Consumer complaint received 2024-11-02 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — Home equity loan or line of credit (HELOC)
Issue: Trouble during payment process — Escrow, taxes, or insurance
Company: Shellpoint Partners, LLC
State: CO

Complaint narrative:
This situation began in XX/XX/XXXX when our insurance premium increased significantly from {$4700.00} per year to {$9900.00}. Due to this drastic increase, we promptly canceled our existing policy and obtained a new one with XXXX XXXX XXXX, effective XX/XX/XXXX, at a premium of {$3900.00}. We submitted all updated information to Shellpoint Mortgage immediately. 

Additionally, our property taxes increased in XXXX by {$820.00} for the year. Despite this, Shellpoint had already paid our original insurance premium of {$9900.00} for the year, which was previously from XXXX XXXX. Without prior notice, our mortgage payment rose from {$3200.00} to {$4800.00}, reflecting the new insurance and tax premiums, and we were informed that our escrow account was short. 

In XXXX, we began searching for new insurance after our payment became unaffordable. On XX/XX/XXXX, our policy with XXXX XXXX XXXX became active, and all relevant documents was submitted to Shellpoint. I informed Shellpoint about the change in insurance and inquired about when our payment would be updated. They stated that a new escrow analysis had been initiated and would be completed within 30 days. Due to the increased payment, we asked Shellpoint whether we should continue making payments, and they advised us to wait until the escrow analysis was complete, assuring us that no late fees would be incurred during that time. 

After 30 days, we reached out to Shellpoint for an update on our payment and were told they were short-staffed, causing delays in the analysis. We contacted XXXX XXXX XXXX to determine if there was anything we needed to do on our end, only to learn that they had not received any communication from Shellpoint regarding payment. We then followed up with Shellpoint, inquiring about the status of our insurance premium payment. They informed us that the payment had been mailed to Arizona ; however, upon verifying with XXXX XXXX, we discovered that this was incorrect. 

XXXX XXXX explained that Shellpoint needed to send the payment to a Wisconsin branch rather than the XXXX, Montana branch. I promptly provided Shellpoint with the correct address. Throughout this process, the communication between Shellpoint and XXXX XXXX was beyond our control, and we later learned that Shellpoint had not submitted the escrow analysis because the insurance check had not been received due to their error. Our analysis was not completed until the end of XXXX. 

My wife and I have made XXXX to XXXX phone calls to Shellpoint, each time having to explain our situation to a new representative. After the escrow analysis was completed, our payment returned to {$3200.00} for XXXX and XXXX. However, when we logged in for XXXX, we found our payment had increased to {$3600.00}. Our calculations of the XXXX and XXXX taxes, along with the insurance and property tax adjustments, did not align. 

I requested access to all recorded phone calls, but Shellpoint refused my request. When I asked for the total number of times we had spoken between XX/XX/XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX, they declined to provide that information but acknowledged that it was a significant number of calls. On XX/XX/XXXX, I requested the removal of our escrow account due to their incompetence and the ongoing problems we faced, and I filed a complaint within the company. 

We were subsequently informed that our escrow account could not be removed for 24 months because of a late payment in XX/XX/XXXX, which resulted from Shellpoint 's advice to withhold payment until the escrow analysis was completed. Consequently, our credit score has suffered due to this situation created by Shellpoint. They have admitted fault during our phone conversations, yet have refused to rectify the situation, insisting that we submit a handwritten letter for review despite their clear accountability. 

Furthermore, our late fees have not been removed from our account, even though we were assured they would be. We made our XX/XX/XXXX payment of {$3600.00}, despite the discrepancies in the calculations, to avoid another late payment on our credit report or mortgage. We have maintained this mortgage since XX/XX/XXXX without any late payments until the issues arose in XX/XX/XXXX. Shellpoint has taken advantage of our situation, causing significant hardship to our well-being.

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