Household Mortgage Services - second mortgage payments not recorded properly

Complaints.com received the following consumer message on January 4, 2003:

From: D. Williams [Email User]

RE: Household Mortgage Services - second mortgage payments not recorded properly

We recently took out a second mortgage with another lender, and the loan was bought by Household after the first month. We had made our first payment to the first lender, and then were notified that Household was the new mortgage holder, and to send payments to Household from now on.

Shortly after making the first payment to Household (total 2 payments now) Household sent our first statement demanding 2 months worth of interest payment, beginning with the origination with the loan, and not acknowledging the receipt of the first payment to the initial mortgage company. This has resulted in several calls to us demanding payment, saying we were more than 30 days past due, letters threatening to require the full balance due immediately and ruin our credit, etc., etc., etc...we receive something from them at least twice a week--and.

AT LEAST 20 telephone calls to Household to get this straightened out, all of which are answered "would you like to make a payment by phone" and when the answer is no, you are transferred to a black hole where you are on hold for at least half an hour each time. After quite a bit of investigation on my part, I figured out that Household was reading what is a credit balance for the November Payment as a PAYMENT DUE of $62.00 and not as a credit, so we continue to get notified that we are past due when actually they owe us money.

In the meantime, the December payment has rolled around and I have made this payment by phone to avoid any further "late" notices for December, for which they charged a $10 fee. However, they really can't tell me how much my December payment is, since they can't figure out how to correct the credit balance for November. So they are betting me 50-50 that I will be overpaid for December and the same cycle will start all over again.

The resolution they suggest is that I have to send them a copy of cancelled checks (front and back, which I have to request from my bank) to "prove" to them that I actually have overpaid. They have made my life nothing but miserable for the past TWO MONTHS.