He says the servicer denied placing insurance - then a $9,588 charge showed up
A pro se attorney who picked up a Baytown home at an HOA foreclosure sale is suing Freedom Mortgage, alleging botched servicing and a disputed $9,588 hazard insurance charge.
Youras Ziankovich filed his complaint on May 19, 2026, in the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, taking aim at Freedom Mortgage Corporation's handling of loan number 0114624067, which is secured by a property at 2227 Rosillo Brook Drive in Baytown.
The backdrop is unusual. According to the filing, Ziankovich obtained title to the home in September 2025 through a Constable's Deed following a homeowners-association foreclosure sale. He then stepped in to keep the underlying mortgage current, arranging payments, funding escrow obligations, and communicating with Freedom Mortgage over servicing matters. The complaint says the servicer accepted those payments and engaged with him directly for months.
Where things went sideways, the suit alleges, was around insurance and escrow. Ziankovich says he sent Freedom Mortgage a Qualified Written Request in late December 2025, which was delivered on January 6, 2026. The complaint claims the request was logged in the servicer's system but marked "rejected," without the written response or explanation that RESPA and Regulation X require.
A few weeks later, on January 22, 2026, Ziankovich says he sent Freedom Mortgage proof of active homeowner's coverage through Kin Interinsurance Nexus Exchange, including declarations and mortgagee information naming Freedom as mortgagee. The materials were delivered by certified mail on January 26, 2026, according to the complaint.
Despite that, the filing claims, an escrow analysis issued on February 23, 2026, asserted shortages and pushed the monthly payment higher, attributing the increase to insurance and escrow calculations. Ziankovich followed with a formal Notice of Error on March 5, 2026.
The heart of the dispute, as laid out in the filing, is a written response Freedom Mortgage allegedly sent on April 8, 2026, stating: "There was no lender-placed insurance on the account." The complaint alleges that despite that representation, the servicer's records soon reflected a charge labeled "Hazard Insurance $9,588.00" - a contradiction Ziankovich says was never explained, documented, or tied to any identified insurer.
From there, the complaint piles on twenty counts, including alleged violations of RESPA Section 2605 and Regulation X, the Texas Debt Collection Act, and the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, along with claims for negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud, fraud by nondisclosure, unjust enrichment, breach of contract, and promissory estoppel. Ziankovich is seeking actual and statutory damages, restitution, declaratory and injunctive relief, exemplary damages, attorney's fees, and an equitable accounting of escrow activity, servicing advances, and insurance-related transactions.
For mortgage servicers, the case is a reminder of how quickly small written statements - especially around force-placed insurance - can become exhibits.
The allegations have not been tested in court. Freedom Mortgage has not yet filed a response, and no court has ruled on the claims.
