Gateway Mortgage

We had been searching for a reputable mortgage lender to refinance our home mortgage at a lower rate with reasonable settlement fees. I had contacted three different businesses and began the application process only to find that the first company was not registered with the BBB and was nationally known but disreputable.

The second company's rates were too high in comparison to the national average and the third quoted low fixed rates and an acceptable settlement fee and as the application was coming to a close attempted to slip in an additional $2,500.00 to the quoted settlement fees, which we rejected. The company then offered to remove the additional costs but we don't do business with less than trustworthy individuals.

At this point, we were thoroughly disgusted and were opting to keep our current home mortgage as it was. By chance, I saw a recommendation for Gateway Bank Mortgage Company in Wilmington, NC, (senior loan officer Travis **). Since we reside in NC, I thought I would contact one last company, (as I was rejecting the previous one). Mr. Travis ** understood the situation and said that he would love to help in any way he could.

At this point, I was skeptical and didn't hesitate to let Mr. Travis know that. Much to my surprise, the fixed rate he offered was low and acceptable. He also stated that he would keep settlement costs to a minimum and gave us the proposal in writing. Mr. Travis stayed in contact every step of the way, was very personable, polite, and extraordinarily helpful and kept his word. Not one item or fee was changed.

In closing, we got the rate we wanted and settlement costs were negligible. The settlement fee was $4,000.00 less than the previous company wanted with the same low, fixed interest rate. The mortgage refinance was closed in a timely fashion and we could not be more pleased. Honestly, after dealing with the other companies, I was stunned. And now, I am very grateful. This is how business is supposed to be conducted. I would strongly recommend Travis ** at Gateway Bank Mortgage in Wilmington, NC for home mortgage needs. He certainly earned our trust and thanks.

The straw that broke our backs was the suggestion of moving money from an equity line tied to the house to an unsecured credit card and capping our 3% equity line.This action was to be compliant with our LTV ratio after our house appraisal came in lower than expected. We were then told the bank the broker was using no longer endorsed moving money to an unsecured source as it did before the mortgage game went south. This cost us a $270 balance transfer and the capping of our equity line.

One of the reasons we used a broker, is to be guided through these "daily" mortgage arena changes, not be abused by them. Also Gateway became increasingly late returning calls and customer service in general declined. We realized we had no confidence in Gateway going forward and discontinued the relationship.

Finally, after a lengthy attempt to reach the owners of Gateway listed on their website, we received zero response. We would not recommend doing business with Gateway in any form going forward. Also, we reached out to Lending Tree to explain our failed situation. After speaking to a customer service person, we were assured we would hear back from Lending Tree officials pertaining to this situation with one of their preferred lenders.

We sent an explanatory e-mail and we are still waiting to hear back from them after 2 months. Finally, after trying to file a review of Gateway on Lending Tree's site, we were surprised to find they only allow posts from customers who closed loans with them. Wow! That's an unbiased situation! How many disatisfied customers have tried to do the same?

We will never utilize or recommend their services again either.