unfair to mail a document on XX/XX/XXXX and penalize a borrower for not returning it by XX/XX/XXXX. PHH knows US Mail can not complete a round trip in that timeframe.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation