I have been off the air for a long time as maintaining the blog whilst holding down three jobs and negotiating with Chase for a loan modification became and remains all-consuming.
But I would feel remiss if I did not post the modification offer Chase has “approved”. At first blush it seems almost too good to be true – an affordable payment coupled with the prospect of an unanticipated reduction in principal.
Upon closer inspection, the actual terms of the modification are missing – it’s a carrot dangled before a starved and desperate individual in the hopes they will bite.
I am not biting for anything that is not put in writing. I would urge anyone who may have received a similar offer to tread carefully. The offer and my response is posted below; I belive it speaks for itself.
ChasePaytoPlayModificationOffer
Filed under: Chase, Home Loan Modification, JP Morgan Chase | Tagged: bait & switch, Chase Home Lending, Chase Home Lending Executive Office, Chase loan modification, loan workout, pay to play modification |
JPMorganChaseLoanModifications 
so what ended up happening? im assuming you paid the three months by now?
I did not make the three trial payments for several reasons. After much back and forth and holding their feet to the fire I was able to obtain, in broad brushstrokes only, a more complete understanding of the modification offer. Unfortunately it included an enormous balloon payment plus there was no one document which clearly outlined all of the terms and conditions (one could only infer the nature of the deal by reviewing three separate documents and hoping for the best case scenario); at the same time, it took so long to get even this most rudimentary information on the terms that the first payment date expired. While I was granted an extension on making the first two payments by someone in the Executive Office, another department issued a letter withdrawing the modification offer for failure to remit payment by the originally stated deadline. I am currently attempting to both bring the offer back to life and eliminate the balloon payment but my contact in the Executive Office seems to have moved on. At present I have two unsigned letters from Customer Service indicating they are “researching my complaint”.
Any updates yet? We just received the exact letters and offer with no further documentation from Chase.
The Executive Office is “still working on it”. Bogus!
Chase’s corporate culture is deception. I was searching for a blog to see if anyone was being jerked around like I was.. The process is a total joke. I was given a conditional approval ffor a loan. Held up three months providing documentation, then was given the bait and swich treatment, denied the original loan and given an unacceptable counter offer. After three credit checks, review of every document requested, including bank statements twice. They made me an offer that I could not accept. Their objective is to keep you tied into them, making the process so miserable that you just take anything they give in the end. You are too exhausted to go somewhere else.
This is deception that begins at the top. Jamie Diamond is getting his just deserts by getting his salary cut. Chase is having profit problems.
They shouldn’t be trusted to carry through on anything. I don’t know how to get the word out. I have refinanced approximately twenty loans over time and I have never been conditionally approved and then later given a counter offer. If you are denied, you are denied. I told Chase I would have preferred to have been denied in the beginning than to be put through this. We are now workking on a third alternative and getting promises from Chase that go no where. You can climb the corporate ladder writing letters, but they dodge every issue. And the response., in the refinance department at least is “Thank you, Sir”, so totally insincere and dismissive. Chase will get its just deserts. Once all this counter offer crap is exposed for what it is, maybe people will be smart enough not to even start out with them. I can get no real confirmation on anything, never a straight answer. I feel like putting all my correspondence with them on here. But doubt it would do any good. Just happy to have found other people are going through the same thing. Incidentally, I have money in the bank, excellent credit, pay $1000 additional to princpal every month. Chase just doesn’t want tto refinance a loan to a lower rate. Why should they? But to just come out and say that would be refreshing. I’m going to quit using my Chase Visa redit card, spread the word and keep on trying to get firm answers. If you really qualify in all aspect for a loan, Cash Call is excellent to deal with. They closed a loan for me in three weeks. But they only deal with people in excellent financial positions. Don’t waste your time with Chase. It is deception from beginning to end. Great going Jamie