Wa-Mu City Bank scam

BeyGon · 09-18-2009, 12:07 PM

We had a $75k home equity line with Wa Mu that we had for a long while but hadn't used it. When they got in trouble they sent us a note and said it was being dropped to $21k. I knew they were screwed up and didn't really care, just said ok. A couple months later we got a notice saying the line was cancelled because of missing paper work. This was over a year ago. For a year now we have been in the local branch, now Citi Bank getting papers notarized and FedExed to their office. The first three times they said they never got them, FedEx said they delivered them. The last time, a few months ago we called them the next day after we checked with FedEx, yes they had the papers. These were the same papers we filled out to get the equity line the first time, and the second, third, forth and fifth. Now after over a year we got a notice saying because the paperwork wasn't completed in time our equity line is cancelled.
I talked to the manager at the local branch, I was unhappy, I called their Executive office, 1-800-242-7399 and talked to a liver person, Just in case anyone ever wants to talk to a live person at Citi Bank-I was really unhappy, the guy told me not to talk like that, lets be PROFESSIONAL, I said I am tired of being the only proffessional in the room.
What a bunch of lying cheap but pieces of crap, they strung us along for a year. It is a good thing we didn't need the money just wanted our old line of credit back.
THERE WILL NEVER BE A TIME WHEN I THINK I HAVE SAID ENOUGH BAD THINGS ABOUT CITI BAMK.

HardDrive · 09-18-2009, 12:12 PM

Been using Wells Fargo for 7 years. Just completed a ReFi. Very, very happy with their service.

teenerted1 · 09-18-2009, 12:17 PM

so you had a line of credit...didnt use it...bank goes through an ownership change...still havent used the line of credit? why didnt you use it when approved?

they gave you a line of credit but i doubt that is is valid forever. did they have a time-frame to start spending the money on an you went past it?

kind of a use it or lose it...looks like you didnt use so you lose.

BeyGon · 09-18-2009, 12:18 PM

Unfortunately we did this originally with WaMu, my wife told me we should go elsewhere but I kept saying NO, they will get this straight. sure, they strung us along for a year telling us they lost the papers, sign them again, put them in the envelope they sent us and FedEx back. My mistake for believing them and wasting time. All we wanted was access to the money we gave them in TARP

teenerted1 · 09-18-2009, 12:20 PM

so you had a line of credit...didnt use it...bank goes through an ownership change...still havent used the line of credit? why didnt you use it when approved?

they gave you a line of credit but i doubt that is is valid forever. did they have a time-frame to start spending the money on an you went past it?

kind of a use it or lose it...looks like you didnt use so you lose.

masraum · 12:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by teenerted1

so you had a line of credit...didnt use it...bank goes through an ownership change...still havent used the line of credit? why didnt you use it when approved?

they gave you a line of credit but i doubt that is is valid forever. did they have a time-frame to start spending the money on an you went past it?

kind of a use it or lose it...looks like you didnt use so you lose.

Did you read the original post?? It seems like you read the first sentence and then stopped.

He's not complaining about losing his line of credit originally. He's complaining because he's done the paperwork to re-establish his line of credit 4 or 5 times, he's gotten delivery confirmations from FedEx, and yet the bank's been telling him "We never got it."

BeyGon · 09-18-2009, 12:46 PM

there was never a time limit, it was just a home equity line of credit, we even had one with the same bank a year or so before for $150k and use some to remodel the house then just paid it off when we finished. The next year we thought we shouldn't have paid it off so applied and got one for $75k, no time limit, just a line of credit. A year later when the WaMu people got in trouble they cut it to $21k, I still didn't care, it was just there. Then they cancelled it for no reason, telling us they needed more paper work, they didn't have enough. Screw them.

jyl · jyl's Garage

They can reduce or cancel your unused LOC at any time and have no obligation to give you another one. Either they are totally disorganized, or they don't want to give you a LOC now. Either way, don't waste your time w/ them.

BeyGon · 09-18-2009, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyl

They can reduce or cancel your unused LOC at any time and have no obligation to give you another one. Either they are totally disorganized, or they don't want to give you a LOC now. Either way, don't waste your time w/ them.

It just got to be a challenge, I didn't care so much about the money, it was the idea they canceled me with no credit problems. I wasted the year screwing with them. Getting screwed by them for my time.

Dantilla · 09-18-2009, 01:12 PM

I used to use a small, local bank that was bought out by WA MU. Worked out okay for a while, but after a while, WA MU got too big. I left WA MU a long time ago.

I don't send things to my bank by FedEx. I go to the local bank, where I can shake hands with local people who make decisions.

I'm done with the big national banks. I deal with a couple banks that are based right here, and always recieve great service.

Dantilla · 09-18-2009, 01:14 PM

Also- I have a LOC set up for buying and selling fixer-upper houses. I haven't used it in a few years (When everybody jumped into real estate a few years ago, I stepped out), and recently called my local guy to insure it is still in place.

No problem. The entire amount is still available. One phone call, and I can pick up a check to buy houses again.

jyl · jyl's Garage

They didn't cancel your LOC because of your credit, but because of your house. And not even your house in particular, but just because of the market it is in. They are not going to be very interested in LOCs until housing prices are moving back up. Waste of time to yell at them, this is likely a decision made way, way above the level of anyone you'll be able to talk to.

BeyGon · 09-18-2009, 01:28 PM

cool, they should have told me I was canceled and that was it, but when I asked they said they needed more paperwork, I knew it was a line but did it any way, went to the local branch for a notary, they sent the paperwork and kept copies, it's just the idea. I understand what you are saying, I just don't like the way it happened.

David · David's Garage

My WAMU home equity transferred over to Chase with no issues. I've never used it and they did cut it signifcantly last year.

steve911 · steve911's Garage

Sorry to hear about your troubles, but IMO, its a sign of the times. Banks were all toohappy to put HELOCs in place when RE was going up, but they're pulling them left and right now that significant amounts of equity (real or paper only) have vaporized.

As an FYI, WAMU failed and was taken over by JP Morgan Chase, not Citibank. They are not one and the same.

Dantilla · 09-18-2009, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyl

... this is likely a decision made way, way above the level of anyone you'll be able to talk to.

Another vote for a small, local bank!

BeyGon · 09-18-2009, 04:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steve911

Sorry to hear about your troubles, but IMO, its a sign of the times. Banks were all toohappy to put HELOCs in place when RE was going up, but they're pulling them left and right now that significant amounts of equity (real or paper only) have vaporized.

As an FYI, WAMU failed and was taken over by JP Morgan Chase, not Citibank. They are not one and the same.

Ooops. I was so mad today I got mixed up.

Jims5543 · 09-18-2009, 05:01 PM

Same boat here. I had a 35K line, a just in case policy. I had parked some debt there while I moved some money around. Around 25K worth. Then after 6 months or so of doing what I needed to do, paying my payments on time and everything. I payed off the 25K in one full swoop.

No sooner did I do this and they closed the line. The sucky part is I wrote 2 checks against it for about 7K while the letter informing me the line was closed was in the mail. Both checks bounced. One was to my atty, he was not amused the other was to the IRS, they are in the middle of a temper tantrum.

I called my branch manager and she basically told me this is how it is now. I laughed at her and hung up the phone. In another couple of months I am closing all accounts with them.

I now have a substantial amount of money in my savings right now, like 6 figures substantial, and every time I deposit more money into the account (every week) I "used" to get the song and dance on how I should meet with them to plan my money out blah blah blah.....

I got sick of hearing it and told them that it was MY equity line since they felt I should no longer have one. It is MY fall back money when the other shoe drops in this economy. I then told them if they would like to re-open my line I would be happy to invest some of my money with them, but until then, forget I have that account.

mikester · 09-18-2009, 05:09 PM

We have a Citi CC and had some finance charges misapplied. $.91 worth. Not a big deal really and certainly not worth the trouble. We only noticed it because there was a auto payment that went through it that was very occasional. We weren't watching the card and missed a payment.

Wife got them to forgive the late fee in exchange for us keeping the account. They said they would considered the finance charge (the $.91). Got a letter in the mail today - they are still going to charge us the finance charge ($.91).

They sent us a letter to tell us we weren't getting our 91 cents back!

Dorks. That letter probably cost in postage, and time to research at least $25.

aigel · aigel's Garage

Two words:

Credit Union

George