Complaint Review: Aegis Lending Corporation

I worked for Aegis for two years before finding greener pastures. When I started, the motto was "Always do the right thing." I thought it was the perfect place for me until greed got the better of the management team. Meetings were held where we were told to hide fees and downplay the rate. As long as a loan officer produced a certain number of loans each month, they received a small salary and an even smaller commission, but it paid the bills. Little or no training was offered and some of what went on in that particular office was outrageous. I was fired for missing my quota one month. My average for that particular year, however, more than covered the monthly quota.

I now work for a broker and am much happier. I am not forced to charge the client 4 to 6 points and a huge processing fee. My clients are now assured of getting more than one option and of knowing upfront where every penny is going.

That said, Aegis is a retail lender. They have a top notch underwriting staff, second to none. They also have a QC department that will happily make any office manager eat a poorly written loan. The entire company cannot be written off just because one or two offices have managers with used car sales mentalities.

A caveat to all loan officers out there: Remember this, the only person in a mortgage transaction who is irreplaceable is the borrower. Every other entity can be replaced by another.

I just started with Aegis lending about two weeks ago. Like any other company in the world, there will be complaints and mistakes. So far everything that I do is looked at under a microscope by a processor, an underwriter, a manager, etc... No one should ever sign papers without reading them or if they change. Remember the loan officers can only use the information the customer gives. Once we tell you about the deal, we are hoping everything will stay the same. That's how we get paid. I am sure things change, such as, how much a person really makes versus what they claim. An appraisal being under what the customer stated. (initially that's all we have to work with). So should I file a complaint against my customers because they told me their house was just appraised for 150k, when it actually appraised for 125k. No, we all make mistakes.
Of course you are all forgetting the most important thing. We allow people with horrible credit to pay off debts, get large amounts of cash back, and still give them a fairly decent rate. Therefore completely changing their financial picture from bad to good, and more often than not, increasing their credit score. Let' see anyone with a sub 600 beacon get 7% and get back 20k, while paying off their 20% interest visa from their local bank. I don't think so. Bottom line: People with bad credit, (like myself) deserve to pay a higher rate. Why? Because we don't pay our bills on time. We should pay the point assigned. Why? Again, we don't pay our bills on time. But thank God for Aegis who will change my life even if I have been naughty with my credit and failed to pay the debts that I legally owe. )

I just started with Aegis lending about two weeks ago. Like any other company in the world, there will be complaints and mistakes. So far everything that I do is looked at under a microscope by a processor, an underwriter, a manager, etc... No one should ever sign papers without reading them or if they change. Remember the loan officers can only use the information the customer gives. Once we tell you about the deal, we are hoping everything will stay the same. That's how we get paid. I am sure things change, such as, how much a person really makes versus what they claim. An appraisal being under what the customer stated. (initially that's all we have to work with). So should I file a complaint against my customers because they told me their house was just appraised for 150k, when it actually appraised for 125k. No, we all make mistakes.
Of course you are all forgetting the most important thing. We allow people with horrible credit to pay off debts, get large amounts of cash back, and still give them a fairly decent rate. Therefore completely changing their financial picture from bad to good, and more often than not, increasing their credit score. Let' see anyone with a sub 600 beacon get 7% and get back 20k, while paying off their 20% interest visa from their local bank. I don't think so. Bottom line: People with bad credit, (like myself) deserve to pay a higher rate. Why? Because we don't pay our bills on time. We should pay the point assigned. Why? Again, we don't pay our bills on time. But thank God for Aegis who will change my life even if I have been naughty with my credit and failed to pay the debts that I legally owe. )

I just started with Aegis lending about two weeks ago. Like any other company in the world, there will be complaints and mistakes. So far everything that I do is looked at under a microscope by a processor, an underwriter, a manager, etc... No one should ever sign papers without reading them or if they change. Remember the loan officers can only use the information the customer gives. Once we tell you about the deal, we are hoping everything will stay the same. That's how we get paid. I am sure things change, such as, how much a person really makes versus what they claim. An appraisal being under what the customer stated. (initially that's all we have to work with). So should I file a complaint against my customers because they told me their house was just appraised for 150k, when it actually appraised for 125k. No, we all make mistakes.
Of course you are all forgetting the most important thing. We allow people with horrible credit to pay off debts, get large amounts of cash back, and still give them a fairly decent rate. Therefore completely changing their financial picture from bad to good, and more often than not, increasing their credit score. Let' see anyone with a sub 600 beacon get 7% and get back 20k, while paying off their 20% interest visa from their local bank. I don't think so. Bottom line: People with bad credit, (like myself) deserve to pay a higher rate. Why? Because we don't pay our bills on time. We should pay the point assigned. Why? Again, we don't pay our bills on time. But thank God for Aegis who will change my life even if I have been naughty with my credit and failed to pay the debts that I legally owe. )

I just started with Aegis lending about two weeks ago. Like any other company in the world, there will be complaints and mistakes. So far everything that I do is looked at under a microscope by a processor, an underwriter, a manager, etc... No one should ever sign papers without reading them or if they change. Remember the loan officers can only use the information the customer gives. Once we tell you about the deal, we are hoping everything will stay the same. That's how we get paid. I am sure things change, such as, how much a person really makes versus what they claim. An appraisal being under what the customer stated. (initially that's all we have to work with). So should I file a complaint against my customers because they told me their house was just appraised for 150k, when it actually appraised for 125k. No, we all make mistakes.
Of course you are all forgetting the most important thing. We allow people with horrible credit to pay off debts, get large amounts of cash back, and still give them a fairly decent rate. Therefore completely changing their financial picture from bad to good, and more often than not, increasing their credit score. Let' see anyone with a sub 600 beacon get 7% and get back 20k, while paying off their 20% interest visa from their local bank. I don't think so. Bottom line: People with bad credit, (like myself) deserve to pay a higher rate. Why? Because we don't pay our bills on time. We should pay the point assigned. Why? Again, we don't pay our bills on time. But thank God for Aegis who will change my life even if I have been naughty with my credit and failed to pay the debts that I legally owe. )

Gee Ken...sounds like you got a bug up your butt....did you get fired for not producing? Aegis requires LO's to produce, yeah....but not like most who boiler room it. I've been with Aegis for a long time and rather like the way I get my leads...from MY OWN WORK and some from what they give me.

I treat people with dignity, respect, and educate every one of them. I invite them to check out this site - compare that slimebag company Ameriquest with 300+ complaints! Now that's someone out to cut your throat.

Rather...when I make a quote...I do damned near everything I can to make sure it stays the same...even IF the appraisal comes back in lower than anticipated. I take an exception...figuring I would rather do that than misquote someone.

So a branch closed....so what. It wasn't efficient to run one there, plain and simple. Happens to all companies. Yeah Aegis buys some companies...the EQUIPMENT and OFFICE SPACE....I happen to work in one aquired in that manner and I can tell you NONE of the original people were kept....which is the case. We don't want them...we just want a decent location that we can serve people from and they can visit us.

I meet with all my clients. Even if it's 2 hours out...face to face. Show them the deal...go over all costs. Aegis doesn't hide anything...mistakes may be made from time to time, but who doesn't make one, including Donald Trump or Einstien. To err is human.

To have your attitude seems like you got a raw deal because you were either GREEN or just really bad at what you did. Probably you came from the broker world where your lies weren't under the microscope of the Feds.

AEGIS on the other hand...I challenge you to find one file that violates HOEPA. You won't find that anywhere. Other companies treat that like an out-of-date law....well Aegis doesn't. That in itself ensures that fees are not over charged. Go ahead...come in and pull a file....I dare you! Unless it's your own because of your incompetence.

No other lender works as hard...and I have never had that "underwriting" problem you have. Markets shift, and they have....not to the better for us LO's...it's tough. You just don't know how to make a go of it when you need to do some work to close a loan, that's what it seems to me. When you get the cheapest loan...that's what you get...a cheap loan. Servicing on that will stink, the LO's will lie, and you won't get what you were promissed. Pay what is reasonable...maybe a bit more...but you will NOT get lied to...you will close ON TIME and for what you were told to start.

I DO NOT LIE...I DO NOT TELL PHONY STORIES....and I am really figuring you must work for the competitor if you think we all don't see through your shallow attempt at putting down a decent company. I love my work place...I won't go elsewhere. My manager is the best...and I am dam*ed proud to work with Aegis.

I worked at the Aegis Lending office in maryland almost 3 months earlier part of 2004. What Ebony suggested regarding the non-payment of your existing mortgage(s)due to closing date expectations was right and terribly wrong.

That particular office, an entire floor including systems office furniture and even the phones in place and working with dial tone were I believe bought by Aegis the end of 2003 so they could start the eastern time zone division of their Alt-A lending attempt. By closure reported in a response above , is how I come to the word attempt.

Ebony was most likely little more than a telemarketer barely trained to take an application and then review it with her manager.
Every hire takes an online personality test and the results help determine that this hire meets unknown criteria. I was told that I was 95% the model hire based on the test and believe that to be true because I already knew my aptitude and disposition were well suited for the business.

Meet the test standards and have a decent phone voice and almost anyone could be hired. So I rather doubt her training explained the mechanics of wether to withhold payment or not. A good sales smoother turned bad. A mortgage late mark costs you dearly. Even as lax or easy as the underwriting standards were at Aegis ,even they care about that.

In a best case scenario , the november 13th close did not allow for the 3 day disbursement goal and totally neglects the mandated recision period which during that time they do nothing while waiting for the loan to become a firm contract. Or more specific , I will assume the loan became late on the 15th........2 days to get the funds in to the appropriate pay-off department.

Trust not the $10 per hour telemarketer especially when someone else handles the processing for them and 10 other "loan originators". They only required the LO to get the info to the processor and go on to the next application and hope that 1 of 5 applications actually closed if you got so far as the document collection of the borrower. I am sure that someone out there can refute the closing ratio, but was that the point here?

You could compare this too a used car lot, fishing for uneducated borrowers willing to pay 2.5 discount points for money they could get elsewhere at 0 to 1 point. Alternate A is the 660 to 699 Fico score borrower who might be willing to pay 2 points to get the same rate that the 745 qualifies for. A few well placed discount points can do wonders. Cash now works wonders on even the worse credit if you have someone telling you the truth. Corporate wanted us to treat A paper applications like Alt A or B grade paper. They were either out of touch and slow to adjust due to not understnding or caring how many loans they set up for other companies that quoted them correctly. They decided that the answer was to up our application quota, then our document quota.

All while feeding us $4000 per month of internet leads that mostly were 700 plus fico scores. The favored originators got the low 600's and 500 range score leads, but even underwriting could screw those up with last minute stips that just appeared out of someones head. So as strange as it sounds be thankfull what happened was all that happened. Your lucky Reston called at all.

Corporate is in Baton Rouge, LA. and could easily rectify the situation by Gapping the difference you needed with a small 2nd trust with comparable terms to the financing you did recieve.

Too complicated for most lenders to recast the loan amt. by addendum and finance statement or some sort of friendly legal mechanism. The secondary market where loans get packaged has a different set of rules that apply ,so retaining a loan within the inhouse portfolio of a direct lender is what would be required most likely.

Be thankful that you didnt expect one type of loan and get to settlement and find another. I behooves the industry to pawn off 2 yr variables when a 5 year fixed or a 30 yr. fixed would have served you better, but due to the borrowers inexperience was just happy to get anything at all. And wasnt the statement you signed about getting a lower interest rate in exchange for the pre-payment penalty a nice curve ball at settlement if that was never previously discussed.

Buy a corporation thats 50 yrs. in business and you too can declare 50 years in business with that name.

And look up AEGIS in the dictionary....please!!

Wouldnt it be nice if they really did live up to the definition? But that laser focus is on you paying the top rate they can convince you to accept.

And for quick growth go and buy the assets of predatory lenders in banruptcy and change the name to a noble honorable name . Its a great technique to overnight add 100 offices and even the Fortune 100's have gotten into B,C,D lending.

So Caveat Emptor . Before you can find the good you will have to educate yourself, so you can trust yourself to know enough to steer away from the bad before it gets ugly.

With the proliferation of loan origination representatives multiplying like a smallpox virus, dont expect the barely trained telephone solicitors to know anything more than what the greedy managers were directed by corporate to tell them and its probably just enough not to trigger predatory lending alarms.

Dont get me wrong here. Nothing more admirable than getting the best loan attainable for a client. But Customer is the word they would use as professionalism is a concept only and client denotes a responsibility which means you put their needs ahead of your own and ,uh... next!

End of chapter one.

Chapter two
"Just scratched the surface"

Carolyn,
Don't let the speculations of others fool you. The branch closure had nothing to do whatsoever with employees misrepresenting anything--that's too easy a way to try to "justify" not standing behind company commitments. And whether misstatements were made or not, they were made by the company and the company should stand behind their promises. For the rates and fees charged (and I have no doubt they were significant) you DESERVE follow through on promises made. I hope you get them in the future.

Carolyn,

Again, sorry for the bad situation. I also work for Aegis, and I believe it to be a very good, ethical company. They are very big on there mission statement, vision, and focus= Customer Service. We have been growing tremendously, buying new companies and branches to add to the family. Unfortunately, in this process, we seem to have acquired a bad apple here and there. I am by no means condoning what happened to you. You have every right to be angry, as would I. However, did you stop to think that maybe this was the reason that branch was closed down, and everyone fired? I'm not sure what the heck your first loan officer was telling you, but it was very incorrect. When you close a mortgage, you have 1 month when your payment will not be due. Not 2. I just want you to know, that there are alot of us out here that are good people, and would never think of doing such a think to our clients. I do think that in this case, it was just a loan officer that did not know what they were talking about. As for your second officer not telling you the branch was closed, that is simply a matter of tact. Again, the reason they were all fired. Sorry for your situation, and I hope you will not be soured to the rest of us lowly loan officers in the future. :) Thanks for your time.

Carolyn, your first mistake was not to make your mortgage payment. If you were misled, it was because you wanted to be misled. You actually wanted to get a few extra months of not having to make a payment on your mortgage. In truth, you were getting a bit greedy. Nonetheless, that loan should never have told you not to make you mortgage payment, and you never should have listened. Never count your chickens until your eggs have hatched.

To Aaron ..I was mislead to the point of almost losing my house and told that I was approved and led to beleive that everything was fine for over a month... None of this was neccessary, If the company was in trouble to the point of being shut down im sure it wasnt just for a few mistakes... I think you should butt out and look again at the complaints ... We have substanial complaints and Aegis ripped me off... I wouldnt recomend them or even think of picking up the phone to call your office... Its probably as crooked as the other one... They just havent caught up with your office yet..
Rest Regards

Dear Carolyn,

It looks like everything did not go smoothly with your loan. That is truly regrettable, and for that I apologize.

Homes are serious investments, and Aegis Lending understands that debt consolidation, cash out for special circumstances, or lowering your rate are important factors not only in financial side of life, but the emotional side of life as well. That is why last year we proudly helped almost 87,000 families lower their rate or pay off debts, and while we did regrettably have two complaints on this site (versus the thousands many companies have), we were able to help 86,998 other families with respect and excellent service.

As for your situation, again I apologize. Our company has experienced quite a bit of growth, and while that is wonderful, mistakes do occasionally happen, despite our rigid underwriting and quality control systems in place. While that is no excuse, I hope that you can understand that we are a company of humans, and that we definitely have made mistakes in the past and will most likely make a few mistakes in the future as well.

If have any questions, feel free to contact any of the leadership staff in our company, you will find that they are incredibly helpful and dedicated to their staff and their clients.

Best Regards,

Aaron J. Biebert
Loan Officer

NOTE: This response does not necessarily represent the views of Aegis Lending, or any of it's Aegis Mortgage affiliates.