Embrace Home Loans, Inc.

Embrace Home Loans (Embrace) is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Mrs. [redacted] regarding adjustments in the amount of her monthly mortgage payment, which she claims to have led to her payments being made late in the past.  She has further suggested that these increases in her payment...

have led to her potentially being unable to afford her monthly payment.Embrace has reviewed the loan file to identify the situations that might have led to her concerns, and taken the time to retrieve documentation that had been prepared for her and Mr. [redacted] in the past.Since the loan was established with a fixed interest rate, any variances in the amount of the monthly payment would have been attributed to a variation in the amounts required to populate their Escrow account, which was established to cover their payments for Homeowner's Insurance, County Taxes and City Taxes.  Traditionally, these amounts fluctuate over time.  Our review of the file's history has noted changes from year to year, though mostly minor ones.Only recently does there appear to have been a significant increase in the tax rates that led to a shortage in their escrow account.  Essentially, it left their escrow funds insufficient to pay the amounts coming due, so Embrace (thru its servicing agent) paid those amounts on their behalf.  To recoup those amounts, as well as to ensure that the Escrow Account would be properly funded by the time these payments were due again, a notice was sent to indicate that an adjustment to the payment amount would be made to stabilize that Escrow shortage.  A recalculation of those amounts appears to support the new payment amount noted on the most recent Escrow Analysis report.We cannot find any irregularities with the payments requested, but given that Mrs. [redacted] has forwarded some additional questions to our attention, we will address those to her directly in order to ensure that her concerns are addressed, and resolved.[redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.The current payment amount includes an additional amount of about $30 per month to address a shortage that occurred due to increases in City and County Taxes.

Embrace Home Loans is in receipt of the notice of rebuttal from Ms. [redacted].   We certainly are displeased that she has reached the conclusions she has, given that our only intent was to find a way to approve her request.  When her initial appraisal report suggested that the value would be inadequate to support any loan, we were able to contest the finding on her behalf, based on information she had provided to us, and the value was increased to the point where a loan would be possible.Subsequently, the loan was denied because the verifiable income was lower than had been suggested, and that we had anticipated.Still, though the loan officer made every effort to advise all of her applicants of her pending honeymoon, she does understand that Ms. [redacted] feels that she did not receive the level of customer service that she expected or that we have come to accept as our norm.The loan officer, therefore, has recommended that Embrace provide Ms. [redacted] with a refund of her appraisal fee, which we shall execute as a gesture of good faith.If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience. [redacted], CCPEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.

Embrace Home Loans (Embrace) is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Ms. [redacted] relative to an application that had been submitted by her parents for a mortgage loan with Embrace.  Having reviewed the loan file and discussed the matter with those who were involved with the processing,...

it became clear that the circumstances of this file presented an unusual situation, and one that required Embrace to seek advice from third party resources to confirm the extent to which the income sources would be acceptable.  The Loan Officer, Ms [redacted] had prudently interpreted initially that the income seemed as if it would be acceptable, but it was questioned by the senior underwriter who reached out to HUD for direction, and learned that the income, as it was presented, would not be allowed for an FHA loan, which was the only available option.  It is unfortunate, and we certainly appreciate the frustration that resulted from the delay encountered in reaching this conclusion.  Up until that point, Embrace had every reason to believe that the loan would be approved and close on schedule.  The loan officer appears to have been paying close attention to these details, but was unable to provide this information prior to when it happened.While we understand and believe that Embrace and its personnel did everything they could to arrange this loan in a timely and professional manner, we also understand how the circumstances turned out to be significantly disappointing to the borrowers.Embrace has focused its attention on customer service for its entire 34 year existence, and we do not wish for our customers to perceive that our action or inaction has caused them discomfort.  As a good faith gesture therefore, we are prepared to make a refund of the appraisal fee to the applicants.It is noted though, that based on the language in the complaint, it is not clear if they are still residing at the [redacted] address.  is it possible to confirm that address as still viable?If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience. [redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.

we received Ms. [redacted]’s new complaint, and recorded it as a new, separate complaint.  In reality, it was focused on something unrelated to the issues involved with her first complaint.  We’ve been in touch with her since, and she appears to be confused about her hazard insurance circumstances, and who is paying that bill.  Embrace paid her insurance payment in September upon receipt of the invoice from the agent, and we continue to correspond with her about that at this time.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #[redacted]. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted]. Please add your rejection comments below. 
I was being considered for a loan which would have paid off some loans that were to be included in the refinance.  I wasn't just being considered for an FHA loan.  I demonstrated that I had become current as expressed for 18  months and was told that the loan would be approved based on that factor, credit score and income requirements.  I would have never ordered an appraisal for the cost of $500 if this was not all but guaranteed with the other bills that I had upcoming.  $500 is not a small amount of money to pay without a guarantee being expressed to me.  I am a single mother who needs every dime that I have.
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted].
] This statement that Embrace Home Loans has replied is not true and I reject this statement. I've been out of contact with the lender [redacted] since February 2017, when he told me his upper management asked him to step away of this matter. it wasn't until November 2017 that someone else from Embrace has contacted me to find out the status of my court case. I feel like Embrace has failed me as a client. I was advised by a financial advisory as well as an attorney, that's what Embrace has attorney's for to protect their investment.  It's been almost two years and my home is still not complete. In the HUD manual their are guidelines on how the money should be dispense on a 203K rehabilitation loan. One being both parties (the borrower) and the (the contractor) MUST agree to the work and money being dispense with the lender's signature. Forms must be filled out and  that wasn't done. This is a fist time home buyer nightmare. Embrace Home Loans should take responsibility of this matter and the lender should be held accountable.   I REJECT THEIR RESPONSE. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Embrace Home Loans is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Ms. [redacted] relative to the application of her monthly mortgage payments, and upon notification contacted its sub-servicing agent, [redacted], to determine what might have occurred.We also reached out to Ms. [redacted] directly, and...

corresponded with her as we sought to identify and resolve the issue working with [redacted].[redacted] eventually determined that the March mortgage payment had been inadvertently applied to another account, which may have been related to the recent transfer of servicing from another agent, and their resulting mis-interpretation of the account number.  Once the issue was identified, Ms. [redacted]'s account was adjusted to reflect timely payment of the March and April installments, and also to reflect a reversal of any late charges that might have been processed.[redacted] also responded directly to Ms. [redacted] to explain their findings.We apologize for the error, and are pleased that the borrower brought the situation to our attention so that a resolution could be swiftly achieved.If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us at your convenience. [redacted], CCOEMbrace Home Loans, Inc.

Embrace Home Loans (Embrace) is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Mr. [redacted] regarding the servicing of his new loan account, which was closed with Embrace in March.  His loan was indeed transferred to US Bank, and we have also confirmed that Embrace has received two timely payments...

from Mr. [redacted].Our investigation however, has also identified a flaw in the transfer that may have prevented the new lender/servicer from recognizing those payments has already received.Embrace will take steps to ensure that the transfer is completed appropriately, and that notification of Mr. [redacted]'s payment status is delivered to the new lender.We apologize for any inadvertent confusion. [redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.

Embrace Home Loans is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Mr. [redacted].  Upon receipt, we investigated the loan file and found that indeed he had applied with Embrace, but then at some point taken that application to another lender, [redacted].  Embrace did...

receive a request from [redacted] to transfer the FHA Case # and appraisal for Mr. [redacted]' file to them, and provided [redacted]' authorization to do so, a routine request in that situation.However, Embrace did not receive that request from [redacted] until Thursday, November 30, just two business days before this complaint was filed.  Upon receipt it was delivered immediately to that division of Embrace that manages those transfers, and the transfer was completed at the beginning of the following week. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel fee to contact me at your convenience. [redacted], Chief Compliance Officer .

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #[redacted]. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted]. Please add your rejection comments below. I will withdraw my complaint upon receipt of the funds.
Regards,
[redacted]

Embrace Home Loans (Embrace) is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Mr. [redacted] regarding his new mortgage loan, which has been transferred to the [redacted]).  We do confirm that Mr. [redacted] made his payment in a timely fashion, and it is likely that during...

the transfer of the loan to [redacted], there was a delay in it being properly recorded on their system.Embrace has been in touch with the [redacted] about this issue, and will continue to engage them about it until the issue is resolved and the credit reporting issues are corrected.If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience.
[redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.

I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #[redacted] I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Embrace Home Loans (Embrace) is in receipt of a notice of complaint from Mr. [redacted] regarding his recent application for a mortgage refinance program with Embrace, and has taken the opportunity to review his file to determine the validity of his observations.Our records show that an...

application was submitted on or about July 13 in the name of [redacted], and that while his wife was providing Embrace with much of the information about the loan request, she was not going to be included on the loan request.The monthly income suggested by the applicant was presumed to be for Mr. [redacted], given that he was alone on the application, and our initial approval was based on that amount.  We subsequently learned that the income amount we had initially received was actually the combined income for both Mr and Mrs. [redacted].  Based on Mr. [redacted] alone, the income would not be sufficient to approve the request as it was received.  In an effort to find a suitable alternative, Embrace considered a variety of different possibilities, including one that considered paying off an existing auto lease account, to try and reach an approvable debt to income ratio.Our review of the file confirms that the application was processed appropriately.  Our understanding at the time that the appraisal was ordered was that the income amount that had been disclosed to Embrace represented the income for Mr. [redacted] alone, but we later found that was not the case.If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience.Sincerely,[redacted], CCO

Embrace Home Loans is in receipt of a notice of complaint, filed by Mr. [redacted], and has become familiar with his circumstances after it was brought to our attention recently.Mr. [redacted] owns a multi family (duplex style) property in [redacted], but uses the property as a single family...

residence.  It remains taxed and officially recognized by the City as a multi family property, and would have been acceptable as collateral for his loan, but modifications to the interior of the structure created access points between the units, which has effectively compromised the multi family condition, and disqualified the property from serving as collateral for the loan.Embrace might be able to reconsider the application if either 1) the access points inside the property were eliminated and the property returned to a multi family set up; or, 2) the property were to be officially reclassified as a Single Family Residence according to the City's records.Embrace does not recognize the appraisal as inaccurate, but loan program guidelines prevent us, in any event, from accepting this property as collateral for this loan request.If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to call me at your convenience.[redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.

Embrace Home Loans is in receipt of a notice of complaint received from Ms. [redacted] relative to the servicing of her mortgage loan, and has inquired into the situation related to her file.Within the last month, the servicing of Ms. [redacted]'s account was assigned to a new agent - [redacted] Servicing, after having been with [redacted], Inc., since the inception of the loan in 2014.  It is not unusual for there to be some confusion when such adjustments are made, but both [redacted] and [redacted] executed their responsibilities in making consumers aware of the transfer, and once completed, the loan file should continue to proceed in accordance with the loan contract.Ms. [redacted] has indicated that she has had difficulty in her initial contact with [redacted], and was uncertain what her new account number was.  We see that she has been in touch with [redacted], and can confirm that her new loan number is [redacted].Ms. [redacted] has also assumed that with this transfer her monthly mortgage payment has increased, but in fact the increase in her monthly payment, which was in response to a sharp increase in her property taxes, had been identified prior to the transfer and processed by [redacted]. The tax bill in November 2014 was received in the amount of $4849.49, as opposed to $3411.06, which is the amount Embrace had had on record.  When the new amount was paid it created a shortage in Ms. [redacted]'s Escrow account, and caused her monthly payment to increase by $162.49 to recoup that shortage and to ensure that an appropriate amount is available to pay the taxes when they are next due.  The shortage, in this manner, can be recouped over the next twelve months.  Ms. [redacted] has also suggested to us that her Hazard Insurance escrow has been mismanaged, but we have double checked with her Insurance Agent and are unable to identify the irregularity she has mentioned. Embrace does realize that a Servicing Transfer can cause some confusion, and we certainly apologize for any inconvenience this has caused her, or any other consumer.  We abide by safeguards established to ensure that such consumers are not inappropriately influenced or impacted, and will certainly work to those standards for Ms. [redacted]. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience. [redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.

The refund to Mr. [redacted] was processed early this morning upon our review of his file.  If he had made payment by credit card, then the refund would be in the form of a credit to that account, and could take a few days to be processed through that system.

First, my apologies.  This message was prepared on Feb 22, but apparently did not make it to you. Embrace Home Loans is in receipt of a notice of complaint filed by Ms. [redacted], and has been aware of the circumstances related to her loan for over a year, and we certainly recognize that she...

had endured an extraordinary set of obstacles in completing the necessary rehabilitation to her home.  Ms. [redacted] accepted a 203k Rehabilitation Loan from Embrace that included funds to be held in escrow so that appropriate repair work might be completed on the dwelling.  The contractor with whom she came to an agreement was familiar to the Embrace Loan Officer, Mr. [redacted], and he did offer that information to her, and also that he understood the contractor to have a good reputation.  But he did not direct Ms. [redacted] to that contractor, or require that she choose them.The loan that was approved for Ms. [redacted] included a certain amount of funds for the rehabilitation work, which would satisfy the FHA requirements for the condition of the dwelling.  Certainly, they might have been other factors that might have been considered for rehabilitation, but they were not included in the loan amount due to limitations on what Embrace would have been able to approve.As she has noted, after the loan closed, there have been several situations that have interrupted the conclusion of this matter, such as disagreements with the contractor, the permissibility of a certain addition to the property started by the previous owners, and the mold remediation efforts that the previous owners had to resolve.  All of these need resolution to some degree.Ms. [redacted] and the Contractor have been at odds over this issue for a long time.  Mediation efforts attempted have not produced any helpful results, and as noted in the complaint continue to be at issue today.  The issues related to actions/inactions by the previous owner of the property, similar to contractor issue, seem to be requiring legal attention if Ms. [redacted] is to obtain some solution to her claims here.Embrace only has an agreement with Ms. [redacted], which is relevant to the completion of the rehabilitation, and maintenance of the terms of the loan agreement.  Toward that end, we have been regularly in touch with Ms. [redacted], in the hopes of helping this situation to reach resolution.  At this point, we also need to be shown a settlement of the disparities between her claims and those of the contractor; as well as the resolution of the factors attributable to the former owner.  Embrace does not have the authority to conclude who is correct, or not, on these issues.While we can commit to remain involved, and hoping for a solution to these issues, we cannot agree to take sides, or to issue refunds of monies that were disbursed in accordance with appropriate procedures.If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience.

Embrace Home Loans, Inc. (Embrace) is in receipt of notification that a complaint has been delivered by Mr. & Mrs. [redacted], and in response we have taken the opportunity to review their loan file history in order to determine what might have caused their allegations.We have been able to...

ascertain that the [redacted] file has been several times involved in delinquent situations from which they have been able to removed by providing a single, substantial payment to reinstate their up-to-date status and terminate foreclosure considerations.The most recent example of this occurred in June of this year when they delivered six monthly payments at one time to bring their account due for the July payment.The reference in the complaint to a credit on their statement would appear to be related to the preparation of the July statement during the time when the above referenced six payments were being processed, but before that effort had been completed.The reference in the complaint to an errant August statement, which was prepared on August 17, but referenced a due date of August 1, appears to have been the statement that had been prepared for the September monthly payment, which would normally be prepared about that time, and which would have also referenced the August payment, which had not yet been received at that time.Our information currently indicates that Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] are next due for the payment due on October 1, and would therefore be considered up to date at this time.  As for Embrace having designs on forcing them into foreclosure, nothing could be further from the truth.  A lender never wants to foreclose on a property if it can avoid that event.  Our hope and intent is only that any consumer, such as the [redacted], maintain a timely and appropriate payment history.If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at your convenience.[redacted], CCOEmbrace Home Loans, Inc.