What's the highest amount servicers charge for payoff?

[Andy Mirza]

In this situation, I'm the borrower. My partner and I have a blanket loan on 14 condos with a payoff of less than $1 Million. So, this is a commercial loan.

About a year ago, the servicer wanted $150 just to provide a payoff statement whether we paid the loan off or not. We didn't feel like spending the money at the time but considered it reasonable if we actually went through with it.

Same loan is coming due now so we are refinancing. This same servicer has raised their fees as of 1/1/22. They are asking us to approve $1500 (fifteen hundred) to provide a payoff statement. We think that's way too much and are refusing to pay it.

Is that a normal price in the commercial loan servicing world? Seems ridiculous to me. It's an interest only loan with a couple of escrow accounts. Simple and easy to do.

Not sure what kind of workarounds we can do since our loan was securitized into CMBS and they seem to be pretty strict and not able to work "outside of the box."