Consumer complaint received 2025-06-10 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — Applying for or obtaining a modification, forbearance plan, short sale, or deed-in-lieu
Company: PARAMOUNT RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE GROUP
State: NV

Complaint narrative:
I am a co-signer on a conventional mortgage for a single-family residence, which I co-own. 

In XX/XX/XXXX, my co-applicant and I requested a loan modification from the servicer to reduce our monthly mortgage payment, and we were approved for a COVID-19 loan modification plan in XX/XX/XXXX with a 3-month trial payment period starting in XX/XX/XXXX. 

Prior to the loan modification, our standard monthly mortgage payment was {$4900.00}. We were offered a 3-month trial loan period ( XXXX, XXXX, XX/XX/XXXXXXXX  ) with 3 payments of {$4100.00}. It was explained that following the trial period, we would be given the option to accept the loan modification or seek additional financial assistance. [ Call to servicer on XX/XX/XXXX, spoke with Emp ID XXXX XXXX XXXX who communicated that after the 3 trial payments, if the renegotiated payment is still out of our reach, decline the offer and ask for a different loan modification offer. ] I was informed that our regular mortgage payments would be paused during the trial period. Therefore, after making our regular monthly payment for XX/XX/XXXX, we skipped our XXXX mortgage payment, as the next payment due following approval was XX/XX/XXXX. 

We paid {$4100.00} in XXXX, XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX. In XX/XX/XXXX, we began receiving late mortgage payment notices and risk of foreclosure warnings due to non-payment. After calling to confirm that regular mortgage payments were not required and even told to ignore the delinquency notices, we continued on the assumption that the delinquency issues noted on the account would resolve themselves following the end of the trial period. [ Call to servicer on XX/XX/XXXX, spoke with XXXX ID XXXX XXXX XXXX who communicated that everyone receives delinquent notices and that I can ignore the notices. ] [ Call to servicer on XX/XX/XXXX, spoke with XXXX ID XXXX, XXXX XXXX, who provided past due balance, suspense account balance, and escrow shortage balance {$4700.00}, and who confirmed that a payment of {$810000.00} would bring the account current. ] On XX/XX/XXXX, after several phone calls ( during which I learned that due to " non-payment '' and an escrow shortage, in XX/XX/XXXX, our mortgage payment had increased to {$5400.00} to cure the shortgage ) to discuss the terms of the loan modification and declining those terms, and continuing to be told we were past due by {$15000.00} for XXXX, XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX, we made an {$8100.00} payment on XX/XX/XXXX. This was done because that was the amount communicated to me that we were behind in and that in combination with a {$7500.00} balance in a suspense account ( which held the majority of the trial loan payments as part of those funds were used to pay XX/XX/XXXXXXXX  mortgage payment ) would bring the loan current to XX/XX/XXXX, leaving only XX/XX/XXXXXXXX  due. [ Call to servicer on XX/XX/XXXX, spoke with XXXX ID XXXX XXXX XXXX who again confirmed this would bring the account current. Second call with XXXX ID XXXX who took payment of {$8100.00}. ] In XX/XX/XXXX, we received yet more notices and calls, this time indicating that our account was now past due, with a balance of {$21000.00}, inclusive of XX/XX/XXXX. Based on the information communicated to me, I assumed that the payments we had made up to that point would be applied to our mortgage. However, on XX/XX/XXXX, after receiving a notification, I checked our online account and saw a copy of a check in the amount of {$15000.00} issued to my co-applicant. [ Call to servicer on XX/XX/XXXX, spoke with XXXX ID XXXX XXXX with the loan modification team, who communicated to me that I needed to call customer service as they would be better able to answer my questions about payments. This was after asking why a check was issued in the amount we were told we were past due, and why our payments made during the trial period weren't applied to the account. The response was that, if a loan modification offer is denied ( rejected in our case ), any funds from that trial period would be applied to the account. When I tried to explain that's not what happened in this case, this was when I was asked to call customer service during regular business hours. ] On XX/XX/XXXX, I checked the online account after receiving yet another notification, which stated that if we did not bring the account up to date on or before XX/XX/XXXX, the servicer would begin foreclosure proceedings. [ Call with the servicer on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX XXXX PT, spoke with XXXX ID XXXX XXXX. I requested to speak with a Supervisor and was connected to XXXX ID XXXX XXXX XXXX. I informed XXXX that I was calling to file a complaint regarding the mishandling of my loan modification, citing the contradictory communications, including the fact that I continued to receive delinquent notices despite making on-time payments during the trial period. I was placed on hold for several minutes as she reviewed the account. When she returned, she explained that she couldn't access the loan modification details and therefore couldn't help me. She would put through a request to have an Escalation Supervisor call me back. Second call at XXXX XXXX  PT, spoke with XXXX ID XXXX XXXX. I explained I had been waiting on a call back from an escalation supervisor and if I could be put through to one. After a brief hold, it was communicated that none were available, but if I wanted to request a callback, one would return my call within 24-48 hours. I agreed. The rep then asked if I wanted to bring the account to current since it was 4 months past due and I responded that's what I wanted to speak with the supervisor about and that I would not continue the conversation with him as I was not happy about the confusing information I had received from customer service. ] I'm filing this complaint because I was under the impression that following declining the loan modification plan that the funds would be used to cover the past due amounts, which in effect weren't really past due as we were in a trial payment period ( I was told that the sending of late notices during a trial period is typical, even though I asked several times, to confirm that we did not have to make our regular mortgage payments and being told yes, and in fact, we couldn't even make our normal mortgage payments on the online account because during the trial period, it only showed the {$4100.00} being due ). 

Even though we plan, upon receiving the {$15000.00} check to deposit it and then bring the account up to current, inclusive of XXXX, XXXX, XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX, before XX/XX/XXXX, this has caused a lot of frustration, not to mention now facing the risk of foreclosure, it's unfair to feel as if we've done something wrong when we've been following the instructions provided, and highly irregular to be told contradictory information and to be harrassed about non-payment when payments were in fact made but held in a suspense account and not applied to our account. In my opinion, the servicer mishandled this situation by improperly communicating procedures to my co-applicant, failing to set clear expectations, and inaccurately marking our account as past due. It appears as if the mortgage side of the servicer and the loan modification side of the servicer were not in proper communication, which resulted in harsh consequences for my co-applicant and me. All of this could have been avoided with better employee training and communication.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation