Q: My lender has been giving me the runaround for almost two years. I am on disability and can’t make my payments. They have never sent me a denial letter and I have submitted all of the requested documentation at least three times.

I started working with a HUD-certified housing counselor on September 30, and the company has submitted my file to the servicer and Freddie Mac who is the holder of my mortgage. On October 14, I received a call from a person at Chase who advised me that he was handling my case and gave me a contact number.

When I called to check the status of my case on October 19, the phone number was no longer in service. I then spoke to another representative in the loss mitigation department who said she could not discuss my case because I was working with a particular housing counselor.

It seems like I’m getting more punishment for trying to the right thing.

I filed a complaint with Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) about 7 months ago. I’ve attached the case number. I filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s office here in Florida today. I don’t know what else to do. Please help!

A: I sent a note to my contact at the OCC with your case number. Here is his response:

“The bank has responded to the CAG complaint twice. The bank’s second response (October 13, 2010) to the consumer states that the loan is currently being reviewed by the Loss Mitigation Department. Apparently there are other pieces of documentation missing for that review to continue. He has been given 30 days to comply with their request. [The lender] is working directly with the borrower, notwithstanding the fact that [the housing counselor] is involved.”

Here are some questions for you to answer: Why is your lender telling the OCC that it has been in contact with you but you feel as though you have not heard from them?

Your lender told the OCC that you have 30 days to comply and provide the missing documentation. Your 30 days are up the end of October. If you don’t respond to your lender quickly, you could find that your loan modification is denied and you’ll have to start the process all over again.

Do you know what that missing documentation is? There seems to be a disconnect between your belief that you have provided all of the documentation (three times) and your lender’s feeling that you’re missing some documents.

I’m sure the truth is somewhere in between. You should immediately contact your housing counselor and your lender to figure out exactly what type of documentation is missing and why you’re not getting receiving the responses the bank says it is generating to you.

(My best tip is to tell you if you don’t like who you’re talking to, hang up and call back and hopefully you’ll get someone more knowledgeable, sympathetic, smart, and communicative. Not everyone is well trained at the biggest lenders and that can cause big communication problems.)

Good luck. Let me know what happens.