Escrow help while in permanent modification

[BOAHater]

Howdy,

We are in currently in permanent modification. Our trial period was over last November. Anyway, we received a certified letter from BOA earlier this month stating as of May 1st our payment had increased by $800/month to cover an escrow shortage and since our May payment did not reflect the new amount we would go into default on July 4th.

Well, our statement for May 1st showed our normal amount. We paid it. The first we had heard about an escrow shortage was when we received the certified letter this month. They have our May payment in a "partial payment holding account" so it does not show that we made our payment. We now must come up with our monthly mortgage payments for May and June, plus late fees, plus the new escrow amount or go into foreclosure.

Well, they know exactly what our finances are and know we cannot make the payment. They didn't notify us that our payment was going up, nor has anyone been able to explain the escrow shortage. We handle our homeowners ourselves (its current) and the property taxes are current too. Plus, our property values fell this year and last year.

We have called BOA multiple times but are having a really hard time getting past our CSR. All numbers go through her. What was the point of going through the nightmare that is the retention process just to lose our house because we cannot pay the escrow amount?

Any help? We need a place to live and thought we had been successful with BOA. I guess not.

[motorcitymadness]

BOAHater,
From what you are saying this has to be some type of error on the banks part. If you are paying homeowners yourself and you're taxes have not increased I cannot imagine where an addtitional $800 a month of escrow charges could come from. Not to mention it's not a total of $800 it's $800 every month which is $9,600 annually, that's insane!! Usually if there is an escrow shortage you have the options of paying it back over a 5 year term. Perhaps it has only went up $8 and they made a typo. Nonetheless, I would keep looking pushing BOA of for answers and if push comes to shove I would consult a real estate attorney.

[Cat Damiano]

Try calling the executive team rather than your csr. Also, your permanent modification should have included the homeowners insurance since it began, could this be causing the issue as well?

BofA Executive Team
1-704-386-5687

[BOAHater]

Thank you both very much for your responses. We tried contacting the Executive Team last night but ended up being transferred back to our CSR. We have been trying to get an answer since June 11th, but no luck so far. Should they have notified us that our payments were about to go up drastically due to escrow?

We have always maintained our own homeowners insurance. However, even if that was the problem $800 seems a bit unreasonable.

Is there a way to contact the escrow department directly? I'm not sure our CSR even knows how to spell "escrow."

[BOAHater]

My wife just called and said she had spoken with someone in Escrow. This person said she does not know why BOA would send a foreclosure notice to us. She is going to perform an account analysis. However, the analysis will take ten days. They are set to foreclose on July 4th. That's just great.

[Cat Damiano]

Once a year, you should receive what is called an escrow analysis that should have outlined exactly where this amount is coming from and also have contact information. IF you did not receive this analysis, you can ask for one to be performed on your loan.

If you were calling the executive team after hours and having to put in your loan number, that would reroute you back to the csr. You may want to try during the day so you can to speak with a live person.

[BOAHater]

Thank you. The executive team person couldn't answer our questions yesterday and directed us back to our CSR, who is no longer returning our calls. It looks like the escrow department is gigging us for the back taxes that we are already paying as part of our modification house payment. We are also subject to a $95,000 balloon payment at the end of the note. I think they are trying to make us pay twice for the taxes.

[Cat Damiano]

I have a balloon payment at the end of the modification as well, it was necessary to get the payment to the 31 percent, but it has nothing to do with escrows. So you were already given the escrow analysis letter and it showed that you had a shortage and they gave you the option to either pay up front in one lump sum or have it included in your modified payment and you chose having it included in your modified payment?

[BOAHater]

The back taxes are part of the modification payment because we would not have been able to come up with that much money to make a lump sum payment.

[Cat Damiano]

What I am trying to get at is that the escrow analysis that should be done every year should have the necessary contact information on it. With Chase, I just deal with customer care on escrow issues. With BofA it may be the same, but the analysis that you were given should have the contact information on it somewhere. If you did not get your escrow analysis for this year, which is normally done in the beginning, then you should ask for another one. You should then be able to see where this extra amount is coming from.

When googled, most are using the regular cs number for escrow issues.

1.800.669.6607

[BOAHater]

Quick update: BOA escrow department called us on Tuesday. There is nothing wrong with our escrow and our payments will not go up. The foreclosure letter we received should never have been sent. They do not know how this happened because apparently there are no notes associated with the action. My attorney is prompting them to launch an internal investigation.

[Cat Damiano]

That is good news. Thank you for the update.