False advertising
Written: Jun 02 '03
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Pros: Online information available on process from A-Z
Cons: Online potential not used, poor customer service, communicate poorly
The Bottom Line: Needless to say...from someone who knows how loans should be processed: save your time and go somewhere they put their money where their mouth is.
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| thecathy's Full Review: Washington Mutual Bank |
My husband and I wanted to take advantage of the low rates in the economy and lock in at a lower fixed rate on our mortgage. In December I started doing research on rates to find the best deal available. Not wanting to pay broker fees (the upfront cost often takes a few years to recoup in actual dollar savings) and knowing some of what was available from working in the industry, I wanted to start with the major players in the mortgage industry. Of those, Washington Mutual was boasting the best rates on the product we wanted: 30 year fixed rate mortgage.
They warned of a longer than average time to close because of the large number of clients they were servicing. This didn't surprise me because I had done the research and every one should be applying with them; they offered the best rates.
Not only did they have the best rates, but their website (where I prefer to do most of my personal research) was exquisite. It promised to keep track of your loan process from application to close by date stamping each task completed by the Washington Mutual staff. You could email your loan processor directly for status at any time by simply clicking below their picture. Most lenders won't follow up with you regarding each step; you'll need to contact them to find out what is going on. This was a definite selling point: perhaps they did have more "human interest" as their commercials boast.
Even my first telephone contact with them seemed promising. The representative seemed to care about what our goals were and wanted to be upfront about the expected process. She even added to the experience by dropping the rate even more than the posted rate because of our credit ratings. This ended by pleasant experience with Washington Mutual.
Our estimated closing date (after my conversation with the representative) was 60 days. We weren't going to provide income documentation (because of our credit ratings which were already checked) so we could speed the process from their 90 day disclaimer. 60 days later they had done nothing online and a phone conversation confirmed the same. Although a less than competent appraiser had made it seem crucial that he see our home (for 30 seconds) to prepare his $375 report for them. He didn't have the right age of our home, number of rooms, square footage, or comparable sales. (I'm certified as an appraiser and know his skills and professionalism were less than par.)
Washington Mutual had yet to transfer our file for processing (analyzing for approval). I complained by email (the link online didn't work by the way; only an empty screen came up) and received a call 2 days later from our processor. Two weeks later after another email complaint on my part, I got a call from a woman asking what type of loan we were looking for and saying we would need income documentation because we didn't qualify for the product we wanted. Our credit scores didn't meet guidelines. I was furious. Two and half months later and they had done nothing on my loan and had actually taken 5 steps backwards. I had to re-explain what we were trying to do (reduce our interest rate). I had wasted this much time and at least still had a lock on my interest rate, so we submitted our documents.
A week later after another complaint email, I received a call saying our taxes didn't verify enough income because they could only consider a portion of our tax return. That's ridiculous. The IRS considers the entire thing. They wouldn't. He said we could refinance to an adjustable rate mortgage, but not a fixed rate. Why would I refinance to a variable rate when we have a fixed rate right now? Why would I have waited three months to refinance when I could have converted to variable rate with my current lender in two weeks? He had no answers for me so I spoke with his supervisor.
She disagreed with him regarding what minimum credit scores were for fixed rate products and confirmed they wouldn't consider a large portion of our annual income from 2 years tax returns. I explained that I was more than disappointed with their service and suggested that they figure out a way to communicate among their ranks what exactly they could and couldn't do so their customers might better know what to expect.
I followed this up with an email suggesting the same and explained that I would be embarrassed if my own staff were this incompetent. They sent a generic "we care" email back and asked that I call and explain what happened. I JUST DID! I had sent them an extensive email with names, dates, and continued disappointments.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
thecathy
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Member: Cathleen Blackwell
Location: Woodland CA
Reviews written: 24
Trusted by: 1 member
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