Complaint Review: WELLS FARGO HOME MORTGAGE - Tucson Arizona

August 18, 2008

RE: Loan Number 015640XXXX, Client 708

I am a victim of a high-cost subprime loan by Wells Fargo who engaged in deceptive and unethical practices. The dream of owning my home its been shattered by these unfair and unethical practices used by this lending institution. Now my family and I are trapped and unable to rent because of the result of this unfair practice.

I believe Wells Fargo has violated the state's Unfair Trade Practices Act, which says that a loan officer cannot mislead or try to obscure important information from borrowers. I was promised by a licensed loan officer from Wells Fargo that at the end of the year of this loan, I was going to be able to refinance to a better interest rate with the same institution and no prepayment penalties were disclosed in detail.

I have called Wells Fargo on November 2007 and asked for help to one of the representatives for that institution. I asked the representative that I was struggling making the payments and if there was anyway to lower my payments. The representative stated that I was making the payments on time and that they couldn't help me. I stated that I was promised by the loan officer who approved the loan that I was going to be able to refinance my house in one year.

Being unable to refinance with my institution's mortgage I noticed that I was locked in and found out that I had an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) with a prepayment penalty and that I couldnt refinance my house with not a single company unless I came up with extra money to get out of this prepayment penalty around $3,000.00 to $4,000.00 dollars. I made lots of calls to different mortgage companies and I was given the same answer. NO! You are trapped and locked by your institution.

End of November 2007 I approved a payment thru my Wells Fargo checking account. I only had $1200.00 dollars approximately in my checking account. My payment of $1089.00 dollars was scheduled to come out of my checking account at the end of November because I had already prescheduled November's payment. The scheduled payment came leaving a few dollars into my checking account, just a few dollars left.

Beginning of December 2007, Wells Fargo account online takes an unscheduled payment of $1089.00 thru my checking account that was already taken for the month of November 2007. On December 2007 Wells Fargo checking account immediately reflected a minus (-) $1089.00 plus fees because of other small purchases that I had previously done.

I did call Wells Fargo customer service and they told me that they couldn't do anything, that I needed to contact Wells Fargo account online. I did contact account online immediately and a lady in that department told me that they couldn't reverse the payment.

The account online associate said we have to protect our investors; therefore we can not reverse the payment. and left my checking account with a large minus (-) balance.

My checking account continued with a minus (-) balance and in a few days continued accumulating fees, after fees, after fees. A checking account representative was able to cut in half three fees of $34.00 to $17.00 each one.

Now my checking account reflected from a minus (-) $1,400.00 balance approximately to a minus (-) $1,300 balance approximately after the small charges were reduced.

The whole month of December 2007 my checking account was with a minus (-) balance. When my direct deposit from my employer came into my checking account in the middle of the month, it was absorbed because of the minus (-) balance on my checking account. The same thing happened at the end of the month on December 2007 another direct deposit was absorbed by the minus (-) checking account balance.

In the middle of January 2008 I was able to bring my minus (-) checking account balance to a positive (+) balance, but by then the damage was already done.

From the beginning of this mortgage our family struggled to make both payments. We were forced to make Wells Fargo payday loans to subsidize our income in order to make full mortgage payment on time. We have records from Wells Fargo checking statements that shows these transactions, which cost our family an additional $100.00 each month.

Getting a Wells Fargo cash advance of $100.00 on addition of our mortgage payments every month to continue making the house payments and barely having anything to eat was too much for my family, we needed some help.

I put all my efforts in obtaining this mortgage in GOOD FAITH. I even borrowed from my 401k to pay closing costs and down payment paying close to $10,000.00 (ten thousand dollars) plus a last minute call from a Wells Fargo loan officer that they needed to add $4,000.00 (four thousand dollars) more into the loan which really took me by surprised. This last minute tactic is been used by Wells Fargo as part as their unfair predatory lending practices. I do have an eyewitness that can testify at anytime that Wells Fargo used the same tactic when he was trying to close on his loan. He was fortunate that a loan officer from a different institution called and questioned Wells Fargo about this unfair tactic.

Therefore, $10,000.00 in closing costs and down payment for the year 2006 plus $9,585.99 dollars mortgage interest for the year 2007 1st mortgage and approximately $3,500 2nd mortgage interest year 2007

plus $4,000.00 added at the last minute, plus so far right now $1,000 undisclosed charges equals pproximately $28,085.99 that Wells Fargo has acquired from me as you can see, I have acted in GOOD FAITH with the intend to keep this house from the beginning as well as I continue to stay in the house with full intensions to keep this property.

I have told Wells Fargo that because everything is recorded for quality and training purposes they can see that the information provided is not a made up story.

I had an average credit score but loan originated and processed a variable mortgage Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) with a fixed high interest rate on a second mortgage loan.

After talking by telephone and meeting with a certified HUD housing counselor we were told that the mortgage we could afford should have been a lesser amount. However, the licensed loan officer processed us for a $165,000 dollars plus $4,000 dollars last minute call from a licensed loan officer equal to $169,000 dollars, the difference was $57,702 more than we could afford. But we didn't know this information because we were already approved for this loan and struggling making the payments for this house. The licensed loan officer from Wells Fargo provided false information to get a commission and I was illegally steered into a subprime loan. I do have my pay stubs from 2006 and at anytime can be seen to check my income back then.

Our family would like to continue in our mortgage but we have requested the mortgage payment be reduced to an affordable rate with a fix interest according to my income and expenses. But wells Fargo keeps denying or refuses to negotiate. Our current financial indicates we cannot afford more than $1000.00 mortgage payment since this loan was a bad loan from the beginning we are requesting Wells Fargo Home Mortgage to do a Loan Modification.

I am seeking relief from Wells Fargo who has engaged into a predatory lending and deceptive practices as well as institutionalized systematic racism because of my race and accent.

The lending industry has a long history of engaging in racial discrimination in connection with mortgage loans made to African-Americans, Hispanic or Latinos, with products and terms that are drastically worse than those given to their Caucasian counterparts.

If Wells Fargo cannot modify this loan to fit my income and expenses I do request that Wells Fargo returns at least $25,000 put in good faith throughout this premeditated, unethical false loan. I went to, Wells Fargo, a licensed institution by the state of Arizona to get a mortgage loan, to get a service and the service that I got was just head aches. I was targeted and given an unfair loan by this licensed institution. I was discriminated and this licensed institution violated applicable federal law.

I have been injured, lied and imminent danger of suffering immediate or threatened injury as a result of these predatory lending policies and practices and now I am facing foreclosured with only a few days for me and my family to find an apartment.

The ownership of a home is a fundamental bridge to financial security that has become an indispensable part of the American Dream. It is the bedrock of economic security, as well as the primary vehicle by which families build wealth. Home equity accounts for more than one-third of the average wealth of U.S. households. The percentages are even greater for minorities. A recent Pew Hispanic Center study found that among African-American homeowners, the median family held 88% of its total wealth in the form of home equity.

During last decade, African-Americans have joined Hispanic borrowers in helping to fuel a multiyear housing boom, accounting for 49% of the increase in home ownership from 1995 to 2005, according to Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies. Nonetheless, African-Americans and Hispanics are far more likely to have their American dream unduly burdened with subprime loans than their Caucasian counterparts.

Subprime loans are higher-cost mortgage products that are theoretically given to borrowers who have impaired credit. During the past 10 years, an entire subprime industry has been spawned by larger profits generated by the higher rates and exorbitant fees charged to high risk borrowers.

Unfortunately, the subprime industry has also attempted to maximized its profits by directing borrowers with relatively good credit to subprime mortgages. These predatory tactics have been disproportionately applied against members of the African-Americans and Hispanic community.

The majority of African-Americans and Hispanic who took out purchase mortgages in 2005 were put into higher-cost subprime loans, compared with about 17% of Caucasians, according to Federal Reserve data. As just two examples, the South Side of Chicago, with a large concentration of minority borrowers, has high concentration of subprime loans and the state's highest foreclosure rate. And in Boston, where defaults are rising primarily in minority neighborhoods. 73% of high income African-Americans (those making $92,000 to $152,000) received subprime loans in 2005, compared with 17% of Caucasians.

This is consistent with the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) finding in 2001 that among upper-income African-Americans nationally, 18.05 percent of conventional refinance loans received were from subprime lenders, whereas for upper-income African-American homeowners are more likely to receive a subprime loan while refinancing even when compared lo lower-income Caucasian homeowners.

This licensed lender institution has been engaging in predatory subprime lending, knowingly made this loan with false information to obtain a higher profit. I was put in jeopardy of default, this effectively diluted the equity from the property. Putting me in the position of spending years paying off additional loan balances without developing any equity.

Wells Fargo has violated the Fair Housing Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Civil Rights Act.

The Fair Housing Act was first enacted in 1968 to prohibit discrimination in connection with real estate transactions, including home purchases and refinancing. The Act prohibits mortgages lenders from imposing different terms or conditions on a loan, such as different rates, points or fees, on the basis of race. I was targeted by Wells Fargo based on my race and accent.

The Equal Credit Opportunity Act was first enacted in 1974 as a consumer protection statue prohibiting discrimination in issuing credit. The Act has been broadly construed by the courts in order to make effective its provisions to protect consumers.

The Civil Rights Act of 1866 and 1870 prohibits racial discrimination in the formation and issuance of contracts, and intentional interference to purchase and hold real property.

Finally, the reason I applied for a mortgage with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage was because of the HIGH INTEGRITY FORTUNE 500 the company maintained. Moreover, we had a previous loan with Wells Fargo. I was also targeted back then in Phoenix, Arizona around 2002, 2003, the mortgage loan was paid as agreed with an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) but I was able to get out of this loan before resetting.

Finally, like I mentioned above I am a victim of a high-cost subprime loan by Wells Fargo who engaged in deceptive and unethical practices. The dream of owning my home its been shattered by these unfair and unethical practices used by this lending institution. Now my family and I are trapped and unable to rent because of the result of this unfair practice.

I AM ASKING Wells Fargo TO MODIFY THIS LOAN TO A FAIR FIXED LOAN AND TO REMOVED THE PREPAYMENT PENALTY AND ADJUSTABLE RATE MORTGAGE (ARM).

Otherwise, give us a payment of at least $28,000.00 dollars(Twenty Eight Thousand dollars) and pay our moving expenses because of all this HARM that Wells Fargo has caused by NOT CHECKING or IGNORED the FALSE DOCUMENTATION that a Wells Fargo Licensed Loan Officer provided in order to receive a commission.

Martin

Tucson, Arizona

U.S.A.

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