Andrea Z has decided to stop fighting to save her home. She's had enough anguish. Her many attempts to obtain that elusive loan modification or any help from EMC Mortgage has has caused Andrea to lose faith in home ownership and the "American dream" ---referring to it now as "the American Nightmare".
Andrea echos the sentiments of countless other unsuspecting homeowners who found themselves caught up in abusive, fraudulent or predatory mortgage servicing practices, saying; "Innocent people who just wanted a piece of the American Dream are now paying the price of losing their piece of the American Dream---What happened to the American Dream?"
I've shared and read hundreds of woefully painful stories of abuse that continue to solidly demonstrate most have asked all the right questions, did all that could be expected of them and were given nothing but the runaround -nothing but ruined credit, broken promises and shattered lives.
Read Andrea's story below, published with her permission;
January 23, 2011
Hi Denise; I too am a victim of EMC Mortgage Corp., and facing foreclosure. Here is my story which sounds the same as all of the hundreds that I have read online.
I am not going to fight for my home any longer. I am 57 years old and I do not need any more stress, I had enough. I have no money and I have no money to hire my attorney. This ordeal has taken its toll on me. I am stressed out, I am physically and mentally tired. My health is not worth the extra stress.
In 2007 I was laid off because the company that I worked for closed their doors. I collected unemployment for six months. In October of 2007 my unemployment ended. There were no UC extensions at that time. For the next six months I had no money coming in. I supported myself and paid my bills, car payment and mortgage by draining my savings and borrowed money against my life insurance. (Which I still have not been able to pay back) and using credit cards. Now I have credit card debt that I cannot repay. During this time I was never late or missed a mortgage payment.
Finally after not being able to find employment comparable to what I was previously earning. I found myself accepting a job at a much lower rate. I took a $20,000 a year cut in pay.
My cousin told me about the HAMP. She told me she got her mortgage modification in 12 weeks. She was one of the lucky ones that got a mortgage modification. Her mortgage was not with EMC.
I took her advice and applied for a loan modification through EMC Mortgage Corp. Not knowing at this time what a nightmare I was setting myself up for.
At the end of April 2009 I contacted EMC for information about their loan modification program. Because of my big drop in pay I was told by EMC CSR that I qualified. I was given a web address to go to and print up their loan modification application.
May 7, 2009 Faxed 23 pages to EMC copies of documents that EMC requested. I have the fax confirmation that all pages went through. I called EMC the next day to follow up and to make sure they received my fax. EMC said that they did.
May 27, 2009 I called EMC to follow up and see how my modification was coming along. At this time I was told by an EMC CSR that I omitted sending some documents from the original packet that I had sent them. In addition to the items that EMC said that I did not fax them, EMC asked for copies of Homeowners Declaration pages and Form 4506T. I knew that I did not omit sending these documents. I faxed everything that EMC asked for in the original packet. I have the confirmation that all 23 pages went through and a follow up phone call to EMC stating that they received all documents that was asked for.
May 28, 2009 Faxed 5 pages to EMC. The copies that I faxed were: Homeowners Declaration Page, Form 4506T, last two pay stubs, and most recent bank statement. I have confirmation that all 5 pages went through.
May 29, 2009 Called EMC to follow up to make sure my fax was received. EMC stated that the 5 pages were received.
July 8, 2009 Called EMC to follow up on my modification, I spoke with Robert. Robert stated that my loan modification was with the underwriters, but more documents needed fax to them. Once these documents are received then the underwriters will begin working on my modification again. Robert also stated that if I did not hear from him by August 20, 2009 to call him.
At this time Robert informed me that my mortgage increased by $205 per month. I knew that this was going to happen. In June 09 I informed EMC that I could no longer afford to pay my taxes and homeowners insurance on my own. Up until this point I had no escrow set up. By this time an escrow was set up. Robert told me not to worry that as long as I was in the loan modification program that I could still pay the old payment.
July 9, 2009 Fax 10 pages to EMC. The following was faxed: 2 most recent pay stubs, most recent savings and checking account statements, Home Affordable Modification Program Hardship Affidavit.
July 10, 2009 Called EMC to make sure my fax was received. EMC stated that they received the ten pages that I faxed to them.
August 20. 2009 Called EMC to speak to Robert (as Robert instructed me to do). I was told that Robert was unavailable. The CSR said that they would give him the message.
September 15, 2009 and September 30, 2009 Called EMC to speak to Robert. Again I was told that Robert was unavailable. The CRS said they would give him the message to return my call.
At this point I gave up in trying to speak to Robert. I called EMC every 3 or 4 weeks to follow up on my loan modification. Every time I called I was told that my modification was with the underwriters. No more information was given to me.
January 15, 2010 When I called EMC I called the 866-418-5901. I called this number for 8 months. On this day when I tried calling this number, my call went to Chase. As I was told by a Chase CSR they cannot access EMC accounts. When I asked the CSR to transfer me to an EMC representative I was hung up on or my call was disconnected. I spent two and one half hours on this date trying to contact an EMC CSR to get some answers and I got nowhere, only frustrated.
January 28, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. I was told at this time that more copies were needed to be faxed to them. The underwriters will not work on my loan modification until the documents are received.
January 29, 2010 Faxed 8 pages to EMC. The following documents were faxed: 2008 copy of income tax return, recent copy of homeowner's insurance policy with annual insurance bill and 4506T form. Received fax confirmation that all pages went through.
January 30, 2010 Called EMC to make sure they received my fax. EMC said that they received the fax of 8 pages.
February 20, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on my loan modification. I spoke to Harold. At this time Harold told me that my modification was with the processor, her name was Tomeka. He said that I should have my modification in five days on February 25, 2010.
March 1, 2010 Called EMC to find out when my loan modification was going to start and to get information as to how much my new monthly mortgage payment was going to be. The CSR that I spoke with said that my modification was with the underwriters and that it was nowhere near being ready to process. I told the CSR that I spoke to Harold on February 20th and he said that my modification was with the processor Tomeka and that my modification would be ready on February 25th. The EMC CSR stated that there were no notes on my account stating that my loan was with the processor.
March 20, 210 I sent an email to one of the senators in my state for some help. The senators office tried to help me, but got nowhere with EMC
.
April 12, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. At this time I was told my modification was with the underwriters and the underwriters are requesting more copies of documents.
April 13, 2010 Faxed EMC 9 pages of documents that they requested. The documents requested were: 2008 copy of income tax return, recent copy of annual homeowner's insurance policy with annual insurance bill and form 4506T. I have fax confirmation that all nine pages went through.
April 14, 2010 Called EMC to make sure they received my fax of nine pages. EMC said that they received all nine pages.
May 23, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. I was told that my modification was with the underwriters and that the underwriters were requesting additional copies of documents and when those documents are received the underwriters will start working on my modification again. At this time I asked the CSR why I was not contacted when more documents were needed so that the underwriters would not stop working on my modification. I told the CSR that I never received an email, voice mail or regular mail asking for additional documents. The CSR said to me that EMC does not permit the use email or leaving a voice mail message to let the customer know that additional documents are needed. I said to the CSR, how are the customers supposed to know that additional documents are needed? The CSR's reply was when we call in to follow up we will be told at that time. By this time I am getting really PO'ed and I know that she could hear it in my voice. I said that this makes no sense. Valuable time is being wasted by waiting for the customer to call and until the customer does call the underwriters stop working on the modification until the documents are received. The CSR said that I did not need to get angry at her as she was just doing her job. I said thank you and I hung up.
May 24, 2010 Faxed EMC 9 pages of additional documents which were requested. These documents included: 2 most recent pay stubs, request for modification and affidavit, form 4506T, most recent utility bill showing property address. Have confirmation that all 9 pages went through.
May 25, 2010 Called EMC to make sure my fax was received. I was told that all 9 pages were received.
June 9, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. At this time I was told that my modification was with the underwriters and that additional documents were needed. When the documents are received then the underwriters will pick up where they left off on my modification.
June 10, 2010 Faxed to EMC 16 pages of requested documents. These documents are: 2009 income tax return, May 2010 and April 2010 bank statements. I have confirmation that all 16 pages went through.
June 11, 2010 Called EMC to make sure my fax of 16 pages was received. EMC stated that they received all 16 pages.
June 25, 2010 On this date I was laid off from my job due to company downsizing.
July 28, 2010 Received a letter from EMC stating that my home was going to be foreclosed. The letter was from EMC's homeowner's assistance department. I called the homeowner's assistance department at 888-609-2379 to find out why my home was going to be foreclosed when I was in the loan modification program. I was told not to worry about the letter as I was in the loan modification program and the letter I received was a computer generated letter.
August 3, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. I was told my modification was with the underwriters and that additional documents were needed.
August 4, 2010 Faxed EMC 8 pages of documents that were requested. These documents included: July 2010 bank statement and financial determination for unemployment benefits.
August 5, 2010 Called EMC to make sure my fax of 8 pages was received. EMC stated they received all 8 pages.
September 28, 2010 I received a certified letter from EMC Homeowner's Assistant Department. The letter was dated September 21, 2010. This letter was an Acceleration Warning Notice of Intent to Foreclose. I could not believe what I was reading. I was stunned. I could not understand why EMC was foreclosing when I was in the loan modification program.
After reading the letter I called EMC to again follow up on my loan modification figuring that the letter I received was a mistake. I was told that my modification was denied on September 10, 2010. When I asked why? EMC could not give me an answer. EMC said a denial letter would be sent to me explaining the reason for the denial. It has been 4 months now and I still have not received a denial letter.
October 4, 2010 Called EMC Collection Department (800-723-3004) to inform EMC about the Homeowner's Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program Act 91 and that I had an appointment with the Consumer Credit Counseling Agency on October 12th. According to this letter that I received from EMC I had 33 days to set up an appointment with this agency.
The woman that I spoke with was very nasty toward me. She insisted that she knew nothing about Act 91. During our conversation I informed this woman that I would be sending in my September's mortgage payment. The woman replied that I needed to send $3,355.10, if I sent any amount less my check would be denied, before our conversation ended this woman informed me that my home is going to be added to the foreclosure list on October 10, 2010.
I said to myself this must be a bad dream, I could not believe that this is actually happening. I strived to make sure that my mortgage payments were always on time or before the due date. For EMC Mortgage Corporation to treat their customers the way I was treated is totally unacceptable. They treated me like S***! (Not knowing then, what I know now.) I did not do anything wrong. I played their game and 17 months later I lost. I kept asking myself why it took 17 months for EMC to make a decision on my loan modification. All conversations that I had with EMC over the past 16 months, I was always told that I qualified for the loan modification and would receive it. Heck, at one point I was even give a date when I would receive the loan modification.
The $3,355.10 is the difference between my original monthly payment and the new payment with the escrow set up. I was told by Robert on July 8, 2009 not to worry about the new payment and to just keep paying the old payment.
October 12, 2010 Kept my appointment with the Consumer Credit Counseling Agency. The person's name that my case was assigned was Rochelle. Rochelle was very understanding and assured me that she could help me avoid foreclosure. Rochelle informed me that all mortgage companies have a program for the unemployed. She asked if I was informed by EMC about this program. I told Rochelle that I was not.
With my permission Rochelle called EMC to find out why I was not informed about this program. After an hour of being transferred to at least a dozen EMC representatives and put on hold and disconnected Rochelle finally got to speak to someone. This representative's name was Joann. Joann said that she could not speak to anyone without the client's authorization. At this point Rochelle put the speaker phone on so that I could hear the conversation. Rochelle informed Joann that I was sitting in her office. Rochelle asked Joann if she would accept a verbal authorization. Joann said that she would accept a verbal auth provided that I sign a written authorization that Joann was going to fax over. (The written authorization was never faxed over).
Rochelle asked Joann why I was never informed of the unemployed program. Joann's reply was that I was not eligible for the unemployed program. Rochelle told Joann that I did qualify as I was unemployed. Joann's reply was that I needed to be behind by 2 months in mortgage payments. Rochelle replied that I was behind by 2 months in mortgage payments. Joann had to reply with something as she knew Rochelle was right. So, Joann said that in order for me to qualify for the unemployed program that I needed to have a reserve of $5,000 in my account at EMC. Rochelle told Joann that if I had five grand then I would not need to be in the program nor would I be in default of my mortgage.
Rochelle asked Joann why my loan modification was denied. Joann replied that a letter was sent to me stating the reasons. Rochelle told Joann that I never received a denial letter as of this date. Joann said the letter was sent. Rochelle pressed Joann a reason for the denial. Finally Joann said the reason was that I was unemployed. Rochelle told Joann that I was employed when I applied for HAMP. In fact Joann she was employed for 13 months while she was in the program. Rochelle said to Joann that I qualified for the loan modification and that I should have received the loan modification. Joann answered back with many answers that she could dig up, none of which satisfied Rochelle. When I left Rochelle that day she said that she could help me with Act 91.
October 18, 2010 Received a letter from EMC stating that EMC could help me to save my home with the Home Affordable Modification Program. EMC wanted me to reapply for the loan modification program. I thought to myself; how dare EMC to ask me to reapply after they just denied me a little over a month ago. I was not reapplying as I knew what the outcome would be. I was not going to jump through EMC's hoops again.
It is now the end of January 2011. As far as the help from the state through act 91, I don't know what happen there. Tried calling Rochelle several times and left voice messages, no return calls from Rochelle. I am assuming that I will not be receiving any help through act 91.
January 18, 2011 County Sheriff left a yellow notice in my door stating that he had legal documents that must be hand-delivered. I was to call the sheriff the next morning between 8:30 am to 9:30 am.
I knew what these documents are. I do not have the money to hire my attorney. My attorney spoke with me on the phone and told me what to do and what not to do.
January 19, 2011 Called the county sheriff's office and spoke to the sheriff that was at my home the day before. He told me that he had documents for me that needed to be hand delivered. He said that he could redeliver the documents on January 25, 2011. I said to the sheriff that I was expecting foreclosure documents from EMC Mortgage Corporation. He said that these were foreclosure documents, but these documents were from Bank of America.
Now I am wondering what is going on. I have no mortgage with Bank of America. Did EMC sell my mortgage to Bank of America without informing me?
I am not going to fight for my home any longer. I am 57 years old and I do not need any more stress, I had enough. I have no money and I have no money to hire my attorney. This ordeal has taken its toll on me. I am stressed out, I am physically and mentally tired. My health is not worth the extra stress. I have health problems as it is. I want to be rid of this mess, although it may haunt me the rest of my life.
I will be moving in with my daughter in the hopes of starting a new life without the stress of home ownership.
It is a shame that mortgage fraud is happening in America. I would have never thought that this was possible in America. What happened to the American Dream? Now it should be called the American Nightmare. Innocent people who just wanted a piece of the American Dream are now paying the price of losing their piece of the American Dream.
I hope and pray that these banks, mortgage servicing and everyone else that is involved in mortgage fraud is caught and punished for their role in this mortgage fraud. From the CEO's down to the customer service representatives should be held accountable for their actions.
The CEO's, need to be knocked down from their high horses. We the innocent people who paid our taxes to bail out these banks to put food on their table, now the tide has turned and these banks are taking food from our tables.
Restitution should be made to all the innocent people that were and are still being hurt by this mortgage fraud.
Andrea Z
Find more complaints and additional info on EMC Mortgage, HAMP hell ,loan modification runarounds and mortgage servicing issues.
Andrea echos the sentiments of countless other unsuspecting homeowners who found themselves caught up in abusive, fraudulent or predatory mortgage servicing practices, saying; "Innocent people who just wanted a piece of the American Dream are now paying the price of losing their piece of the American Dream---What happened to the American Dream?"
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I've shared and read hundreds of woefully painful stories of abuse that continue to solidly demonstrate most have asked all the right questions, did all that could be expected of them and were given nothing but the runaround -nothing but ruined credit, broken promises and shattered lives.
Read Andrea's story below, published with her permission;
January 23, 2011
Hi Denise; I too am a victim of EMC Mortgage Corp., and facing foreclosure. Here is my story which sounds the same as all of the hundreds that I have read online.
I am not going to fight for my home any longer. I am 57 years old and I do not need any more stress, I had enough. I have no money and I have no money to hire my attorney. This ordeal has taken its toll on me. I am stressed out, I am physically and mentally tired. My health is not worth the extra stress.
In 2007 I was laid off because the company that I worked for closed their doors. I collected unemployment for six months. In October of 2007 my unemployment ended. There were no UC extensions at that time. For the next six months I had no money coming in. I supported myself and paid my bills, car payment and mortgage by draining my savings and borrowed money against my life insurance. (Which I still have not been able to pay back) and using credit cards. Now I have credit card debt that I cannot repay. During this time I was never late or missed a mortgage payment.
Finally after not being able to find employment comparable to what I was previously earning. I found myself accepting a job at a much lower rate. I took a $20,000 a year cut in pay.
My cousin told me about the HAMP. She told me she got her mortgage modification in 12 weeks. She was one of the lucky ones that got a mortgage modification. Her mortgage was not with EMC.
I took her advice and applied for a loan modification through EMC Mortgage Corp. Not knowing at this time what a nightmare I was setting myself up for.
At the end of April 2009 I contacted EMC for information about their loan modification program. Because of my big drop in pay I was told by EMC CSR that I qualified. I was given a web address to go to and print up their loan modification application.
May 7, 2009 Faxed 23 pages to EMC copies of documents that EMC requested. I have the fax confirmation that all pages went through. I called EMC the next day to follow up and to make sure they received my fax. EMC said that they did.
May 27, 2009 I called EMC to follow up and see how my modification was coming along. At this time I was told by an EMC CSR that I omitted sending some documents from the original packet that I had sent them. In addition to the items that EMC said that I did not fax them, EMC asked for copies of Homeowners Declaration pages and Form 4506T. I knew that I did not omit sending these documents. I faxed everything that EMC asked for in the original packet. I have the confirmation that all 23 pages went through and a follow up phone call to EMC stating that they received all documents that was asked for.
May 28, 2009 Faxed 5 pages to EMC. The copies that I faxed were: Homeowners Declaration Page, Form 4506T, last two pay stubs, and most recent bank statement. I have confirmation that all 5 pages went through.
May 29, 2009 Called EMC to follow up to make sure my fax was received. EMC stated that the 5 pages were received.
July 8, 2009 Called EMC to follow up on my modification, I spoke with Robert. Robert stated that my loan modification was with the underwriters, but more documents needed fax to them. Once these documents are received then the underwriters will begin working on my modification again. Robert also stated that if I did not hear from him by August 20, 2009 to call him.
At this time Robert informed me that my mortgage increased by $205 per month. I knew that this was going to happen. In June 09 I informed EMC that I could no longer afford to pay my taxes and homeowners insurance on my own. Up until this point I had no escrow set up. By this time an escrow was set up. Robert told me not to worry that as long as I was in the loan modification program that I could still pay the old payment.
July 9, 2009 Fax 10 pages to EMC. The following was faxed: 2 most recent pay stubs, most recent savings and checking account statements, Home Affordable Modification Program Hardship Affidavit.
July 10, 2009 Called EMC to make sure my fax was received. EMC stated that they received the ten pages that I faxed to them.
August 20. 2009 Called EMC to speak to Robert (as Robert instructed me to do). I was told that Robert was unavailable. The CSR said that they would give him the message.
September 15, 2009 and September 30, 2009 Called EMC to speak to Robert. Again I was told that Robert was unavailable. The CRS said they would give him the message to return my call.
At this point I gave up in trying to speak to Robert. I called EMC every 3 or 4 weeks to follow up on my loan modification. Every time I called I was told that my modification was with the underwriters. No more information was given to me.
January 15, 2010 When I called EMC I called the 866-418-5901. I called this number for 8 months. On this day when I tried calling this number, my call went to Chase. As I was told by a Chase CSR they cannot access EMC accounts. When I asked the CSR to transfer me to an EMC representative I was hung up on or my call was disconnected. I spent two and one half hours on this date trying to contact an EMC CSR to get some answers and I got nowhere, only frustrated.
January 28, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. I was told at this time that more copies were needed to be faxed to them. The underwriters will not work on my loan modification until the documents are received.
January 29, 2010 Faxed 8 pages to EMC. The following documents were faxed: 2008 copy of income tax return, recent copy of homeowner's insurance policy with annual insurance bill and 4506T form. Received fax confirmation that all pages went through.
January 30, 2010 Called EMC to make sure they received my fax. EMC said that they received the fax of 8 pages.
February 20, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on my loan modification. I spoke to Harold. At this time Harold told me that my modification was with the processor, her name was Tomeka. He said that I should have my modification in five days on February 25, 2010.
March 1, 2010 Called EMC to find out when my loan modification was going to start and to get information as to how much my new monthly mortgage payment was going to be. The CSR that I spoke with said that my modification was with the underwriters and that it was nowhere near being ready to process. I told the CSR that I spoke to Harold on February 20th and he said that my modification was with the processor Tomeka and that my modification would be ready on February 25th. The EMC CSR stated that there were no notes on my account stating that my loan was with the processor.
March 20, 210 I sent an email to one of the senators in my state for some help. The senators office tried to help me, but got nowhere with EMC
.
April 12, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. At this time I was told my modification was with the underwriters and the underwriters are requesting more copies of documents.
April 13, 2010 Faxed EMC 9 pages of documents that they requested. The documents requested were: 2008 copy of income tax return, recent copy of annual homeowner's insurance policy with annual insurance bill and form 4506T. I have fax confirmation that all nine pages went through.
April 14, 2010 Called EMC to make sure they received my fax of nine pages. EMC said that they received all nine pages.
May 23, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. I was told that my modification was with the underwriters and that the underwriters were requesting additional copies of documents and when those documents are received the underwriters will start working on my modification again. At this time I asked the CSR why I was not contacted when more documents were needed so that the underwriters would not stop working on my modification. I told the CSR that I never received an email, voice mail or regular mail asking for additional documents. The CSR said to me that EMC does not permit the use email or leaving a voice mail message to let the customer know that additional documents are needed. I said to the CSR, how are the customers supposed to know that additional documents are needed? The CSR's reply was when we call in to follow up we will be told at that time. By this time I am getting really PO'ed and I know that she could hear it in my voice. I said that this makes no sense. Valuable time is being wasted by waiting for the customer to call and until the customer does call the underwriters stop working on the modification until the documents are received. The CSR said that I did not need to get angry at her as she was just doing her job. I said thank you and I hung up.
May 24, 2010 Faxed EMC 9 pages of additional documents which were requested. These documents included: 2 most recent pay stubs, request for modification and affidavit, form 4506T, most recent utility bill showing property address. Have confirmation that all 9 pages went through.
May 25, 2010 Called EMC to make sure my fax was received. I was told that all 9 pages were received.
June 9, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. At this time I was told that my modification was with the underwriters and that additional documents were needed. When the documents are received then the underwriters will pick up where they left off on my modification.
June 10, 2010 Faxed to EMC 16 pages of requested documents. These documents are: 2009 income tax return, May 2010 and April 2010 bank statements. I have confirmation that all 16 pages went through.
June 11, 2010 Called EMC to make sure my fax of 16 pages was received. EMC stated that they received all 16 pages.
June 25, 2010 On this date I was laid off from my job due to company downsizing.
July 28, 2010 Received a letter from EMC stating that my home was going to be foreclosed. The letter was from EMC's homeowner's assistance department. I called the homeowner's assistance department at 888-609-2379 to find out why my home was going to be foreclosed when I was in the loan modification program. I was told not to worry about the letter as I was in the loan modification program and the letter I received was a computer generated letter.
August 3, 2010 Called EMC to follow up on loan modification. I was told my modification was with the underwriters and that additional documents were needed.
August 4, 2010 Faxed EMC 8 pages of documents that were requested. These documents included: July 2010 bank statement and financial determination for unemployment benefits.
August 5, 2010 Called EMC to make sure my fax of 8 pages was received. EMC stated they received all 8 pages.
September 28, 2010 I received a certified letter from EMC Homeowner's Assistant Department. The letter was dated September 21, 2010. This letter was an Acceleration Warning Notice of Intent to Foreclose. I could not believe what I was reading. I was stunned. I could not understand why EMC was foreclosing when I was in the loan modification program.
After reading the letter I called EMC to again follow up on my loan modification figuring that the letter I received was a mistake. I was told that my modification was denied on September 10, 2010. When I asked why? EMC could not give me an answer. EMC said a denial letter would be sent to me explaining the reason for the denial. It has been 4 months now and I still have not received a denial letter.
October 4, 2010 Called EMC Collection Department (800-723-3004) to inform EMC about the Homeowner's Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program Act 91 and that I had an appointment with the Consumer Credit Counseling Agency on October 12th. According to this letter that I received from EMC I had 33 days to set up an appointment with this agency.
The woman that I spoke with was very nasty toward me. She insisted that she knew nothing about Act 91. During our conversation I informed this woman that I would be sending in my September's mortgage payment. The woman replied that I needed to send $3,355.10, if I sent any amount less my check would be denied, before our conversation ended this woman informed me that my home is going to be added to the foreclosure list on October 10, 2010.
I said to myself this must be a bad dream, I could not believe that this is actually happening. I strived to make sure that my mortgage payments were always on time or before the due date. For EMC Mortgage Corporation to treat their customers the way I was treated is totally unacceptable. They treated me like S***! (Not knowing then, what I know now.) I did not do anything wrong. I played their game and 17 months later I lost. I kept asking myself why it took 17 months for EMC to make a decision on my loan modification. All conversations that I had with EMC over the past 16 months, I was always told that I qualified for the loan modification and would receive it. Heck, at one point I was even give a date when I would receive the loan modification.
The $3,355.10 is the difference between my original monthly payment and the new payment with the escrow set up. I was told by Robert on July 8, 2009 not to worry about the new payment and to just keep paying the old payment.
October 12, 2010 Kept my appointment with the Consumer Credit Counseling Agency. The person's name that my case was assigned was Rochelle. Rochelle was very understanding and assured me that she could help me avoid foreclosure. Rochelle informed me that all mortgage companies have a program for the unemployed. She asked if I was informed by EMC about this program. I told Rochelle that I was not.
With my permission Rochelle called EMC to find out why I was not informed about this program. After an hour of being transferred to at least a dozen EMC representatives and put on hold and disconnected Rochelle finally got to speak to someone. This representative's name was Joann. Joann said that she could not speak to anyone without the client's authorization. At this point Rochelle put the speaker phone on so that I could hear the conversation. Rochelle informed Joann that I was sitting in her office. Rochelle asked Joann if she would accept a verbal authorization. Joann said that she would accept a verbal auth provided that I sign a written authorization that Joann was going to fax over. (The written authorization was never faxed over).
Rochelle asked Joann why I was never informed of the unemployed program. Joann's reply was that I was not eligible for the unemployed program. Rochelle told Joann that I did qualify as I was unemployed. Joann's reply was that I needed to be behind by 2 months in mortgage payments. Rochelle replied that I was behind by 2 months in mortgage payments. Joann had to reply with something as she knew Rochelle was right. So, Joann said that in order for me to qualify for the unemployed program that I needed to have a reserve of $5,000 in my account at EMC. Rochelle told Joann that if I had five grand then I would not need to be in the program nor would I be in default of my mortgage.
Rochelle asked Joann why my loan modification was denied. Joann replied that a letter was sent to me stating the reasons. Rochelle told Joann that I never received a denial letter as of this date. Joann said the letter was sent. Rochelle pressed Joann a reason for the denial. Finally Joann said the reason was that I was unemployed. Rochelle told Joann that I was employed when I applied for HAMP. In fact Joann she was employed for 13 months while she was in the program. Rochelle said to Joann that I qualified for the loan modification and that I should have received the loan modification. Joann answered back with many answers that she could dig up, none of which satisfied Rochelle. When I left Rochelle that day she said that she could help me with Act 91.
October 18, 2010 Received a letter from EMC stating that EMC could help me to save my home with the Home Affordable Modification Program. EMC wanted me to reapply for the loan modification program. I thought to myself; how dare EMC to ask me to reapply after they just denied me a little over a month ago. I was not reapplying as I knew what the outcome would be. I was not going to jump through EMC's hoops again.
It is now the end of January 2011. As far as the help from the state through act 91, I don't know what happen there. Tried calling Rochelle several times and left voice messages, no return calls from Rochelle. I am assuming that I will not be receiving any help through act 91.
January 18, 2011 County Sheriff left a yellow notice in my door stating that he had legal documents that must be hand-delivered. I was to call the sheriff the next morning between 8:30 am to 9:30 am.
I knew what these documents are. I do not have the money to hire my attorney. My attorney spoke with me on the phone and told me what to do and what not to do.
January 19, 2011 Called the county sheriff's office and spoke to the sheriff that was at my home the day before. He told me that he had documents for me that needed to be hand delivered. He said that he could redeliver the documents on January 25, 2011. I said to the sheriff that I was expecting foreclosure documents from EMC Mortgage Corporation. He said that these were foreclosure documents, but these documents were from Bank of America.
Now I am wondering what is going on. I have no mortgage with Bank of America. Did EMC sell my mortgage to Bank of America without informing me?
I am not going to fight for my home any longer. I am 57 years old and I do not need any more stress, I had enough. I have no money and I have no money to hire my attorney. This ordeal has taken its toll on me. I am stressed out, I am physically and mentally tired. My health is not worth the extra stress. I have health problems as it is. I want to be rid of this mess, although it may haunt me the rest of my life.
I will be moving in with my daughter in the hopes of starting a new life without the stress of home ownership.
It is a shame that mortgage fraud is happening in America. I would have never thought that this was possible in America. What happened to the American Dream? Now it should be called the American Nightmare. Innocent people who just wanted a piece of the American Dream are now paying the price of losing their piece of the American Dream.
I hope and pray that these banks, mortgage servicing and everyone else that is involved in mortgage fraud is caught and punished for their role in this mortgage fraud. From the CEO's down to the customer service representatives should be held accountable for their actions.
The CEO's, need to be knocked down from their high horses. We the innocent people who paid our taxes to bail out these banks to put food on their table, now the tide has turned and these banks are taking food from our tables.
Restitution should be made to all the innocent people that were and are still being hurt by this mortgage fraud.
Andrea Z
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I feel for Andrea. Her experience mirrors mine with Wells Fargo and, as far as I can tell, that of thousands of good people just trying to do the right thing and keep their homes. I guess the only consolation is that she's in good company ...
I am 10 months in to my fight with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and I'm near to deciding to throw in the towel. I am just about through playing the game. Basically just going through the process again and documenting the BS for an investigator with the state attorney general's office.
Mortgage modification, as practiced by the big banks/loan servicers is nothing more than a scam.
Andrea...you are not alone in this fight. I have been asking for a loan modification since June 2009. My story mirrors your's exactly, or at least from what I could tell from scimming through it. Please forgive me for not reading your whole story, it's just that I've read this same story over and over so many times that it exhausts me to read it all. When I originally applied for the loan mod., my husband's income was a lot less than it is now, so our latest denial letter imformed us that we were bringing in too much income now to qualify for it. We've been given the option of allowing them to triple our house payment in order to settle the debt, but I've decided that's just not an option, because they can't explain to me what most of these frivolous charges are. I hired an attorney in Sept. 2010 to help me answer the compaint that I had received from the local sheriff on Aug. 13, 2010. The complaint says that I have not made a payment since April 1, 2009, but I have receipts to prove that I did. My attorney, to this day, has no luck making contact with anyone at EMC or the attorney that was hired to represent them. My attorney told me that he was working with another couple dealing with the same issues, but the only difference between this other couple and me and my husband, was that they had not made a single payment in a year BEFORE they even hired him. He has managed to keep them in their house another year beyond that. He said that they were supposed to appear before the judge in December, but that the couple had decided they were ready to throw in the towel, so he called the other attorney and said that they were giving up, and that they were not even going to show up in court, that way the judge would set a sale date and they could move on. When the bank got word that they were giving up, the hearing was cancelled by the bank, and they fired the attorney thay had hired to represent them. The bank said they were now willing to work with the homeowners. I hate to think what kind of deal they're cooking up though. I'm sure they're not considering the homeowner's best interest at all. Needless to say...I've asked my attorney to keep me in my house long enough to let me save what equity I feel I have lost from all of this mess, and then I too will walk away. I have not made a house payment since July 2010 to EMC because they always send it back. I still make my house payment every month, it's just I put it in MY savings account instead of EMC's savings account.
Andrea...I wish you the best of luck! Hang in there!
Denise...keep doing what you're doing because it helps to know that we are not alone. Please feel free to give out my e-mail address to any one that needs support or just someone to listen.
Andrea- I feel your pain.
I would highly recommend joining a FC support group...you know you are not alone! I also skimmed thru your story only because I did the same thing as you for 18 months until I became educated and realized it is all a scam. I know how emotionally and physically draining it is. It takes a tremendous toll on hard working people and our children. It is psychological warfare perpetrated by narcissistic bankers.
You will find a renewed spirit once you find others who share your plight as well as new strategies to fight back. Not to mention how much the tide has turned most recently thanks to activists, journalists, educators, some politicians and people like Denise.
Kudos to you Denise for going public with your story long ago.
I remember the day I found your site...it was an AH HA moment for me .
I have a chronically ill child who has been sick for 7 years now. We pay thousands of dollars a year for health insurance but are denied coverage for our child's care /meds due to more corporate greed which has been financially devastating.
I would like to add to the story, which is so familiar to thousands of people. One of the most malicious and sinister tactics the banks use is sending "Inspectors" around to homes in default and take photographs. In my opinion this should be outlawed.
This is emotional battering, its kicking people when they are down. I have encountered these inspectors in front on my own house many times. These people are stalking; Stalking behaviors are related to harassment and intimidation.
One day I politely asked one of these inspectors to leave after he drove by my home 4-5 times at 5 mph and took photographs. He told me he was just doing his job. I told he had finished his work and said if he did not leave I would call the police and get a restraining order.
His response was "Go ahead, I'll wait until they get here." Now this is taunting and in certain cases it is criminal behavior.
This is extremely upsetting to my family as well as many other families I know who encounter these creeps. Not to mention my sick teenager. These inspectors are hired similarly to robo-signers. I wonder, have they gone thru criminal background checks ??
Talk about a wake up call and pushing people to the edge...when will this despicable behavior stop ? Aside from any legality this is morally bankrupt.