by sandra_gitana » Wed Feb 02, 2011 02:44 am
Whose responsibility is it to automatically cancel PMI once the 80% has been met? The mortgage company (Wells Fargo) or the PMI (Genworth) company? Constant phone calls during the last 2 years to Wells Fargo re: cancellation have gotten us nowhere. We reached our 80% back in 2009 and they still would not cancel, simply stating that they would send us a letter re: said issue. Letters were always vague and uninformative. Finally, this past December we called Wells Fargo and threatened that we would pay absolutely no more PMI payments. We were then informed that they had listed our house as a "second home" (we only have ONE home) and that PMI requirements were different for second homes. I told them this was not a second home, that we were refusing to make any more PMI payments, period, and would be talking to an attorney about a refund for all the payments we've made in the last 2 years that weren't required. They subsequently sent us a letter stating that our PMI company (Genworth) does not issue pro-rated refunds. Is there no recourse for recovering this money, 24 months of unrequired payments? Where do we go from here? How can Genworth keep money that is not legally theirs? Isn't is the legal responsibility of Wells Fargo to automatically cancel this PMI when we reach the correct requirements?
All help greatly appreciated.
All help greatly appreciated.
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 03:59 am Post Subject:
My recommendation is to write to the FHA and bring this to their attention. CC both WF and GenWorth on the letter.
Have you been current in your payments for a year? There are a few criteria that need to be met before PMI is removed. Current payments and 80% are only two of them.
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 09:24 am Post Subject:
Whose responsibility is it to automatically cancel PMI once the 80% has been met? . . . Isn't it the legal responsibility of Wells Fargo to automatically cancel this PMI when we reach the correct requirements?
There is no such thing as AUTOMATIC CANCELLATION of PMI on a mortgage loan. If your loan-to-value is below the 80% threshold, you must pay for an appraisal (using an appraiser approved by your lender) to prove your position.
Your big mistake was not knowing what the procedure is, and Wells Fargo not properly informing you upon inquiry. However, there is information about cancelling PMI in your loan documentation received at the close of escrow.
Once you submit the documentation, then the PMI will be terminated. Should take a couple of weeks.
You could try suing Wells Fargo in small claims court for the few hundred dollars they have cost you, but because they are regulated by the Comptroller of the Currency, not the state banking regulator, they would probably petition the court to remove the case to Federal Court, where you will pay more for an admitted lawyer to represent you than the claim is worth, and probably lose on some procedural grounds.
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 02:06 pm Post Subject:
There is no such thing as AUTOMATIC CANCELLATION of PMI on a mortgage loan
There is... Google it. An appraisal _may_ be needed and the PMI _can_ be cancelled at 78%. But at 80%, as long as certain criteria are met, it's automatic.Add your comment