Watch out for the fine print in your home mortgage ... for the first time since I've been a homeowner, I have been informed that my "escrow" was re-examined ... more below
Yes, and it can and probably does happen to you too. B of A apparently slipped some working in amongst the hundred pages of legalese that can can raise the escrow reserve at any time at their discretion, whether it's needed or not. In my case, there was no change in tax, no change in tax assessment and no change in interest. However, they decided that raising my home mortgage $70 without warning, and without explanation was just fine by them. Was this required by law? NO. Was this in response to a change in tax rate? NO. Was this a response to a change in insurance rate? NO. Was this a response to my being late or otherwise delinquent, ever? NO.
According to the representative I spoke to, they simply have the right to do so, at their discreation at any time ... once or twice a year. Completely "voluntary" ... in reality it's just as simple as this .... they want to suck an extra several hundred bucks out of each of our pockets so it can sit in their bank and earn interest ... for them! I imagine it's "legal" in the sense that presumably I agreed to it somewhere in some 2 point font in the mortgage contract, but ethical to just raise your rate and change your contract without consent? I think not. Just another plain example of the greed of the 1%
Anyway, watch those bills close and call and complain if they change your payments without notice.