KINGWOOD – A Preston County woman is suing her mortgage lender to stop an impending foreclosure, claiming abusive debt servicing.
Cynthia Burgess and Carl Sypolt filed a lawsuit May 12 in Preston Circuit Court against Wells Fargo Bank N.A., doing business as Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, alleging breach of contract and fraud.
According to the complaint, Burgess took out an FHA-insured mortgage on her current home in 2013, with Sypolt, her elderly stepfather, as co-signer. Without the plaintiffs’ knowledge, Sypolt was made a co-owner and co-borrower of the home, the suit says.
When Burgess had to leave her job, the suit says, she requested a loan modification from the defendant so she could keep the house. However, the plaintiff claims she ran into red tape because her stepfather was on the deed, and after several back-and-forth phone calls and alleged promises to offer a reduced payment plan, the modification was ultimately denied.
The plaintiffs seek a jury trial, equitable relief, civil penalties, actual damages, exemption of Sypolt from the debt and litigation costs. They are represented by attorney Jennifer S. Wagner of Mountain State Justice Inc. in Clarksburg.
Preston Circuit Court Case number 16-C-101