If It Walks Like A Duck…

Important Notice From Your Mortgage Company. Open Immediately!

How many times have you seen that statement on an envelope? Or how about this one: Important Financial Information Enclosed. Please do not discard – account information enclosed.

Right away an alarm goes off now when I see this because of the constant bombardment of deceptive mailings I’ve received in the past. You probably already know that appearances can be deceiving, but these are examples of where you really have to be on guard.

Who’s Holding the Mortgage on Your House?

Well, if you happen to be one whose paid-off your mortgage then you definitely know the answer to that question; You Do!  However, if you’re like the millions of people who are paying on their mortgages, you might answer something like this…”The bank where I got the mortgage from” or how about “the mortgage company where I got the loan from holds the mortgage”  Whoa Nellie! Not so fast.  There’s a very good chance that there are dozens, if not hundreds of people and companies who own a piece of your mortgage, which bring me to the topic of this article….Securitization.

Without getting too technical here, let me try to describe what’s going on here.

They Never Knew About Mortgage Churning

It wasn’t late at night, nor in a dark alley, nor inside a smoke-filled dimly lite room when it happened. It was in the comfort of their own home. It was only 5 months since they had closed on their new home mortgage. Then one day, a mortgage representative contacted them to say that their home loan was sold and the new lender needed updated information. The representative request was received with some questioning, but because he spoke with such certainty and authority, they yielded to his instructions.