In another blog, we talked about mortgage servicers and touched on what they do. Today, we will look at the law that governs servicers and that law is called RESPA.

RESPA, short for Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, is a federal consumer protection law. It makes sure that servicers cannot change or modify the terms of a mortgage. They also are very strict on what servicers can charge for late fees, and servicers are not allowed to charge a servicing fee.

RESPA also governs how servicers post payments to your account and when they have to post them. Per RESPA rules, servicers must send or make available a monthly statement to all borrowers. On that statement, they must show the balance for the mortgage loan, the interest rate, when the payment is due, the last payment date, next payment date, and how the payment was dispersed for taxes, insurance and mortgage insurances.

Under the rules of RESPA, servicers must be available to talk to borrowers and handle questions.   They cannot just ignore borrowers and not answer their questions. If you think your servicer is failing in any of these matters or are flat out making big mistakes, just mention the word RESPA and they will come around pretty quick.

If we can help with any of your mortgage needs or questions, contact the team at Indigo Mortgage. We’ve been helping Albuquerque area homebuyers find the right home loan since 2003.