I got a frustrating call from a loss mitigation department employee telling me that the property that I had submitted a short-sale offer on was foreclosed last week.
Of course, I already knew that but was a bit irritated that they answered my last inquiry two weeks after the fact. It was a lot of “too little too late" and I was underwhelmed.
When I suggested that I was going to write a national blog about the entire episode her response was: “If you do that I will refer the matter to our legal department.”
I laughed and informed her that there was little legal peril in writing the truth, and she began repeating the mantra over and over, “If you do that I will refer the matter to our legal department.”
First of all, I doubt that a loss mitigation department that doesn’t even bother to answer phone calls for over two weeks has the business acumen to follow-up on any threat. Secondly, I don't mind if their legal department reads it at all.
It might be useful in preparing THEIR defense!
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Sounds like a challenge...now you HAVE to write that blog!
What happened to the new regulations where they are supposed to respond in a timely manner? Good post Richard.
AWUUUU * they have "google alerts" for themselves and have PEOPLE monitoring them...I suspect she has heard your blog reference before.
I think they're still short handed. The loss mit people are lower tier employees and are over loaded still. They are not going to take the time to send anything to their legal department, especially since they were late doing their job.
Richard,
I'm sure you're shaking in your boots. "The truth shall set you free."
Rich
That might be why they are so slow..maybe all their energy is focused on keeping the truth silent. What a mess....
The truth will set you free. Had a credit ding because I was the broker holding an escrow deposit and small claims court judgement between buyer/seller gets me in the fray as the broker. That is just wrong and if you had that happen a few times in a 7 year period, the length the stuff stays on your personal credit history your credit FICO score heads south. Chased Trans Union for two years to restore otherwise stella credit. The blogging on AR, turning up the heat to expose to other brokers what to beware of, with a "did you know..." approach worked wonders. No one, no one wants bad press and the only reason you are posting Richard is to get the facts, just the facts, truth out there. You are not slandering, in a libel situation if just the facts are one by one assembled on line. On such and such a date this. Here is exhibit A, B and C approach with Spock like Vulcan approved logic, demeanor and doggedness. Other brokers, bloggers want to know the pitfalls you have had to avoid the potholes. Help work toward resolution, anything to make our day to day go smoother. What is criminal about that? Corporations can get too big for their britches but spend millions, billions for postive public relations. What happened to the customer is always right? We deal with hot heads, thin patience and frustrated folks overwhelmed with the process every day and apply our Dr Phil skills hourly to this and that fire needing putting out.
Verly good point Richard...In fact, I would encourage them to refer the matter to their legal department. You never know, someone may start to wake up!
She's definitely hoping that her job is not on the line.....she wants to intimidate you to save herself....too bad she couldn't have put that effort into the poor unsuspecting home owner.
Can't wait to see that post Richard! What a mess! In the end the worker will only be making herself look bad....won't help her performance review....
Looking forward to your next post. Its amazing that was her response so quick and matter of fact, no apologies. When will they figure out they are dealing with people not just a case number. At least you can look yourself in the mirror and know that you have done what you could. Its just a shame. I have had a few files this year where I was on the buyers side with an offer sent in waiting for an answer and the answer was I'm sorry the house has been foreclosed on. My buyers were floored... we've all been there huh. Best wishes for a productive day
I think my reply would have been "well you do that" click.
Sounds to me like you HAVE to write this post now Richard. If you just write the truth, I don't see how they have a leg to stand on should they actually wish to take you to court.
But just in case, I've set up the Richard Weisser Legal Defense Fund......with easy PayPal clickable link!!!
Sounds like me that she was just the messenger, since she told you the same thing twice. Ask for her email and send her the copy of the blog article, with a hundred or so comments from active rainers and we'll see what their legal department does with it.
HA! The threat of "sending it to the legal department" is just that,
a threat of sending it to the legal department.
HA!
Sounds like someone that is losong and knows it. She is scrambling to stay out of hot water.
Nothing more frustrating than working on short sales -- I think we should all write blogs about it. Maybe the process will finally start to get better.
You probably should have given her the phone number to the legal department, it took two weeks to find your number, she probably has no clue how to get in touch with legal.
IDIOTS!
Write it!! We'll bail you out.
Are you going to change the names to protect the innocent? Oh wait, I guess they aren't that innocent.
Good for you, I think all of us will be looking forward to your blog.
So Richard, when are you writing that post. You know now you just gotta write it.
:)
So if they had dealt with the issue right up front, I guess there wouldn't have been a problem. Maybe the more blogs the more this girl is going to have to answer for the problems.
Richard, my stock answer to that kind of a threat is;"that's what they build courthouses for."
Looking forward to reading your account of the facts in the case and knocking one of the arrogant banks down a notch. Good luck.
HI Richard!
Twice, here on the Rain, I have had an agent threaten to contact her attorney if I didn't take down my post. Neither time did it identify her. The first time I did remove it...it just wasn't worth the hassle. The second time, I decided to let her go for it. As \you said...it would provide a great defense!
Well, at least you got a response - albeit a bit of a loose cannon approach! Oh how defensive they can get when they crawl out of their secret hiding place to answer a phone call.
Yeah yeah whatever...tell them if the use Equator...you'll enter it the notes section this way they can't say they lost the paperwork! Maybe next time I speak to a person in the loss mitigation department...I'll just tell them if they don't move the short sale quicker...I'll write a blog about it...maybe then they'll run it by their legal department.
Richard ~ Too funny! I like Neal' suggestion...have them upload their notes into equator. I am surprised the customer service agent doesn't have thicker skin as I am sure she gets yelled at quite a bit.
Richard: If Loss Mitigation departments are reading blogs now, I am probably being read over and over. No calls from a legal department. As you state, there is no legal harm in publicly writing about the truth.
And I might add that if they are spending their time reading blogs about how bad they are then maybe they need to think about why they lose so many deals. Maybe they are reading facebook too..you would think that they are so dam busy and can't keep up with their files that they'd waste even more time scouring the Internet looking for negative stories about them...you know what...they'd probably find them pretty quick compared to how lousy their work ethic is.
They certainly don't have time to return phone calls so why would they have the time to surf the net to find your story. Fooey.
I've seen a few of these things happen. Often at a significant loss for the bank involved. I wonder if the shareholders of the bank could hold the bank responsible for wasting their money.
Don't you just love it when people repeat themselves? I'd say, "go ahead, make my millenium!"
Richard, I can see that the threat has you concerned. Good for you I think it is great when people fight back, the big businesses don't quite know how to deal with it, so they make threats....great post
I really don't think that I would worry about it all that much my friend. In order to get to the legal department, one of them would have to actually work and we know that won't happen anytime soon.
I didn't know they could do that. I bank with a credit union that I have used for 15+ years and they WANT me to use my electronic banking, etc so I don't think they would delete an account...I have mo auto debits and deposits so that may keep the account alive!
Richard - I've been threatened, too, and I wrote away. I've even thought of changing my email signature to note "You may be featured in my next national blog post!" Good for you!