« HouseFront Offers Home Values by Text Message | Main | How Smart is Your Lender? Ask Them What Determines Mortgage Rates! » Thursday, April 26, 2007Watch Out for Sneaky Mortgage LendersI recently received the following message on my home voice mail:
My first thought was they were calling because they didn't get my mortgage payment for some reason. But wait a minute... I don't even have a loan with Homecomings Funding! How could they possibly be calling in regards to my last mortgage payment? Actually, this is just a tactic this sleazy company uses so you'll call them, and then they try to convince you to refinance your home loan. Although Homecomings Funding is not my mortgage company, I had to call anyway! For one, I wanted to see what their sales pitch was, and I also wanted to know how they could justify making a misleading, unsolicited call to my non-published home phone number that's on the "Do Not Call List". I called the number on my voicemail, and sure enough, they can save me a bunch of money on my mortgage payment! I told them that a.) I don't have a mortgage with them, b.) I don't want to have a mortgage with them, and c.) I'm on the Do Not Call List. They offered no excuses as to why they called someone on the Do Not Call List, but when I told them to be sure to take me off their list so they don't call again, they said they would. We'll see. To be fair, I did have a mortgage with Homecomings Financial (I'm assuming the same company), but it was paid in full about 5 years ago. I know there's an exception to the Do Not Call List for customers, but I'm pretty sure I no longer qualify as a Homecomings Financial customer or account holder. If what they did was legal at all, they were certainly stretching the rules. And we all know how mortgage companies who are willing to stretch the rules can be very dangerous to borrowers, and to our economy. Also, the fact that they attempted to mislead me into returning their phone call makes me say I will never use or recommend Homecomings Funding or Homecomings Financial. While this sales tactic probably works for them, it's unethical at best. And just think, if they're willing to mislead me before I ever talk to them, how many lies would this company tell me if I applied for a loan? In my humble opinion, this is the type of sleazy mortgage company that gives honest mortgage brokers and lenders a bad name. By the way, the world does NOT need another sleazy mortgage company.
Posted by Shannon Hubbard, AZ Realtor & Computer Guru on April 26, 2007 | Permalink CommentsUPDATE: I did further research on the rules for the Do Not Call List, and Homecomings Funding definitely should not have called me. The rules for the Do Not Call List say that companies may only call established customers for up to 18 months after their last purchase, delivery or payment. It's been many years since I paid my Homecomings Financial mortgage in full, so in addition to sleazy sales tactics, it looks like Homecomings Funding also violated the rules of the Do Not Call List. Here's a link with more info: Posted by: Shannon Hubbard | Apr 26, 2007 8:16:47 AM I'm not surprised that they called you. The DNC list is great idea, but I don't think it really works. When it first came out, I did notice a drop in calls, but now I think its more lip service than anything else. Posted by: Las Vegas Realtor | Apr 26, 2007 4:40:10 PM Shannon, I received a similar call on Tuesday afternoon on my cell phone. I reminded them that it is not legal to make an unsolicited sales call on a cell phone. She hung up without an apology. O well. Posted by: Shailesh | Apr 27, 2007 12:10:20 PM The comments to this entry are closed.
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