Wanderer wrote: Following on what you said FRANKN, I check every payment to make sure it goes through. Yes, I know it is suppose to be automatic but, things happen and ultimately I am responsible to the lender for payment so I check and yes it is a pain.

Without a doubt. I always check and re-check to verify. There have been cases where I paid automatically, but somehow it didn't go through.

That is so true Wanderer. When our mortgage was sold last time, our payments got so messed up. It was such a hassle to get it all straightened out. We don't have the automatic withdrawal any longer. It may sound old fashioned but I write the check and put it in the mail.

Following on what you said FRANKN, I check every payment to make sure it goes through. Yes, I know it is suppose to be automatic but, things happen and ultimately I am responsible to the lender for payment so I check and yes it is a pain.

That is a very good point. You need to make sure your payment actually goes through!

Lexie wrote: Maybe so FrankN but it was always a surprise to find out my mortgage had been sold to another company. Just a little letter in the mail that said your mortgage has been sold to "XYZ" company and you will sent your payments to _______________address from now on. A little forewarning would have been nice.

Yep, there's almost always a clause in the contract that gives the bank permission to do just that. Of course, there are lots of clauses - good luck understanding and remembering each and every one. What bugs me about the practice the most, is that most companies push automatic payments. Many will even give you a discount if you agree to this. But each time your loan is sold, you might have to set up automatic payments again or be late and risk an additional fee. Most folks who go the automatic route think they can set it and forget it, but that's not always the case.

Agree with your comment Lexie. My loan that was taken out in November 2010 has been sold/transferred four times (not to my benefit) and like you, I receive a note in the mail about fifteen days before the payment is due. Not cool but quite legal.

Maybe so FrankN but it was always a surprise to find out my mortgage had been sold to another company. Just a little letter in the mail that said your mortgage has been sold to "XYZ" company and you will sent your payments to _______________address from now on. A little forewarning would have been nice.

There is a give and take. Pooling has its advantages as it creates more participants in the market and allows the consumer to have more options.

FrankN wrote:

Moneyes wrote: is this something a person could do for themself? We hear all the time about one financial institution selling an auto loan contract to another. This benefits those institutions more than it does the person making the loan payments. So could a person shop around for a financial institution to buy out their loan for the purpose of making it more affordable, and then introduce the two? Broker their own deal, in other words?

Very unlikely MONEYES. These loans are packaged together and sold as large loans. They are not out there selling your loan individually. Instead they package them up and sell them as a package.

Which sounds like making a loophole in a law.

I don't know why, but this is a part of the financial world I never knew about until just recently.

That's the same with home mortgages. I can't tell you how many times ours has been sold. At least 3 times in a 30 year period. It really gives me an uneasy feeling when someone sells my mortgage. A moment of panic there.

Moneyes wrote: is this something a person could do for themself? We hear all the time about one financial institution selling an auto loan contract to another. This benefits those institutions more than it does the person making the loan payments. So could a person shop around for a financial institution to buy out their loan for the purpose of making it more affordable, and then introduce the two? Broker their own deal, in other words?

Very unlikely MONEYES. These loans are packaged together and sold as large loans. They are not out there selling your loan individually. Instead they package them up and sell them as a package.

is this something a person could do for themself? We hear all the time about one financial institution selling an auto loan contract to another. This benefits those institutions more than it does the person making the loan payments. So could a person shop around for a financial institution to buy out their loan for the purpose of making it more affordable, and then introduce the two? Broker their own deal, in other words?