Greentree Mortgage Wants to make a profit on my father's death San Antonio, Texas

They also said that they couldn't give me any information as I was not the mortgage holder.  Can you say caught 22?  

It's not a catch 22 but it is possibly illegal.  You indicate that you went to probate court.  If the probate court named you as Executor of the estate THEY MUST deal with you.  As the executor you have been appointed by the court and have full legal authority to settle the estate and estate debts.  That said, they absolutely should have provided you with the mortgage details.  However, this does not mean that they have to agree to a "settlement" or to simply transfer the mortgage to you.  They are within their rights to insist on a payoff if you cannot finance the balance of the mortgage yourself.  They ARE required to allow you a certain amount of time to seek financing-this varies from state to state.  NOTE:  during this period of searching for financing the mortgage payment MUST be made, usually from estate funds (such as a bank account.)

IF IT'S NOT TOO LATE:  1.  Contact the Probate Court (clerk of the court) and request a court order for them to divulge the mortgage details.  The probate court should assist you with this.  The court may also be able to tell you how long they are supposed to grant you in seeking financing to payoff the home.  Also, if there is equity in the home, the court can ORDER the house be sold to payoff the mortgage with the equity (profit) going into the estate.  The courts will normally set a defined period of time (3-6 months) for the house to be for sale and purchase bids accepted.

2.  Contact a probate/estate attorney for assistance IMMEDIATELY.  You might need to file a motion to stay any forclosure sale and allow you a reasonable amount of time to seek financing or to sell the home.  Remember, the ESTATE is still on the hook for the monthly payments unless the court orders a suspension of payments.

Offering a settlement payoff that was less than the balance of the mortgage was not a wise choice.  I have to wonder who suggested you attempt that.  By doing that, you tossed a "red flag" their way that may indicate that you can't afford to maintain the home but you should still be afforded to sell the home if there is any substantial equity in the property.

Good luck.

AUTHOR: kalee3415 - I did NOT expect them to give me the property.  But if they would not put my name on the mortgage that they wanted me to pay them for, then they also would NOT talk to me about anything about the mortgage.  As I said I was not trying to get the place for nothing.  I was trying to talk to a business in a business way.  That is not possible with Greentree.  I am an accountant and I talk to vendors and customers everyday.  If I treated people the way Greentree does, I would not have a job, nor should I.  Their treatment of people is nothing but WRONG!

If their response was as you say it was then they were certainly guilty of being jerks.

However, when they said you have to keep up the payments and they won't transfer it to your name until they have paid, what did you expect?

Keeping up the payments IS the only way to stay out of foreclosure so that you can begin the process of getting it in your name.

Why WOULD they put it in your name prior to their current loan being paid off? Most loans cannot be assumed. You would have had to either pay it off cash - OR - obtain your own financing to pay it off. In either case, NO bank will release their lien until they have been paid in full. The release ONLY happens when you have issued the funds and signed the new deed. Your situation is no different than purcasing a home from any individual. It is not in your name until YOU have paid for it. Did you thnk they would just say, oh heck, your good for it. We will go ahead and put it in your name. Just send us an IOU.

I am also not sure why you think that they are obligated to give you the property for less than what is owed for the mortgage and foreclosure expenses.

If you are going to sue someone, I suggest you sue the lawyer who is willing to accept payment when he either a) does not understand real estate laws and proceedings or b) knows darn well the bank was doing what any bank would do, but doesn't care as long as he is getting paid.

I have paid the property taxes and I am unable to get insurance because the property is not in my name.  Greentree informed me the day that I called to let them know that Dad had passed , that "I better pay the payments and that they would not transfer the mortgage  to me, I could have the property changed into my name AFTER I paid them off."  Didn't seem like a good idea to me.  They also said that they couldn't give me any information as I was not the mortgage holder.  Can you say caught 22?  



Anyway I am not saying that the mortgage would not have to be paid.  I am saying that if you go on line and read customer complaints about Greentree, you will see how they treat everyone.  What I have read is what they put me through.



I never signed anything with Greentree.  Yet they got my phone number and started calling my house daily.  When I would answer they threatened me.  This is why I want to go a class action against this company.  They are underhanded, they lie, and they harrass people.  



American people try to do the right thing.  They work, pay their bills, taxes etc.  When a company like Greentree attacks them they try to clean up the mess and then forget it.  I am completely guilty of this. 



But this time I think that it is time to get rid of the bullies on the block. 

But it sounds like the poster wasn't making monthly payments.  If they weren't making monthly payments, chances are that the real estate taxes and insurance weren't being paid either.  The increase in the payoff may be due to adding on taxes and insurance paid by the company.

    The mortgage on the house has to be paid one way or another.  If you don't pay it, then they foreclose.   You can always offer a compromise, but don't get upset if it is not accepted.  If the house is worth more than the balance, they rarely do (btw, don't assume you have an agreement to an offer until you have it in writing).   They have probably rolled legal fees and late fees into the foreclosure, accounting for the (now) higher balance due. 

  Simply put, there is a mortgage that had to be paid on the property you inherited.  You could have paid $44.6K originally.  The price is now up to $51K.   The longer you wait, the higher the balance due will be.

    Your post didn't really specify what it is they've done to warrant your imaginary lawsuit.   I can certaily believe that they were not nice and did not say, "Sorry for your loss", but that's not reallly actionable.

I despise most mortgage companies. I sympathize with your loss, having gone through similar recently.

However, a mortgage isn't like unsecured debts that legally die with the debtor.  The mortgage lives on and on, secured by the property. Were you paying it each month following your father's passing? If not, then all kinds of late fees would start piling up in addition to the balance.

They are under no obligation to accept a discounted payoff. If you counted on living in the house, or renting it out, you needed to come up with the payoff, or an arrangement to take over the loan in your name.  If you otherwise planned to get rid of the house, what can I tell you, you have to either sell it for enough to pay them off, or get their approval for a short sale.

Short of additional details from you, I assume they raised their payoff above the old principal maybe by adding punitive fees for past due payments.

Be aware that they can also go after the value of any other unencumbered probate asset you were left, if they don't get a full payoff, as can any unsecured creditor, depending on who the probate court says are first in line. Were you left cash or investments, or other traceable value assets aside from the house? 

If not, then you were obviously left an albatross that you are best off getting off your back. These are not nice people. Now that they've raised the ante, you probably need a lawyer.