Consumer complaint received 2026-05-21 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: FIFTH THIRD FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
Loss Mitigation Delays from Lender to Cause Imminent Financial Hardship : Good day, I am XXXX VA loan borrower in the process of completing a short sale of my property in the State of Florida with Fifth Third Bank. XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX For the past year, I have been affected by the major shutdown of XXXX, deferred rXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX, and reductions in force which have all led to manning gaps and subsequent restructure and reorganization of my department. I have been engaged in the short sale process with Fifth Third since approximately XX/XX/XXXX. Despite these challenges, I have remained current on my mortgage and have never been delinquent throughout this process. To be clear, the request of my short sale with Fifth Third was not due to my inability to pay or any financial irresponsibility, but rather due to the initial relocation of my position with the XXXX to a different XXXX XXXX. I state 'initial relocation ' because at the time of my short sale request to Fifth Third in XX/XX/XXXX, this was the intent for my position from my department in order for me to keep my job. However, it was eventually decided by my employer that this position would be eliminated altogether. As a result, I was offered a different position in XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX the past months I have been given several excuses by Fifth Third representatives for the frequent delays in this short sale process ( systems upgrades, database outages, manning, 'missing ' statements/documents from me that were previously submitted... etc. ). Most recently ( approximately XXXX weeks ago ), I was advised by Fifth Third representatives that the final review documents were with the VA and that they ( Fifth Third ) were only waiting for action from the XXXX Any updates requested by me or Short Sale Cooperative thereafter, received generic responses such as, " We are working diligently... we will notify you when we hear back from the VA XXXX '' or words to that effect. Any phone call attempts I made to Fifth Third 's Loss Mitigation XXXX number were met with XXXX rings and a full mailbox - no matter what time of day I called, or how many times I called, there was never an answer. To ascertain a definitive answer on the status of my short sale, I called the XXXX VA XXXX XXXX yesterday, XXXX XX/XX/XXXX, and spoke with VA representatives who are responsible for VA XXXX short sales. I was informed by VA that Fifth Third has not yet submitted any documentation with respect to the short sale of my Florida property and therefore the VA has nothing available for review or action - in direct conflict with the representations made to me or Short Sale Cooperative by Fifth Third. I have escalated the timeliness issue with Fifth Third repeatedly since the VA XXXX from XX/XX/XXXX, advising them ( Fifth Third ) that VA appraisals are typically only good for XXXX to 90 days ; and if they ( Fifth Third ) breaks this timeframe, the VA would need to re-accomplish their appraisal. The escalations have had no meaningful resolution or clarity on when or whether the short sale package was ever actually submitted to the VA, what specific documents are outstanding, or why this process has been delayed by Fifth Third for months. As a result of Fifth Third 's delays, I am now facing imminent financial hardship entirely caused by servicing delays beyond my control. I am due to report to Washington state by the end of the first week of XX/XX/XXXX, and will be responsible for : XXXX ) Relocation expenses ; XXXX ) Rental deposits ; XXXX ) Childcare enrollment costs ; XXXX ) Utility deposits ; and any other housing expenses associated with living in Washington XXXX. At the same time, I continue to carry the mortgage, utilities and XXXX XXXX 's obligations for the Florida property while the short sale remains stalled. If this process continues to be delayed, I XXXX be forced into delinquency despite having maintained a perfect payment history throughout this process with Fifth Third ; an avoidable hardship had the short sale been processed timely and accurately. For this reason, I am seeking assistance with dealing with Fifth Third and respectfully request an immediate review of my file from at an executive-level to action the immediate submission of any outstanding documentation to the VA ( XXXX not already completed ) and expedite the process of the short sale due to the immediate relocation hardship ; as well as any protection from negative servicing consequences caused by lender processing delays during active short sale review. Thank you for your time.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation