WAMU's SNAFUS are going to boost my hypertension!
Written: Apr 20 '06
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Pros: NONE
Cons: POOR communication of changes, SLOW payment processing, totally incompetent phone sevice personnel
The Bottom Line: I'll live in a box or deal with a loan shark before I chose to deal with WAMU. The loan shark is honest about the fees.
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| caithnessfan's Full Review: Washington Mutual Bank |
I did not chose WAMU for my mortgage.
Rather my mortgage and thus I was SOLD into slavery to them.
It appears that they get MOST of their mortgage accounts by sending Guido and Nunzio out to other banks to make them an offer that they can't refuse and "Buying" them up.
It IS possible to go directly through WAMU to obtain a mortgage but I wouldn't suggest it.
Shortly after I refinanced my home in 2003 to lower my rate, I received notice that the note had been sold by the bank that I went through to Homeside Lending. I had no problems with this as it ahd happened after the initial note was complete and I had had no problems with them.
The troubble started when I received a pleasant little missive saying that WAMU (should be renamed to SNAFU)
had taken over operations and accounts of Homeside lending and would now be handling my mortgage.
After reading this warm fuzzy assuring me that there would be no interruption of the splendid service that I was used to getting form my former bank.
Fast Forward 45 days approximately
I come dragging in from a hard day in the salt mines, check my mailbox and to my suprise I find a pretty little envelope from Washington Mutual.
I open the envelope to find a polite reminder that my payment (Which was set up on an auto draft through my bank) was now overdue and needed to be paid along with the late fee as soon as possible.
I call my bank to find out if the payment had gone out and get a transaction number or something to prove it only to be told that the payment was returned THAT DAY to them by CHECK IN THE MAIL and is now comfy back in my account since it was marked as no such account exists.
I called WAMU and was told that OF COURSE the payment was returned since the payment was sent to an account with Homeside Lending and that account was no longer valid.
I chewed a hole through my tongue large enough to drive a Yugo through and POLITELY enquired "WHEN WERE YOU PLANNING ON TELLING ME THIS! The ONLY thing that I got from you said that my great service would continue unabated. There has NEVER been anything mentioning a new address or account number."
Snotty McSmartarse replied "We sent you the new account number when we sent your new payment book...SIR"
"What payment book?" I humbly ask.
"The one for your car loan of course? What payment book did you think I meant?"
"SINCE I DO NOT HAVE A CAR LOAN WITH YOU I THOUGHT YOU MIGHT LET ME KNOW IF MY HOUSE PAYMENT ACCOUNT HAS CHANGED RATHER THAN WAITING UNTIL MY PAYMENT IS LATE AND MAILING THE PAYMENT BACK TO MY BANK WHERE THE AUTO DRAFT COMES FROM!!!"
Slightly humbled, Snotty stamers and says "OOOOHHHH You're one of THOOOOSE!"
"One of THOOOSE WHAT? I ask becoming slightly alarmed.
"One of the people whose mortgage was PURCHASED BEFORE the buy out."
"That STILL DOES NOT EXPLAIN WHY MY PAYMENT WAS MAILED BACK TO THE BANK and I wasn't informedof the new account number. I only found out when I received a LATE NOTICE in the mail TODAY!"
"Oh, you'd better make the payment then, I can do that for you over he phone and it'll JUST be an additional $15.00 charge for the service"
"YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING!!!!"
"No SIR! It is a CONVENIENCE FEE to have a REAL PERSON process the payment by hand rather than a computer do it when you mail it in to us on time or have it automatically withdrawn. If you WANT to save $5.00 of the fee you can call this number 1-800-###-#### and do it using the automated system for a MERE additional fee of $12.00"
"Are you going to do anything about this late fee since it's WAMU's FAULT that the payment is late?"
long discusion and many shouts later
I ended up stuck with the $39.00 late fee, the $12.00 fee for using the automated system, and obtaining the "NEW ACCOUNT NUMBER AND ADDRESS"
Skipping forawrd to Tuesday, (approximately a year later of lack luster service) I have now been informed that yet ANOTHER late fee has been charged against my account as my just in time payment was "PROCESSED" on the day after the last grace day.
I admit that I lost my mind this month and in a fit of Spring Cleaning, re-arranged my desk and forgot to mail off the payment in time to get there anywhere close to the grace period. HOWEVER, as soon as I realised that it wouldn't get there in time, I bit the bullet and used the "JUST IN TIME" automated telephone system to make the payment DURING THE GRACE PERIOD since the $12.00 fee was still less than a late fee.
The payment was aplied to my account on the last grace day but they didn't PROCESS it until the next day.
I replied to their email and asked about that and was told TODAY that "We don't go by when we GET the payment, we go by when it is PROCESSED"
I have now spent 1 hour and 20 min. dialing the customer service number and hanging up after getting a busy signal and then redialing again.
My finger is getting a blister and is beginning to go numb.
In deseration, I called one of the several other customer service numbers (the one for banking rather than the loan speciffic one).
I got a human being rather than the droning buzzz buzzz buzzz buzzz of a busy signal and went into shock.
I finally conviced her that I was NOT crank calling and that if she was unable or unwilling to assist me that I would GLADLY speak to a customer service rep, a supervisor, or ANY HUMAN BEING IN THE MORTGAGE department.
STILL no satisfaction and no human being but the loud beeps of being transferred are now replaced by the familliar buzzz buzzz buzzz buzzz of a busy signal again.
The only thing that I have gotten from WAMU with ANY degree of predictability is the flood of snail mail begging and wheedlings to open another account with them, apply for a credit card with them, invest through them, take pout another loan with them, or take out some form of insurance that they offer. THESE I get an average of 3 a week.
I am considerig bailing them tightly together and changing my gas furnace over to a wood burner and saving a fortune each winter.
I have gone to the WAMU web page and after several attempts, have been able to sign up with automated draft payment at no additional charge (that they mentioed at least. My next bank statement will tell)
The web page is slow to load even with cable internet, completely blah, and most of the font is small enough to make the fine pint on a used car contract look like the banner front page headline on the New York Times.
They ARE nice enough to publish their down time (which is more often than they are up and running) on the home page.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
caithnessfan
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 - Top 1000 |
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Member: Will Young
Location: Bellevue, NE
Reviews written: 205
Trusted by: 32 members
About Me:
36, voracious reader, lover of good wines and beers and bad puns
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