If a letter says your mortgage has been sold or transferred, the part that changes is who collects your payment and answers your questions. Under Regulation X section 1024.33 (12 CFR 1024.33), the notice must also state that no loan terms change other than those directly related to servicing. This guide covers homeowners in Richmond, Henrico County and Chesterfield County and anywhere else.
This is general information, not financial advice. Mission Realty is a brokerage, not a lender or servicer. I read the CFPB pages and rule text below in November 2026.
What changes and what does not
The CFPB explainer on mortgage servicing describes the servicer as the company you send payments to. When servicing rights move, you send payments to the new servicer after a set date and take loan questions to them. The CFPB page on mortgage servicer changes adds that automatic bill payments through your bank or credit union need to be redirected.
| Item | Changes? | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who you pay | Yes, from a stated date | CFPB servicer changes page |
| Who answers loan questions | Yes, the new servicer | CFPB servicer changes page |
| Auto-pay set up at your bank | You must redirect it | CFPB servicer changes page |
| Loan terms | No, other than terms directly related to servicing | 12 CFR 1024.33(b)(4)(vi) |
| Optional insurance such as life or disability | Notice must say whether it is affected and what you must do | 12 CFR 1024.33(b)(4)(v) |
The CFPB consumer page itself does not discuss your balance or rate. The rule text is where the “no other terms change” statement comes from. Your promissory note and deed of trust are the documents that define your terms, so keep them handy.
The notice timeline
Both pages give the same figures, and the rule section sets them out in detail.
| Who | When | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Old servicer | At least 15 days before the transfer takes effect | 12 CFR 1024.33(b)(3)(i) |
| New servicer | No more than 15 days after the effective date, unless one combined notice went out at least 15 days before | 12 CFR 1024.33(b)(3)(i) |
| After certain events (for-cause contract termination, servicer bankruptcy, FDIC or NCUA conservatorship or receivership) | Up to 30 days after the effective date | 12 CFR 1024.33(b)(3)(ii) |
| Late-fee protection | 60 days from the effective date | 12 CFR 1024.33(c)(1) |
The rule says the notice must give the effective date, contact information for both servicers, and the last day the old servicer accepts payments and the first day the new one does. Those two days are either the same or consecutive.
Talk to a Mission Realty lender partner
Questions about your mortgage? Talk to a Mission Realty lender partner. We do not quote rates here; they will walk you through your options.
The 60-day protection
For 60 days starting on the effective date, a payment sent to the old servicer on or before its due date, including any grace period, cannot be treated as late for any purpose. The rule’s official interpretation, as the CFPB page summarizes, means no late fee. If the old servicer gets a payment by mistake, it must forward it to the new servicer or return it with notice of the right recipient. That is 12 CFR 1024.33(c)(2).
Do not lean on the window. Move your payment to the new servicer on the date in the notice, and mail early if you pay by check.
What to do this week
- Find the notice and write down the effective date and the first payment date for the new servicer.
- Update auto-pay and any bill-pay set up at your bank.
- Check your next two statements to confirm payments are credited correctly.
- Keep proof of payments made to the old servicer during the transition.
- If anything looks off, the CFPB page says to send both servicers an information request or notice of error when you never received a transfer notice, payments seem misapplied, or a loss mitigation application is not being handled by the new servicer.
Servicing transfer versus other mortgage moves
A transfer is the servicer’s decision. A refinance or recast is yours. If you are weighing those, read recasting versus refinancing. If mortgage insurance is part of your payment, see when PMI or MIP drops off. If you are selling and a servicer change lands near closing, your payoff figure comes from your current servicer, so read how a payoff letter and per diem work at closing.
If you are still buying
The loan can be sold or the servicing moved after closing, so expect the letter even on a new loan. If you are between approval and closing, keep your finances steady; our guide to what not to do between approval and closing lists the usual traps, and underwriting conditions after contract explains the paperwork requests. The rule section also treats notices given at settlement as meeting the timing rules, so you may get yours at the table.
When you are ready to look, start with homes on our property search, or use the mortgage calculator to test a payment. You can also review how buying with Mission Realty works.
Questions to ask your new servicer
These are practical questions, not rules from the sources. Ask them by phone, then follow up in writing so you have a record.
- What is the exact date my first payment is due at your company, and how do I pay by mail, online or by phone?
- Does my escrow account for taxes and insurance carry over, and how will you show me the balance?
- If I have a pending request with the old servicer, such as a loss mitigation application, who is handling it now?
- Where can I see a payment history that includes the payments I made to the old servicer?
- How do I reach a person if an automatic payment fails?
Keep the transfer notice, your first statement from the new servicer and your last statement from the old one together in one folder. If a payment is ever disputed, that folder is your evidence.
Exceptions to know
Regulation X excludes some transfers from the notice rule: transfers between affiliates, transfers from mergers or acquisitions, and transfers between master servicers that do not change the subservicer. Each exclusion applies only where the payee, payment address, account number and payment amount stay the same. If you got no notice, check whether your payment details changed. If they did, ask both servicers in writing.
Frequently asked questions
Does my interest rate change when my mortgage is transferred?
The rule says the notice must state that no loan terms change other than those directly related to servicing (12 CFR 1024.33(b)(4)(vi)). The CFPB consumer page does not address rate. Check your note.
How much notice should I get?
The old servicer should send notice at least 15 days before the transfer. The new servicer should send notice within 15 days after, unless the notices were combined into one sent at least 15 days before. In certain cases, such as servicer bankruptcy, the rule allows up to 30 days after.
What if I paid the old servicer after the transfer?
For 60 days from the effective date, a payment sent on time to the old servicer cannot be treated as late. The old servicer must forward it or return it with notice of the right recipient.
Will I owe a late fee if I send the payment to the wrong company?
Not during the 60-day window if you paid the old servicer on or before the due date or within the grace period, according to the CFPB page and the rule. After that, send payments to the new servicer.
Do I need to change my auto-pay?
Yes, per the CFPB page. Redirect automatic payments through your bank or credit union to the new servicer.
What should the transfer notice include?
The effective date, contact information for both servicers, the last day the old one takes payments and the first day the new one does, whether optional insurance is affected, and a no-other-terms-change statement.
Is a servicing transfer the same as a new loan?
No. The sources I read describe only a change in who services the loan. A refinance replaces the loan, and that is a separate decision.
What if I never got a notice?
The CFPB page says to send both servicers an information request or notice of error. Keep copies. Regulation X excludes certain transfers, so check whether your payment details actually changed.
Can Mission Realty help with my servicer problem?
We are a brokerage, not a servicer or lender. We can connect you with a lender partner at our preferred lenders page to talk through your options.
Talk to a Mission Realty lender partner
Questions about your mortgage? Talk to a Mission Realty lender partner. We do not quote rates here; they will walk you through your options.
