Consumer complaint received 2025-01-09 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — VA mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — Fees charged
Company: Freedom Mortgage Company
State: TX

Complaint narrative:
This complaint addresses Freedom Mortgages RESPA reply dated XX/XX/XXXX, specifically their denial of my request for invoices or statements related to fees added to my account. In response to my request, Freedom Mortgage arbitrarily retroactively modified the account ledger, altering transaction descriptions for these fees. While my RESPA dispute was still active, Freedom Mortgage took two actions : they changed the transaction descriptions for the disputed fees and refused to provide the requested invoices, payment records, or any documentation to substantiate these charges as legitimate costs accrued. 

Freedom Mortgages XX/XX/XXXX, RESPA reply failed to provide the requested information or justify their refusal to do so. My complaint is that their response is insufficient and likely violates RESPA regulations. I submitted a RESPA request asking Freedom Mortgage to provide invoices for charges on my account. In their reply, they refused to provide any documentation of the costs they claim are for fees I owe. Furthermore, during the active RESPA dispute, they arbitrarily and retroactively modified my account ledger without transparency, seemingly to justify the fees they had added. 

In their RESPA reply, Freedom Mortgage specifically states, " We are unable to provide invoices or itemized statements Freedom Mortgage refuses to provide an invoice or documentation substantiating the fees they applied without consent or documentation supporting the cost and has manipulated the account ledger. 

Following my RESPA request for invoice or payment records or any documentation that shows the cost, Freedom Mortgage altered the description of those fees in the account ledger, changing them from " cash receipt '' ( XXXX and XXXX ledgers ) to " payment '' ( XXXX ledger ). This change occurred after XXXX and was made during the RESPA dispute process. 

This reclassification is an attempt by Freedom Mortgage to reinforce their position that the fees were valid and appropriately resolved. Transactions labeled as cash receipt typically represent internally reallocated funds with no clear application to a specific charge, suggesting the fees were applied unilaterally, without my consent or acknowledgment. By reclassifying the transaction as a payment, a term in accounting that implies an inherent obligation and resolution, they create the misleading impression that the fees were legitimate, acknowledged and resolved, when in fact they were not. 

Changing the ledger nearly two years after the fact in response to a RESPA request is fundamentally improper and unjustified. 

Their decision to retroactively alter the transaction description without documenting the change lacks transparency, breaches trust, likely violates RESPAs requirements, and, at minimum, demonstrates bad faith. 

In their RESPA response, Freedom Mortgage referenced my deed of trust, claiming it allows them to assess fees. However, the deed of trust does not permit arbitrary imposition of such fees without proper substantiation. Mortgage servicers are required to provide documentation justifying charges assessed to borrower accounts. It is not sufficient to simply assert the ability to collect fees. To deny my RESPA request without cause and change the account ledger is a violation and to change the ledger demonstrates intent to Freedom Mortgage has a responsibility to provide documentation for fees charged to my mortgage account. Instead, they fail to do so and make arbitrary changes to strengthen their position, all without visibility or transparency. 

In their RESPA reply, Freedom Mortgage selectively invoked the deed of trust to justify the fees, yet the ONLY fee explicitly addressed in the deed of trust is the {$15.00} property fee. They disproportionately emphasized this minor fee, obscuring their most significant admission : they either wouldnt or couldnt provide invoices or itemized statements for the remaining $ XXXX fees. This tactic is nothing short of a deliberate attempt to bury the truth. 

RESPA requests for information are designed to ensure borrowers can access critical information that servicers fail to provide, not for servicers to obscure the truth, evade answers, or boldly deny legitimate, regulatory-required requests. XXXX Mortgages response, that they simply can not provide it, buried within a paragraph of irrelevant information, is not only insufficient but also demonstrates their belief that they are above accountability and can disregard borrowers rights. 

Freedom Mortgage 's actions demonstrate a troubling lack of transparency. Their refusal to provide an invoice or statement showing these costs and fees, coupled with their intentional efforts to retroactively alter the account ledger, suggest that these fees were added arbitrarily simply because they could. 

I respectfully request that the CFPB compel Freedom Mortgage to provide documentation substantiating these fees or refund them. Additionally, I urge the CFPB to investigate Freedom Mortgages handling of this matter to ensure their practices align with RESPA requirements and protect borrowers from similar abuses in the future.

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