Complaint Review: Safeguard Properties - Nationwide

Safeguard Properties and Nationstar Mortgage I received an offer on my home in June, 2015. I notified my mortgage company (Nationstar) that I was in the processing of selling my home and the closing would be sometime in July. As a result I did not make my July house payment, but instead used that money as a deposit on a new property.  I moved to a different city and left behind a dryer and brand new refrigerator for the home buyers.

Two days after I moved out, SAFEGUARD PROPERTIES was hired by Nationstar to inspect my home. Third party contractors for Safeguard illegally kicked in a door into my home and changed the lock on the backdoor in an effort to "secure" what they deemed to be abandoned property.  Prior to their break-in, every door and window in the house was securely locked. Had they needed to do an inspection, all they would have had to do was call and I would have provided a key to the property.  

When my sons visited the home the following Thursday (July 23^rd) , they found paperwork on the kitchen counter, the garage door kicked in, and the dryer that had been left for the buyers missing. The paperwork left on my countertop showed the furnace, refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, and hot water heater were present but the washer and dryer were not present.  (The dryer was not present because the ‘inspector’ had taken it.)  My son tried calling the number on the paperwork but the offices were closed.  Upon leaving the home, my sons secured every door and window into the house.

The following morning, Friday, July 24^th, I made a formal complaint to Safeguard and my mortgage company.  At the same time, I reiterated to the mortgage company that I would be closing on my house before August 7th. I also established a claim for the break-in and missing dryer with Safeguard’s legal department. At first the legal department was unwilling to acknowledge the break-in, but after being placed on hold, the rep came back on the line, acknowledged that ‘yes’, they had broken into my property and that they would send a contractor to 'fix' my door.  The contractor was required to contact me within 24-48 hours.

The following Tuesday, after not hearing from a contractor, I called Safeguard back and was given the name and phone number of the contract repairman. I called them and verified that a work order had indeed been established and that they would repair my door and frame on Thursday, July 30^th, prior to closing on Friday.

 I visited the property again the following night (Wednesday) and as soon as I entered a 'double locked' front door I found skid tracks where an appliance had been moved out of the house. Further checking revealed the Safeguard contractors had accessed my home using the lock they had placed on my back door and stolen my brand new refrigerator that was also being left for the future homeowners.  I also found my hot water heater closet door open as if that was the next item they were going to remove.  My attic door into my garage was also down which worried me that they were also going to come back and take my new heating unit installed the first week of July.

I immediately called the county Sheriff’s Office and an officer responded.  We went through the house together and he told me he would complete the police report.  The following morning, Thursday, July 30^th I again contacted the legal department at Safeguard and told them my new refrigerator had also been stolen.  The only access into the house had been via the lock they had installed on the backdoor and by someone who knew the code to the lock.  I asked the Safeguard rep to please have this access stopped and she told me I would have to contact my mortgage company (which I did).  During all of this ciaos, I have never received any kind of correspondence from my mortgage company or Safeguard. When I called Nationstar back I finally got a nice service rep who was willing to listen.  I explained the entire scenario to him and told him I had just received an email from my buyer that due to the thefts and break-ins they (the buyers) were not comfortable closing the sale. I again asked the rep to put a stop to the illegal entry by Safeguard and at that point he gave me the access code to remove the lock from my back door.

Later Thursday afternoon, I met the investigator from the Sheriff’s office back at my home where he took additional pictures and documented the entire scenario as discussed above.  He tried to take fingerprints but because of the brushed nickel door knobs was unsuccessful.

Safeguard Properties have cost me not only a dryer, a new fridge, repairs to my door and damages, but also the loss of sale on my home.  This company is irresponsible and should be held accountable.  My next stop is at the Attorney General’s office to file and official complaint.