I second the no post dated check opinion.
Post Dated means nothing. Yes, some companies will hold a check for you, but they are NOT required to do so. A check is valid by signature, not by date.
So, they could put the check in the minute they got it, and you couldn’t do anything about it.
~J, former Debt and Hot check Collector
Hell, they don’t even have to be written out to the company for them to cash it! I once put the wrong checks into the payment envelopes. One check was for significantly more than the other. The company that accidentally received the larger once went ahead and cashed it even though it was written out to a different company and totally screwed up my checking account (the other check was not enough to cover the other bill). When I called to ask about it, they said all they needed was a signed check and it didn’t matter who it was written to. Crazy! I believe that was a Sallie Mae transaction.
DeskMonkey, how in the hell could they cash a check made out to someone else? You can’t cash a check without it being endorsed by the payee, can you?
Maybe they put it through one of those check by phone electronic transfer thingies? That still sounds rather illegal, though.
I was flaberghasted myself. Unfortunately, this was before I was brave enough to demand supervisors and whatnot. But that’s what the gal said. That screwed my finances up for a couple of months. I just remembered that it was actually my rent check they got. Luckily, the landlords were my roommates parents, so they let it slide until I could make it up. I even remember thinking maybe I wrote it our to the wrong people, but when I got the cancelled check back, nope, it was written out correctly. My friend’s mom had called to let me know she had gotten the wrong check. Seems sketchy, doesn’t it? Stupid, lousy Sallie Mae.
Hijack…
Several years ago in Denver there was a group of people that were commandeering checks from their place of employment (a department store billing office) and using them to pay their bills. They would take the check that Ms. Jane Doe sent in to pay the monthly layaway bill for a new plasma TV (or whatever) and send it in to the electric company (or whatever), which accepted it as payment. This was newsworthy because it was actually difficult to get proof that they were committing a crime. The crooks did not change the check in any way, they just enclosed the check with the bill the company had sent them and mailed it in. In fact, I think they were paying their friends debts in this manner (and receiving cash), which made it even harder to trace. The reporter said this was becoming a pretty common scam and to try to avoid using checks for this reason.
Hmmm, I think I’ll see if I can track down this story as the details I am giving are pretty fuzzy…
This, of course, is true.
I have the sort of relationship with my bank where if I post dated something they would either hold it for me until the appropriate date, or bounce it back to the company without charging me any fees.
I have a really good relationship with my personal banker - obviously this is not the case for everyone.
However, when you send the 2nd cheque, make sure to copy it and cetifiy it and all those things as well.
I’m sorry to read about your troubles. I hope things go smoothly when you try to rectify everything. I second those who urged you to keep trying to speak to the highest-up person you can. They are the ones who are willing and able to make such decisions on policy.
My own experience with Chase Mortgage has been good, FWIW. They worked well with us and hard for us from day one, and when we had difficulty with a lapsed payment a while back, everyone I spoke with or worked with there was helpful, informative, and reassuring. Sorry your experience (and apparently others, from reading this thread) has not been so positive.
Good luck with resolving this, the sooner the better.
Would it be possible for you to go to this establishment, check in hand, and speak to the highest authority possible? I haven’t had the kind of experience you’re having, thank God, but I find I have much better luck in person than by phone about anything I need done at my bank. And being dressed up a bit, instead of dressed down, seems to help too!
Best of luck to you.
MizQuirk
See if there is an “Action Line” at your local television station or newspaper. Find out who runs it and then treaten your mortgage company with a shitload of bad publicity over this incident.
A certified check will require you taking the money out of your hands and placing it at their disposal. I am concerned that this might not be the wisest thing to do. What if they do not accept the payment but managed to hang onto the check for a prolonged period? This could hamstring you economically.
You may wish to place the money in a separate bank account. DO NOT touch these funds for anything short of a major medical emergency. This is known as holding the money in “abeyance.” Any good judge in a court of law accepts this as a good faith gesture once arbitration begins.
Seek out arbitration and get advice from an attorney. Check with a legal referral service in your area to find one who specializes in foreclosure proceedings. Self education is your best friend right now. I’ll repeat that sending them certified checks may not be the best solution. Keep copies of any and all correspondence that you have with them. Make a log of all phone calls and other contacts. Get the name of every person you talk to or receive correspondence from. Aggressively protect your own interests, they will do no less.
Good luck. We had a Chase mortgage on a house my MIL lives in; the payments were automatically taken out of a joint credit union account, and one month she put her portion of it in late so the payment bounced. Next thing you know they’re threatening us. We got it straightened out, but it was a MAJOR hassle.
We just refinanced that loan a few months ago, with a company that NEVER sells its mortgages. So now both our mortages are held by creditors that will never sell them. I highly recommend going that route if you can; credit unions are often very picky about who they’ll give a mortgage to, but once they’ve got it they are SO MUCH easier to deal with.
I second the recommendation that you at least talk to an attorney BEFORE sending them a partial check. It might well be worth $150 up front to save yourself $2,000 down the road.