What about this?

[tylerann]

My husband file chapter 13 in 2004. He did not include the house and was never behind on a house payment. Right after he filed he got a statement from his mortgage company stating that he owed for 2 payments. He called them and they said that they had posted his pymt wrong and fixed it. Later on he found out that they sent that pymt to the bankruptcy to be paid. When he called to get a pymt history the lady he talked to said that every time you file bk you automatically get charged an extra month and that is typical? Is this true and what about what they told him in the first place?

[SinkingFast]

What you're describing has happened to several people here. It's a sort of scam on the Lender's part. And NO you do not have to pay an extra payment just because you filed BK. That Lady was blowing something outa her butt.

When you file BK, your acct is moved from regular Customer Servicing to a special BK Dept. The Lender had specially trained people who know what they can and cannot say to you, can and cannot do with your acct, according to BK Law.

Many people don't know this and send their payment to regular Customer Service like they always have. It's then passed along to the correct Dept. But in the mean time, your acct shows as if you failed to make the payment. May even be messed up permanently so that the Lender submits for the 1 or 2 "missed" payments to be paid out of your Plan.

Lrprn went thru this exact thing. They had to pull their payment records, canceled checks, statements, and their attny had a sit down pow wow with the attny of the Lender to get it all straightened out.

[lrprn]

Lrprn went thru this exact thing. They had to pull their payment records, canceled checks, statements, and their attny had a sit down pow wow with the attny of the Lender to get it all straightened out.

Actually our mortgage company filed an objection to our case stating we were in arrears a month when we filed. We knew we weren't and could prove it with their own paperwork.

Our lawyer invited our mortgage company to court to force them to prove the arrears. Our mortgage company's attorney didn't show up at the hearing, so our bk judge threw out their objection and stated there was no arrears when we filed.

Now we're watching our mortgage company very closely because it's obvious that they are deliberately posting our mortgage checks late each month. They get our bank's online payment check 7-10 full business days before our due date, but the mortgage company holds on to the check and doesn't post it to our account until one day AFTER the grace period almost four weeks later. Scumbags. Our lawyer is looking forward to getting them into court again after our plan ends to force this latest shell game out into the open!

Don't turn your back on your mortgage company for a second. Be prepared for the worst - these companies have no morals and no ethics. It's all about maximizing the profits any way they can. Since it's easy to get away with it unless you are extremely vigilant throughout your Ch 13, all too often they do and make millions from it.

[tylerann]

Thank you both for the great info.

I have recently sent off a letter (their requirement) to receive a copy of his payment history to give to his lawyer. We have his cancelled checks and hope to get it all cleared up. HA

lrprn ~ thinking about what you said about the company posting pymts late. Actually his company does not list a due date on his bill. We have still paid it at the same time and have not checked at all on when they have posted it. Is this their way to "catch" us?

[arkienurse]

Now we're watching our mortgage company very closely because it's obvious that they are deliberately posting our mortgage checks late each month. They get our bank's online payment check 7-10 full business days before our due date, but the mortgage company holds on to the check and doesn't post it to our account until one day AFTER the grace period almost four weeks later. Scumbags. Our lawyer is looking forward to getting them into court again after our plan ends to force this latest shell game out into the open!

Ahhaa, another saga to watch unfold.

Any clue on when your confirmation might come through? You are already past how long it took us to be confirmed.

[lrprn]

lrprn ~ thinking about what you said about the company posting pymts late. Actually his company does not list a due date on his bill. We have still paid it at the same time and have not checked at all on when they have posted it. Is this their way to "catch" us?

Your mortgage company can't give you a due date on the informational statement they send after you file - that might be interpreted as requesting payment which violates the automatic stay.

My suggestion is to pay your mortgage every month as many days before its original due date as you can. Don't depend on the grace period - there's no guarantee that the grace period protects you from a late fee after filing. Watch the informational statements you get carefully to see how the payment is being distributed to interest, principal, and (if you have it) escrow. Watch the total owed each month as well.

If your mortgage company ever stalls you about providing written mortgage payment statements when you request them, you can force them to send that to you by using a RESPA letter - http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/res/reslettr.cfm .

Get everything in writing and keep very careful, trackable records of your payments each month. I pay our mortgage every month through our bank's online bill pay - that's a reliable third party that can guarantee our payments have been sent on time. When you are dealing with these cheaters and liars, you can't have too much documentation!

[lrprn]

Any clue on when your confirmation might come through? You are already past how long it took us to be confirmed.

Actually we are close to finalizing our confirmation even as we speak.

After months of legal wrangling and briefs filed by both sides regarding our Ch 13 trustee's two objections (paying too much to retirement and a mismatch between what our Schedule I&J and Means Test show as our disposable income), our lawyer and trustee are now wrangling over what our final confirmed monthly payment is going to be.

Will post all the gory details here once I know the outcome. Everyone please keep your fingers crossed for us! (And toe crossing is welcome too! )

[tylerann]

Thanks again lrprn ~ We have not really kept track of this stuff. I guess we need to get in gear. Scary what they can get away with. Hopefully when we get all the info our lawyer can clear it up.

Got my fingers and toes crossed for you too.

[Peevee]

I am glad you brought this up. I am in a 13 and pay my house payment outside the plan. It keeps showing up late. Mine is financed at Wells Fargo.

[tylerann]

Ouch Peevee! I hope that isn't the case with us. I know that we have only had that one bill come to our house that showed we owed 2 pymts but as far as when our pymts have been posted after that, I don't know. We are financed now through HSBC Mortgage Services. I would never ever work with them again.

[SinkingFast]

lrprn ~ thinking about what you said about the company posting pymts late. Actually his company does not list a due date on his bill. We have still paid it at the same time and have not checked at all on when they have posted it. Is this their way to "catch" us?

Probably the reason there isn't a due date on the Statement you're getting is because,..........

When you're in BK, they cannot officially bill you.

If you'll look at the Statements, you'll probably see some sort of notation along the lines of "For Informational Purposes Only".

The Lender's way of keeping you updated without actually billing you.

[tylerann]

Hmmm....It does say that.

They can't bill you even if you didn't add them into the bankruptcy? How come?

[lrprn]

They can't bill you even if you didn't add them into the bankruptcy? How come?

Bankruptcy's automatic stay includes ALL of your creditors, even your mortgage company and car lenders. No one is allowed to ask you for payment while your bankruptcy case is active.

[StevieD]

We are also with Wells Fargo and I like the monthly statements.

We were previously w/ WaMu and they never did send statements. We had an issue when our payments when up due to a tax increase. WaMu tried to file paperwork stating that we were late in payments. He had previously sent the extra payment in one-lump sum.

[arkienurse]

Will post all the gory details here once I know the outcome. Everyone please keep your fingers crossed for us! (And toe crossing is welcome too! )

Heck, I'll even cross my eyes for you