Tax Grumpage - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

TheSpecialist · 06-29-2007, 10:46 AM

When I bought my house back in 03, the seller presented a letter at the closing stating the house was free and clear of back taxes, water & sewer etc. Now fast forward to 04, and I get a letter from the town tax collector for the prev ious owner about the back taxes stating she owes 2100. After talking with the tax office they agree it is not my problem. Now fast forward to 05, and I refinance my house, a tax lien comes up, seems the back taxes are still not taken care of. I call the town again, and contact the sellers attourney. Come to find out the town screwed up from day 1. They applied the back taxes to future tax payments, gave her the letter stating she was free and clear, and never billed us for the first three quarters that we owned the house. Being a new homeowner, and knowing the mortgage company pays the insurance and taxes, I never worried about it. So since we were refinancing, we called our mortgage co, and they said no problem we will take care of it right away, and we c lose on our refi. A few weeks goes by, and I get a check in the mail from the previous mortgage co, it say it is for a refund of escrow. Now I never called either the town or the previous mortgage co to find out if the taxes were taken care of, and no one called me to say that they were not. So the spring of 06 comes around, and I go into the town hall to pay excise taxes on the car. At that time I inquire about back taxes on the property, and am told that everything is paid up to date. I never think twice about it. ow fast forward to yesterday, I find a letter from the tax collector stating that the 2100 is still unpaid, there are 600+ in interest , and 90 of fees due, for a whopping total of 3000. I blew my top. So today my wife calls the tax collectors office, and explains everything, and they say that when I checked with them in 06, the girl never checked such and such database and that's why she said we were free and clear. These are not people who just started working there, these are people I have seen in the office there since 03-04, is it me or are these mistakes unacceptable for an office that is supposed to be fiscally responsible for a town, and should I not be angry that they waited 2 more years to contact me about all of this. On top of this I contacted the previous mortgage company, and was told that I was supposed to pay the back taxes out of the escrow refund, after they had said they would pay the town directly after communicating with them, never mentioned that in tyhe letter I recieved from them with the check. I am so pissed off right now, and the tax collector better abate the interest and penalty. TRhe whole system of having mortgage companies take care of insurance and tax payments in a pain in the arse and should be done away with, I have heard of many horror stories.

Thanks I just needed to vent.

thortum · 06-29-2007, 10:54 AM

Whew!!!! I hope you keep that avatar holstered.

BW from AZ · 06-29-2007, 02:17 PM

our morgage company failed to pay insurance and we got a cancelation notice. wife goes bezerk and calles morgage company, they say oops sorry, too bad. when she got done with them they agreed to let us do the insurance since they were not reliable. low lifes

Raven · 06-29-2007, 02:48 PM

it sounds like you might have a good lawsuit case...

but , i just wanted to say thankyou for venting here

because you just opened my eyes up to some unforseen

situations that i myself will soon be heading into...

and now i know what to ask about....

after hearing your horror story.

So in that respect a little good may come out of

your dilema. Cheer up soon

gone fishin · 06-29-2007, 08:47 PM

What the hell was your attorney doing when the title and property was being searched before you purchased it? It seems to me that he should have been looking into that when clearing the deed before you passed papers. I think it's time for you to hire a GOOD lawyer and get the deed and properly researched before you find out you don't own it. .

BigFish · 06-29-2007, 09:49 PM

Was asking myself the same thing Don? Bill.....go to a town meeting and bring this little chestnut out.......but things get squared away right quick!

Raven · 06-29-2007, 10:19 PM

you have a way with words...

lil chestnut

TheSpecialist · 06-29-2007, 11:58 PM

Well I was going through my closing documents from when I first bought the house, and there is a line on the settlement that says the seller paid 1,652 in RE Taxes. There is a separate paper that says same, and a piece of paper from the town saying that is what was due.

As far as my attourney, all the documents at the closing were in order, and he did his job. The attourney is not going to stop at the closing and call every individual to find out if the seller paid up.

There is a different guy that is the tax collector now then there was back in 03. He told my wife today to bring in the settlement sheet, and any thing else we have, and we will go over it. I still can't fathom how people who have been doing the job for awhile, can make such blatant errors.

Larry I was thinking of calling the town manager, and selectmen and asking when the last time the tax dept had an independent audit done on them...

spence · 06-30-2007, 12:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheSpecialist

Larry I was thinking of calling the town manager, and selectmen and asking when the last time the tax dept had an independent audit done on them...

That could be a good plan. Given the local politics I'd think this matter could vanish if the right people were to be embarrased

Worst case you paid what's owed, but the interest...not.

-spence

Smokey14 · 06-30-2007, 05:04 AM

I'm surprised you were able to close on the original Mortgage. The title search should have razed a red flag with your bank and stopped the hole proses. there are several lessons for new homeowners here.

First : Escrow accounts are a mortgage co.'s way of making sure YOU pay the taxes and more impotently the insurance on a property. This insures that they are protected in the event you run out of money to pay them. This does not protect you when they forget to take the money out of the escrow account to pay the taxes and insurance. Do your self a favor, close that account and take care of your bills your self. it's more work but it's better than trusting some one else with your home.

Second : any time you talk with someone From whom you can expect the right answer about your Mortgage, taxes, Bank accounts, healthcare, estimate for any work, Legal advice ext. Get there Name, Title, and if possible get it in writing (at least E-mail) It's hard to argue with someone that has they're name on a document they wrote.

It sucks to learn about stuff like this the way you did. Your not alone. I've had my insurance laps and still have a mark on my credit report because of a bank that "failed" to pay bills from an escrow account that I had paid up in full. Don't trust anyone with your money!

BigFish · 06-30-2007, 05:05 AM

BINGO!

nightfighter · 06-30-2007, 05:39 AM

Bill,
I would request the seller provide you with proof of payment of the taxes, something other than the letter, ie. cancelled check, or letter of settlement from the town.
I would "suggest" to the mortgage company, on your attorney's letterhead, that they should be liable for penalties and interest. They should also provide a copy of the letter which should have come with the escrow check, instructing you what the check represented, and what your responsibilities were to do with said funds.
Further, I would also be asking the mortgage company and attorney to refund any and all closing costs and points you paid, given the inept service, which you are forced to be dealing with four years after closing. Keep a record of hours you have spent trying to rectify this mess and bill them at a consultants rate of , say 150.00 per hour. And lastly, document everything.
They will all try to pass it off....if they are threatened with having to write a check, someone will find the responsible party and get it resolved. Keep your cool in discussions an let them know that you are going to see this through.

gone fishin · 06-30-2007, 09:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nightfighter

Bill,
I would request the seller provide you with proof of payment of the taxes, something other than the letter, ie. cancelled check, or letter of settlement from the town.
I would "suggest" to the mortgage company, on your attorney's letterhead, that they should be liable for penalties and interest. They should also provide a copy of the letter which should have come with the escrow check, instructing you what the check represented, and what your responsibilities were to do with said funds.
Further, I would also be asking the mortgage company and attorney to refund any and all closing costs and points you paid, given the inept service, which you are forced to be dealing with four years after closing. Keep a record of hours you have spent trying to rectify this mess and bill them at a consultants rate of , say 150.00 per hour. And lastly, document everything.
They will all try to pass it off....if they are threatened with having to write a check, someone will find the responsible party and get it resolved. Keep your cool in discussions an let them know that you are going to see this through.

I repeat - what the hell was your attourney doing if he said "everything is in order" If I am not mistaken it is his job to be sure that this does not happen. Perhaps he was a little lax?? Ask him for a free review of your problem. He should be happy to follow up on his work.