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J.S. of Wilson NC writes (7/16/03):
We purchased a home in foreclosure without knowing there was a first mortgage on the home. We purchased the home in case in December. In April, someone from Conseco broke off our lock and "weatherized the home". We called the police and then found out later there was a first mortgage, also owned by Conseco. Conseco sold a second mortgage knowing there was a first mortgage greater than $100,000 on the home. Our grave error was that we did not do a title search since we assumed the lawyers closing transaction would only complete it if there was a clear title.

Although we committed a grave error, since I have excellent credit, we attempted to negotiate with Conseco to acquire the first mortgage. Since April l, Conseco has been telling us it is under review. They will not call us back. In the interim they have started foreclosing on the first mortgage, even though they are in negotiations with us. Our Attorney has told us Conseco has not done anything wrong legally, it is just unethical.

We have the means to purchase the first mortgage, but Conseco will not make a decision on the negotiations. Our home is now in foreclosure and we will probably lose our initial purchase in the home, as well as all the new improvements we have put in the home. This practice is predatory, cruel, evil and essentially demoralizing. My wife and I have suffered tremendous anguish, agitation and depression over these matter.

Marleta of Dalton GA (7/14/03):
I normally make my payments using the check by phone system. When I tried to access it on Fri. 7/11 to make my payment the call would never connect to the automated system as it always has before. I kept getting the message to hold for the next representative. I didn't want a rep. I wanted the automated system so I could get a confirmation number at the end.

When I called this morning to try it again I got the same thing about holding for a rep. When I held and explained to the rep. about what happened she was very rude. I explained I've always used the check by phone system when I didn't mail my payment in and wasn't sure what to do since I couldn't get through to it on Fri. I wasn't aware that the check by phone didn't work anymore or wasn't working and wasn't able to make my payment as I had before. I always have to pay it close to the 13th of the month because of the way my husband's pay day is set up. She informed me that they couldn't waive the late payment even though it wasn't my fault either. How was I supposed to know the check by phone privilege wasn't being offered anymore>

Brenda of San Antonio TX (7/10/03):
I refinanced my mobile home with IndyMac and the loan was assumable. That influenced my decision to choose IndyMac. Greentree bought the loan, then Conseco bought the loan. And they won't do an assumable loan! This is the only way I can sell my mobile home because I owe $28,000 and it's only worth $21,000. I can no longer afford the home, need to sell, and move to cheap apartment. Cannot do bankruptcy because I did one in 2000 (excluding the mobile home).

Due to no assumable loan, they will cause me to just "abandon" the home. And I will still owe for monthly lot rent, also. And Greentree will hound me to death for the difference in what they sell it for and what is owed.

Lisa of Lockwood MO (7/8/03):
In Sept. 1997, we defaulted on an FHA-guaranteed loan through Greentree finance on a mobile home. We tried to sell the home outright, but Greentree insisted we could only get someone to take over our mortgage, or sell the home for at least what we owed. As mobile home loans go, we owed a bit more than it was worth at the time, so no lender would give a loan on the home and we couldn't get it sold.

Greentree reposessed the home in Jan. 1998. We stayed in contact with them by phone for a while to see how things were progressing, trying to get answers to how the sale would proceed, what we could expect to owe, and so forth. We were told that they were pleased with the great condition that we left the home in, and insisted that this would help the resale value and decrease the amount left owing. After three months, the home still had not been sold or moved. (It was located on my father-in-law's farm. We had moved out of it in Nov. 1997) We continued to make inquiries about the status, because we were seriously having to look at the possibility of filing BK if the amount left owing was too large. Our attorney was also wanting to know what Greentree intended to do. Finally, we were told to stop calling, and that since it was an FHA Title 1 guaranteed loan, any deficiency that remained would be up to FHA to collect/not collect, and we would hear from them. So, we waited.

Two years passed without a word from Greentree or FHA. In Dec. 1999, I got a letter from Conseco atating that since I had not responded to their letters, they were assuming I had no intention of settling my past due account and they would take further action if I did not respond by 12/31/99. The letters -- 2 in the same day, addressed only to me, no mention of my husband -- arrived on 12/31/99. The letters had no mention of any amounts due or anything. I had never heard of Conseco until that day.

I immediately called and asked what these letters were all about. I was told that I had been sent six other letters and had not responded to any of them. I asked where they sent the letters. I was told they sent the letters to our previous address. (The address where the mobile home had once been located.) I told them that was their fault for sending them to an old address. We had left forwarding adresses with the post office, and also with Greentree. (I have correspondence from Greentree to prove it.) He dropped that topic and then went on to tell me that they expected the full balance of $28,000 to be paid immediately or with substantial payment arrangements agreed upon that day.

I about came unglued! We only owed $33,000 when it was repossessed! I informed the man that we had NEVER been notified by Greentree or FHA about a deficit, and demanded full documentation to back up this claim. He then went on to tell me that we had left the home in such bad shape that they had to go in and replace carpets, walls, fixtures and other items amounting to over $20,000. I was shocked, since we had the 10-99A from Greentree stating that the home at the time of repossesion was valued at just over $30,000. I ended the conversation by telling him that until substantial proof was given, there would be nothing received from us. I was informed that legal action would be taken, and I told him I would take my chances with the court system.

In June of last year, we received a phone call from a lady representing Asset Acceptance Corp. We were told that they now owned our defaulted mobile home loan and they would be collecting on it. Of course, now the balance was almost $32,000. My husband explained what we had already been through, and again asked for proof. She insited that would be no problem and would send it right out. We never got anything. In November of last year, we were again contacted by AAC by phone. My husband told them about his earlier request, detailing exactly what kind of proof we wanted. The lady he talked to plainly told my husband that they can't do that because those records aren't available. Immediately after she said this, another voice in the background told her not to say that!

Another representative took over at that point, got rather belligerent with my husband, but finally said they would put something in the mail. We did receive something a few days later, a computer printout with our names on it, the amount claimed owed broken down by principle and interest, dates of last activity (which were wrong), and that was basically it.

I wrote them a letter thanking them, but insisting that this in no way proved that this was our loan, our balance, and certainly did not detail how the balance was arrived at. I informed them that we were disputing this debt in its entirety since we were NEVER contacted by the original lender or FHA, and until proven otherwise, believe this situation to be a mistake. We also have an old credit report that clearly states that this acount was paid by FHA, so where did that money go, and why are we not being contacted by them?? They received the letter on 12/3/02. To date, we have not received any other proof in regard to this debt. In March, we began receiving the monthly letters to settle this account, and yesterday, I received a letter adressed to me (not my husband) that further action was now being taken because I have failed to respond to their requests for payments.

Florence of Huntersville NC (7/5/03):
In 1999 I signed for a loan for a trailer for my brother and his wife. Four months later my sister-in-law died. My brother stayed in the trailer and continued to make payments. Well a few days ago I learned that my brother was behind on payments and he wants to give up the trailer. I called Conseco and they told me that the payoff on that trailer that is now 4 years old would be $1700 more than the total price when it was purchased.

I was shocked and I asked how could that be? Then the guy informed me that for each day after the payment due day that the payment was late, there was a $7.50 charge and that the payment was always late and the payments had been going on the late fees and interest and not the principal. This is highway robbery! I know consumers must be protected from such unfair practices? Any advise?

My problem is the trailer is 4 years old and no one is going to buy it at that price. I don't need a trailer and I don't know what to do. They said if I did not pay for it they would put a lien against my primary home.

This is very unfortunate. It illustrates the danger of co-signing a loan.

Darhla of Bloomington IN (6/18/03):
Since purchasing my trailer, I have had nothing but trouble getting my payments entered correctly. I have had many conversations with Kurt and many other employees. I have sent documentation of the checks that have not been entered with the complete amount that the checks were written for, and these were supposed to be corrected and a phone call was to be made notifying me of what was being done. My check for June that was written and mailed on May 24th still has not been posted to my account. This was $378.61 check number 896. What else can I do to get my account corrected?

My credit report is registering late payments. I am constantly subjected to phone calls from collections, with very rude demanding people who will not let me talk to the contacts that I have already made.

Debbie of Ellenwood GA (6/4/03):
I called to get a payoff on my mobile home last week. I was told that they would have to apply a pre-pay penalty and would have the payoff by Saturday, May 31st. I spoke with George. I went and pulled my contract and it specifically stated that I do not have a prepay penalty on any amount paid, partial or full. I have been trying to get in touch with a live human being with a pulse since speaking with Donna last Thursday. Donna assured me she would have a copy of the contract on Tuesday, June 3rd and would then give me a payoff. I have read the many complaints consumers have filed against Conseco and it appears that they are giving a lot of consumers the runaround. I just want to sell my home and can't get anyone to call me back.

Sandra of Virginia Beach VA writes (6/4/02):
My husband and I lost our jobs last July in TN. We found jobs with the government out of state in NC. We put the house up for sale with a realtor - but when we called Conseco for the payoff, it did not sound right. We have a contract with them that states $71,000 (and change) was the total amt. financed with about $4500 (and change) paid in points.

The rep. stated that we financed about $85,000 with over $7000 paid in points. We did not receive any other contract except the one we have. Our realtor said we needed an attorney. We cannot afford fees right now, we are still paying for the house in TN and are trying to buy a house in NC. So Attorney fees do not fit our budget.

We have been making payments steadily (with no late payments) for two years. I just called again last week - talked to another rep. from India, who now tells me the address and account no. are not mine. When I verified my SSN, she said "yes, that is correct". But she insisted the address on the loan now reads our temporary address in Virginia. (Which is my sister's address). I told her we did not authorize any change of address. We still send our payments in with the TN address on the money order and the payment coupon. She would not tell me who authorized the change of address.

Are there two violations here? 1)Lending Abuse - incorrect contract information 2) Unauthorized change of address We do not know how this occurred. The government is moving our household goods into temporary storage after the 10th of June until our house in NC is ready.

Lois of Lebanon MO writes (7/18/02):
We had a mobile home financed through Greentree having bought it in 1996. The payments were never behind more than just a few days. However, in August 2001 the trailer burned. We had it rented out to a business that we had sold and it was used as our office prior to selling the business.

We called and asked for a payoff and also my insurance company called for the payoff. It took us about a month to get a copy of the title for my insurance adjustor because they said they could not fax it to me. When talking to them about the payoff we discovered that they had added insurance on it on August ll, 2001 just l0 days prior to its destruction by fire. We asked Conseco about this insurance and were promised that this insurance premium had been deducted from the payoff.

Well our insurance paid it off and I thought all was well until the middle of May of 2002. Conseco called me and asked me when I was going to make the May, 2002 payment on the mobile home. I told them the story and explained that there must be a mistake and I did not owe anything on it as my insurance company had paid it off. Again I thought all was well.

Then on June 28, a cancellation for their insurance which had been added last year was sent out stating that the insurance was cancelled due to repossession of the trailer. I again called the customer service line and was treated like a criminal and told that since the insurance company did not pay enough on the payoff I still owed about $700.00. The insurance policy was about $400.00 of this and they are charging interest on the insurance policy that never should have been on the trailer in the first place. I am appalled that they can do this.

So then I tried to collect on their insurance policy that they had added to the trailer. I was told that the policy was null and void since I had the trailer rented out. Before writing a policy should not they have asked what the trailer was being used for. What can I do about this?

Lois needs to read the insurance policies and determine what was covered and what the payoff terms are. It's possible there was an exclusion if the premises were used for business purposes.

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