A HOMEOWNER was left shocked after her mortgage increased by $1,200.
She felt trapped in her home and called for fellow homeowners to take action.
A content creator (@mzfancyy) shared her sentiments on the recent spike in her mortgage in a post to TikTok.
The homeowner began by mentioning she’d seen several videos about rent going up, but noted mortgages are also rising.
“If you’re trying to become a homeowner, it’s a beautiful thing, but our mortgage goes up just as well,” she said.
She noted it was specifically the amount of money being held in escrow that has increased, which can affect monthly mortgage costs for borrowers.
The content creator also blamed realtors for failing to inform home buyers of these rising costs.
She explained her mortgage payments recently went up $100 monthly, totaling an extra $1,200 per year.
“Now to a lot of people that may not be a lot. But to me, it is crazy that it is up $100,” she said. “For what?”
An increased mortgage wasn’t the only extra burden on her bills.
She said that the costs for everything were rising and gave her electricity bill as an example.
“Everything, and it’s ridiculous. Like how can we put an end to this? Like where do we start? Do we need to protest? This is ridiculous.”
TRAPPED
In the homeowner’s case, increased mortgage payments can make people feel trapped in their homes due to financial strain and limited options for selling or moving.
Another home buyer felt trapped due to the circumstances under which she purchased her home.
First-time homeowner Amanda from Portland, Oregon bought a home with her husband Drew in 2021 during the pandemic.
The couple could afford the house thanks to the low 3.5% interest rate for a long-term fixed-rate deal, per Realtor.com.
“It felt like a now-or-never moment,” said Amanda. “Lower rates equated to more buying power.”
The young couple bought a three-bedroom two-bathroom home, which would have previously been out of budget.
However, the ideal situation became problematic when the couple considered moving back to Amanda’s hometown after she gave birth to a son.
Amanda said she felt unable to leave the home because of how much more interest rates would be for a new property.
Escrow and mortgage increases explained
What’s an escrow? Why did my mortgage payment go up?
Escrow accounts are set up to help homeowners cover insurance, property taxes, or other home-related expenses.
If you have an escrow, part of your monthly mortgage payment goes towards the account.
The escrow management company then uses the money in the escrow account to pay for taxes and insurance when those payments come due.
Essentially, the escrow bundles these other charges with your monthly principal payments, making them easier to manage. This is meant to make homeowners less likely to default on their payments.
If the government’s annual valuation of your home determines that your property taxes will go up, the escrow payments can spike as well, meaning that even those with fixed mortgage payments can find themselves forking over more cash every month.
“Our current situation is pretty great, but I don’t see a viable path forward from here,” she said. “I feel stuck here.”
“There’s this fear of losing this really incredible mortgage rate that we have,” she added.
The average mortgage rate is currently 7.57%, per The Wall Street Journal.
In related news, a woman’s mortgage increased and she is “highly upset” that no one told her about the hidden fees.
Plus, one woman’s mortgage increased $500 leaving her trapped in her home – now she has to rethink her budget and make cuts.
