Associated Bank Home Equity Loans

Associated put forced-place insurance on my property not only once but twice and also tried to apply it in other years, even though proof of insurance was provided to them for the past 5 years. They want to charge me $570.00, which I do not owe. I would not recommend using them.

We did business with this bank for years. Back in 2013, we refinanced our home and it took over 2 months. Probably 3. The lady heading that up was definitely not as competent as one would wish, but it finally got done. New mortgage and a nice HELOC. Fast-forward 10 years...we find out there was a sunset date on that HELOC, which we had used extensively due to me becoming disabled. We still made all our payments.
I was close to a disability settlement, but needed a few months. They would not give me a loan or accept continuing payments on the HELOC. We were making too little to get a new loan. They had me filling out applications for help. They declined helping because our mortgage wasn't a high enough percentage of our income. We ended up selling our house as quickly as we could, costing ourselves about $35,000 in equity. It was that or lose it all.
A judge settled my case about 4 weeks after we sold. Needless to say, we cut all ties with this bank. I'm sure the sunset date on the HELOC was in the fine print of the numerous documents we signed, but it's something that should be voiced out loud. It was also disappointing that they wouldn't work with us after years as a customer. I learned something in the wake of this: You're better off going with one of the big banks. They're more likely to work with you. Too bad.

Called to find out what loan options I had for financing some major improvements on a rental property. I was told someone would call me tomorrow. At 9:30 the next day, someone calls asking for me. I identified myself and he apologized because our appointment was for 10 am. Huh? I wasn't given a specific time. I told him it was okay to talk now. No, he says, "I have an appointment with someone else now." I'm thinking, okay, things happen. The phone rings at 10 am. It is the same number that rang at 9:30 am. The voice at the other end is stammering and it is readily apparent he has no idea who he called. I identify myself and he apologizes for his confusion. He proceeds to offer options that are not even close to being competitive. I thanked him and said it was less expensive to put my planned improvements on my credit card.

Given how unorganized and confused this man was, I had no confidence in what he was telling me, nor did I have confidence in the quality of their products. He was the fourth lender I called, so I indeed had timely comparisons, and he wasn't even in the ballpark.