Customers To Get Restitution After Pa. AG Settles With PHH Mortgage Corp.

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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Losing your home to foreclosure is bad, but getting ripped off in the process is even worse. That's why a move by Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro will come as good news to thousands of Pennsylvania homeowners.

Shapiro and 48 other state Attorneys General have announced a $45 million settlement with PHH Mortgage Corporation. They say the company improperly serviced mortgage loans between 2009 and 2012.

The Attorneys General allege PHH failed to apply payments by certain borrowers in a timely manner, charged unauthorized fees, failed to respond to complaints and requests for assistance, failed to process applications for loan modifications, and even threatened foreclosure to borrowers who were actively trying to negotiate plans to avoid it.

People who lost their homes to foreclosure, and even those who faced PHH foreclosures but didn't lose their homes during the three-year period in the settlement could be due restitution.

The settlement includes $30.4 million in restitution for borrowers nationwide, including an estimated $1.2 million for an estimated 2,266 Pennsylvanians victims.

"We're going to ensure impacted Pennsylvania homeowners receive the restitution they're entitled to," Attorney General Shapiro said in a press release.

The agreement also requires PHH to abide by mortgage servicing standards, regularly conduct audits, and provide these audit results to a committee formed by the Attorneys General group.

"This settlement holds this mortgage loan provider accountable for harm done to Pennsylvania homeowners whose loans were improperly serviced," Shapiro said in the press release. "It also requires change in PHH's behavior to make sure this company doesn't repeat the improper conduct that harmed homeowners across the country."

While a settlement administrator will contact eligible homeowners at a later date, if you think you were a victim of deceptive practices by PHH Mortgage Corporation you can find out more information or even file a complaint by visiting this link.

Consumers can also call 1-800-441-2555 or email scams@attorneygeneral.gov.