by: Chris Edison
Why do some people get their home loan mortgages approved in a breeze while others struggle through with hiccups? What are the differentiating factors between one application and another? What do lenders look at when they evaluate you?
In reality, getting your home mortgage approved depends on how your background matches the list of criteria set forth by the lender. Although these rules that they have are not always entirely hard and fast, the loan application officer does not stray too far away the guidelines he or she has been entrusted with. Needless to say, applicants should at best present themselves as creditworthy creditors and have the adequate documented records as proof of this.
Believe or not, lenders have a scoring system for aspects of your background that they are evaluating. The following are areas in which you will be scrutinized on:
1. Employment History
You must have been in employment for not less than 2 consecutive years within the same industry. This shows that you have the capability to be sustained in a permanent position, and do not hop from one job to another. Lenders look for stability and consistency as best they can, and your employment history is a good basis for them to evaluate your capability to generate income to finance your mortgage.
2. Credit History
The next indicator of your credit-worthiness is your short-term debt, a.k.a. your credit card bills. It's ok to have some debt on your credit card, but you must show a history of on-time payments. Apart from that, too much debt on credit cards with credit lines fully utilized shows the possible inability to pay for debt. Therefore, at least six months before applying for a loan, it would be best to clean up your short term debt as much as possible.
3. Outstanding Liabilities
The size of your income dictates the amount of liability you can support. As a rule of thumb, lenders stipulate that a person's total monthly payments for liabilities should not exceed 42% of his or her monthly earnings. With this, total liabilities include credit card debt, car loans, student loans, existing mortgages or child support collectively. This means that in order to qualify for your home loan mortgage, you need to reduce your monthly repayments on liabilities to the point which is acceptable by the lender.
4. Cash and Asset Reserves
Another aspect to show that you can afford your home loan mortgage is to provide proof to the lender on the amount of cash and liquid assets that you possess. The minimum reserves that you have must be sufficient to pay at least 2 months of monthly repayments for mortgage payments. Some lenders even go to the extent of requiring 6 months worth of reserves in order to qualify.
5. Existing Housing Repayments
Finally, if you already have existing housing rental payments, there should not be any late repayments for these within the past 12 months. This again shows your priorities as a responsible tenant and is adequate proof to the lender that you potentially will be a responsible borrower as well.
Some applicants who may lack supporting documents for their home loan mortgage applications should compensate by providing documents that will help to prove themselves to be responsible pay masters. These could be payments receipts of utility bills, phone bills or even car insurance, which are useful documents to be used to prove that you are indeed creditworthy.
About The Author
Chris Edison is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.mortgage-traps.com a home mortgage loan information site, that reveals mortgage traps for home buyers.
Option One Mortgage Loans – Getting an Option ARM or Option One Mortgage Loan
by: Carrie Reeder
Have you heard about or been interested in finding out more about option one mortgage loans? They are becoming very popular, but its important to understand how they work before you apply for one. I will describe, in this article, an overview of the most common type of option ARM mortgage loan or option one mortgage loan.
How do they work? Option one mortgage loans are basically interest only mortgage loans, except that the first year, you pay only 1.25% of the interest on the loan. The remainder of the interest that is accruing is being added to the loan amount. The second year of the loan you pay more interest until gradually you are paying either full interest only payments or fully amortized payments (interest & principle). The reason the loans are called option loans is because every time you have a payment due, you have the option of paying the less than interest only portion, interest only or a fully amortized payment. This option would be good in a situation where your income is sporadic.
This mortgage loan type typically gives you 4 payment options in every bill.
Here are your typical monthly payment options:
Option #1 – Pay a 15-Year fully amortized payment amount (p&i)
Option #2 – Pay a 30-Year fully amortized payment amount (p&i)
Option #3 – Pay the interest-only portion of the loan (Interest Only)
Option #4 – Make a partial interest payment (1.25% - 1.95% depending on your loan type) and defer paying the additional interest to the total loan amount. (Deferred interest can be counteracted by making bi-monthly payments and by property appreciation)
This type of loan is good if you want to:
Wait a while to refinance again – If interest rates drop again, so does your payment. If you want to accelerate your payments and increase equity quick, pay more on your loan and it will be applied to future payments & will be directly applied to the principle balance. Will you want a 30-year loan? Keep the option to pay your loan as a 30-year, 15-year, or interest only payments.
Have an adjustable rate mortgage but want stability – This loan has a payment cap. The interest rate on this loan is based on the 12 month-MTA index, the most stable index of the 4 main indexes (COFI, LIBOR, MTA & CMT). This index is always below prime. The interest rate is based on the world economic markets which have been steadily coming down over the last 3 years. This loan has a 5-year fixed payment option as well.
Invest your payment savings in something else – This could open up opportunities for you if you could invest in real estate, the stock market or another investment when you use the extra $500-1000+ a month you free up from your property payment. Pay off debt with your payment savings – You can use the payment savings to pay off other debt.
Have security and options in your mortgage loan – The main benefit to this type of loan is the security of a mortgage payment that you control. You decide at any time what kind of a mortgage you want. If all goes well in your future, you have the freedom to pay your 30 year loan into a 15 year loan without even consulting another mortgage broker. Get more home for your money – You can qualify for more home with these low payment options.
Who Can Qualify? Qualifying for this loan is basically the same as any other loan, it is based on credit, equity & assets, if you are strong in 1 of these or 2 of these, you could probably qualify and with lowest rate possible.
What if I want to take out a stated income loan? “Stated Income” or “No income/assets” loans are possible with this Option One Loan.
These are just general guidelines and information about this type of loan. You will want to discuss all of these details with your broker or lender before you actually complete the loan. These factors may vary with each individual lender. Many lenders do not offer their customers this type of loan. If you are seeking an option one or option ARM loan, you will need to talk to your broker about it or find a broker that can do this type of loan. To see our recommended lenders for this type of loan. Visit here: www.abcloanguide.com/optiononeloans.shtml
About The Author
Written by Carrie Reeder, Owner of http://www.abcloanguide.com. Carrie's website is an informational mortgage loan website. Her website has articles and a list of recommended mortgage lenders for many different types of mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
Have you heard about or been interested in finding out more about option one mortgage loans? They are becoming very popular, but its important to understand how they work before you apply for one. I will describe, in this article, an overview of the most common type of option ARM mortgage loan or option one mortgage loan.
How do they work? Option one mortgage loans are basically interest only mortgage loans, except that the first year, you pay only 1.25% of the interest on the loan. The remainder of the interest that is accruing is being added to the loan amount. The second year of the loan you pay more interest until gradually you are paying either full interest only payments or fully amortized payments (interest & principle). The reason the loans are called option loans is because every time you have a payment due, you have the option of paying the less than interest only portion, interest only or a fully amortized payment. This option would be good in a situation where your income is sporadic.
This mortgage loan type typically gives you 4 payment options in every bill.
Here are your typical monthly payment options:
Option #1 – Pay a 15-Year fully amortized payment amount (p&i)
Option #2 – Pay a 30-Year fully amortized payment amount (p&i)
Option #3 – Pay the interest-only portion of the loan (Interest Only)
Option #4 – Make a partial interest payment (1.25% - 1.95% depending on your loan type) and defer paying the additional interest to the total loan amount. (Deferred interest can be counteracted by making bi-monthly payments and by property appreciation)
This type of loan is good if you want to:
Wait a while to refinance again – If interest rates drop again, so does your payment. If you want to accelerate your payments and increase equity quick, pay more on your loan and it will be applied to future payments & will be directly applied to the principle balance. Will you want a 30-year loan? Keep the option to pay your loan as a 30-year, 15-year, or interest only payments.
Have an adjustable rate mortgage but want stability – This loan has a payment cap. The interest rate on this loan is based on the 12 month-MTA index, the most stable index of the 4 main indexes (COFI, LIBOR, MTA & CMT). This index is always below prime. The interest rate is based on the world economic markets which have been steadily coming down over the last 3 years. This loan has a 5-year fixed payment option as well.
Invest your payment savings in something else – This could open up opportunities for you if you could invest in real estate, the stock market or another investment when you use the extra $500-1000+ a month you free up from your property payment. Pay off debt with your payment savings – You can use the payment savings to pay off other debt.
Have security and options in your mortgage loan – The main benefit to this type of loan is the security of a mortgage payment that you control. You decide at any time what kind of a mortgage you want. If all goes well in your future, you have the freedom to pay your 30 year loan into a 15 year loan without even consulting another mortgage broker. Get more home for your money – You can qualify for more home with these low payment options.
Who Can Qualify? Qualifying for this loan is basically the same as any other loan, it is based on credit, equity & assets, if you are strong in 1 of these or 2 of these, you could probably qualify and with lowest rate possible.
What if I want to take out a stated income loan? “Stated Income” or “No income/assets” loans are possible with this Option One Loan.
These are just general guidelines and information about this type of loan. You will want to discuss all of these details with your broker or lender before you actually complete the loan. These factors may vary with each individual lender. Many lenders do not offer their customers this type of loan. If you are seeking an option one or option ARM loan, you will need to talk to your broker about it or find a broker that can do this type of loan. To see our recommended lenders for this type of loan. Visit here: www.abcloanguide.com/optiononeloans.shtml
About The Author
Written by Carrie Reeder, Owner of http://www.abcloanguide.com. Carrie's website is an informational mortgage loan website. Her website has articles and a list of recommended mortgage lenders for many different types of mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
Poor Credit Home Loan – Get The Mortgage Loan You Want
by: Carrie Reeder
Having poor credit alone cannot hold you back from getting the home loan you want. Buying a home that is everything you want in a home, is a very exciting experience. The blemishes on your credit history will not alone keep you from getting the home you want and the home you deserve.
Here are some things to keep in mind when moving forward in the application process to get your home loan:
Contact or apply to many different lenders or brokers – Online you can fill out many mortgage applications where the lender or mortgage service company does not pull your credit history. If they don't ask for your social security number, they usually cannot pull your credit. Brokers usually use the initial application or inquiry form and what you tell them about your credit to make a decision about whether they should pursue the application and pull your credit or not. Many lenders will tell you that you are not going to get approved anywhere and that if they can’t help you, no one can. That is not true. All mortgage brokers have access to very different mortgage programs and some brokers are more creative in their financing techniques than others.
Fill out your application or inquiry as accurately as possible – Inflating your income on your application or inquiry form, to be higher than you know you can verify your income to be, will only delay the process of getting pre-approved. The broker will work the fastest for you if he/she is working with the exact information he/she needs to be able to verify. That’s the best way to get approved and through the pre-approval process smoothly.
Be persistent – This is the key when seeking a mortgage loan pre-approval with poor credit, be optimistic. Look for creative ways to get financing and contact as many brokers as possible. There is one or more out there that can help you. The key is to find them.
Start house hunting - Sometimes the key to getting into a house is finding the right one and a seller that is flexible enough to help you do some creative financing work. For example: the seller carrying back a small percentage of the loan, the seller paying your closing costs or you being able to purchase the house for significantly lower than market value.
To view a list of our recommended poor credit mortgage lenders, visit this page: www.abcloanguide.com/lessthanperfectcredit.shtml.
About The Author
Written by Carrie Reeder, Owner of www.abcloanguide.com. Carrie's website is an informational mortgage loan website. Her website has articles and a list of recommended mortgage lenders for many different types of mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
Having poor credit alone cannot hold you back from getting the home loan you want. Buying a home that is everything you want in a home, is a very exciting experience. The blemishes on your credit history will not alone keep you from getting the home you want and the home you deserve.
Here are some things to keep in mind when moving forward in the application process to get your home loan:
Contact or apply to many different lenders or brokers – Online you can fill out many mortgage applications where the lender or mortgage service company does not pull your credit history. If they don't ask for your social security number, they usually cannot pull your credit. Brokers usually use the initial application or inquiry form and what you tell them about your credit to make a decision about whether they should pursue the application and pull your credit or not. Many lenders will tell you that you are not going to get approved anywhere and that if they can’t help you, no one can. That is not true. All mortgage brokers have access to very different mortgage programs and some brokers are more creative in their financing techniques than others.
Fill out your application or inquiry as accurately as possible – Inflating your income on your application or inquiry form, to be higher than you know you can verify your income to be, will only delay the process of getting pre-approved. The broker will work the fastest for you if he/she is working with the exact information he/she needs to be able to verify. That’s the best way to get approved and through the pre-approval process smoothly.
Be persistent – This is the key when seeking a mortgage loan pre-approval with poor credit, be optimistic. Look for creative ways to get financing and contact as many brokers as possible. There is one or more out there that can help you. The key is to find them.
Start house hunting - Sometimes the key to getting into a house is finding the right one and a seller that is flexible enough to help you do some creative financing work. For example: the seller carrying back a small percentage of the loan, the seller paying your closing costs or you being able to purchase the house for significantly lower than market value.
To view a list of our recommended poor credit mortgage lenders, visit this page: www.abcloanguide.com/lessthanperfectcredit.shtml.
About The Author
Written by Carrie Reeder, Owner of www.abcloanguide.com. Carrie's website is an informational mortgage loan website. Her website has articles and a list of recommended mortgage lenders for many different types of mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
Buying A Home After Bankruptcy - Get A Mortgage Loan After Bankruptcy
by: Carrie Reeder
If you have a recent bankruptcy on your credit and are looking to get financing for a home, there is hope. Buying a home with bad credit will just put more emphasis on the other two factors needed to get a mortgage loan, which are; income verification and a down payment.
After bankruptcy most lenders want you to wait at least 2 years from the time of the bankruptcy discharge before they will consider you for a mortgage loan. After the two year waiting period is over, you should be able to get financing easily. You should also be able to get 100% financing as well. You can usually achieve this as long as at least most of your payments have been reported to the credit bureau as having been paid on time since the discharge of your bankruptcy.
If you are looking to get a mortgage loan after bankruptcy sooner than the 2 years from the time of discharge, you will need to have almost flawless payment history since your bankruptcy discharge. Also, you may need to have a down payment. If you have even 3-5% to use as a down payment, that may be enough to help you get approved.
There are ways to get a down payment for your mortgage besides having the money saved in the bank. Here are some ideas of ways to do that:
Borrow or ask for a gift from relatives. After you have financed the house, you can usually go and take out a 2nd or 3rd mortgage up to the full value of your house, and then you could repay the relatives. Keep in mind that if you intend the money to be as a loan only from the relatives, you would need to disclose that to the lender before you close. Lenders usually have regulations about where the down payment is coming from and if you are not honest, it could be considered defrauding a lender.
There are down payment assistance programs like Neighborhood Gold or the Nehemiah program. These programs basically aid the seller in helping you with a down payment. Receiving a down payment from the seller of the property is illegal, but through these programs, it is legal. There are also other down payment assistance programs which are grants and do not need to be repaid or paid for by anyone. To find out about these, do a search on “down payment assistance” with your favorite search engine.
You could cash out a 401K or another investment and like in the first example, repay yourself with a 2nd or 3rd mortgage after the loan has closed.
Mortgage loans after bankruptcy are getting to be much easier to obtain these days. If you would like to see a list of our preferred bad credit mortgage lenders, visit this page: www.abcloanguide.com/lessthanperfectcredit.shtml.
About The Author
Carrie Reeder is the owner of www.abcloanguide.com. ABC Loan Guide is an informational site with articles and lists of recommended lenders for bad credit mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
If you have a recent bankruptcy on your credit and are looking to get financing for a home, there is hope. Buying a home with bad credit will just put more emphasis on the other two factors needed to get a mortgage loan, which are; income verification and a down payment.
After bankruptcy most lenders want you to wait at least 2 years from the time of the bankruptcy discharge before they will consider you for a mortgage loan. After the two year waiting period is over, you should be able to get financing easily. You should also be able to get 100% financing as well. You can usually achieve this as long as at least most of your payments have been reported to the credit bureau as having been paid on time since the discharge of your bankruptcy.
If you are looking to get a mortgage loan after bankruptcy sooner than the 2 years from the time of discharge, you will need to have almost flawless payment history since your bankruptcy discharge. Also, you may need to have a down payment. If you have even 3-5% to use as a down payment, that may be enough to help you get approved.
There are ways to get a down payment for your mortgage besides having the money saved in the bank. Here are some ideas of ways to do that:
Borrow or ask for a gift from relatives. After you have financed the house, you can usually go and take out a 2nd or 3rd mortgage up to the full value of your house, and then you could repay the relatives. Keep in mind that if you intend the money to be as a loan only from the relatives, you would need to disclose that to the lender before you close. Lenders usually have regulations about where the down payment is coming from and if you are not honest, it could be considered defrauding a lender.
There are down payment assistance programs like Neighborhood Gold or the Nehemiah program. These programs basically aid the seller in helping you with a down payment. Receiving a down payment from the seller of the property is illegal, but through these programs, it is legal. There are also other down payment assistance programs which are grants and do not need to be repaid or paid for by anyone. To find out about these, do a search on “down payment assistance” with your favorite search engine.
You could cash out a 401K or another investment and like in the first example, repay yourself with a 2nd or 3rd mortgage after the loan has closed.
Mortgage loans after bankruptcy are getting to be much easier to obtain these days. If you would like to see a list of our preferred bad credit mortgage lenders, visit this page: www.abcloanguide.com/lessthanperfectcredit.shtml.
About The Author
Carrie Reeder is the owner of www.abcloanguide.com. ABC Loan Guide is an informational site with articles and lists of recommended lenders for bad credit mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
Self Employed Mortgage Loan – Getting a Mortgage When You’re Self Employed
by: Carrie Reeder
Being self employed has many benefits. When you are self-employed, you can write off all of your deductions on your taxes. You have the potential to make more income than someone who is employed by someone else. You have the freedom to be your own boss. One of the few times when being self employed has some drawbacks is when you go to get financing for a home or a major purchase. But, here are some things to know that can help you make the mortgage loan process run smoothly when you are self employed.
When verifying income - In general, lenders want to see at least 2 years of self employment history, sometimes they want to see 3 years. They will want to see this history verified in tax returns, usually. Sometimes the lenders will figure your income as being the average income you claimed on your income taxes as profit, not your gross business income. Sometimes the lender will figure your income as the lowest of the two years and sometimes as the highest of the two years. Talk to your mortgage broker or lender and find out which way they verify. Sometimes lenders will figure a portion of your write-offs or deductions back into your income. There are ideas of other ways that a lender may be able to verify your income and if you are self employed it will help you to be able to show a more of your income.
A. Use bank statements as proof of income – Find a lender who will accept 1-2 years of bank statements as proof of income. It is becoming more common nowadays for lenders to verify your income this way. This way usually works better in proving income than going off of your tax returns, because you can usually prove a lot more cash flow than tax returns will show. On your tax returns you usually subtract each and every business expense before you claim any profit. When using bank statements, you are still proving income, this does not put as much emphasis on your credit score or down payment as the stated income or no doc loan will.
B. Do a stated income or no doc loan – These types of loans are done all of the time, where you need no proof of income, you only state on a form what your income is, and you do not need to verify it. This can help if you are self employed and want to state your income as it is and not worry about having the lender average out your income from the last two years instead. Make sure you are accurate in stating your income, because the lender may be able to obtain past taxes from the IRS to confirm it. When you do a stated income loan, this will put more emphasis on your down payment or credit score. So, you will usually need one of these factors to be strong if you want to go this route. Most of the time when you do a stated income or no doc loan, you will be charged a slightly higher interest rate because of the extra risk the lenders carries.
C. Put together a profit & loss statement stating accurately stating your profits and expenses from the last two years. This can be a time consuming project, but it can sometimes be used as income verification for a lender. It is more usable if you have had it signed or verified by your accountant.
There are many ways that lenders can work with you if you are self employed. There are many programs available to help you and if you have a down payment or decent credit, you are almost guaranteed to be able to get approved somewhere. To see our list of recommended lenders that would be able to help you, visit here: http://www.abcloanguide.com/mortgageloans.shtml or if you have credit problems, here: http://www.abcloanguide.com/lessthanperfectcredit.shtml
About The Author
Written by Carrie Reeder, Owner of http://www.abcloanguide.com. Carrie's website is an informational mortgage loan website. Her website has articles and a list of recommended mortgage lenders for many different types of mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
Being self employed has many benefits. When you are self-employed, you can write off all of your deductions on your taxes. You have the potential to make more income than someone who is employed by someone else. You have the freedom to be your own boss. One of the few times when being self employed has some drawbacks is when you go to get financing for a home or a major purchase. But, here are some things to know that can help you make the mortgage loan process run smoothly when you are self employed.
When verifying income - In general, lenders want to see at least 2 years of self employment history, sometimes they want to see 3 years. They will want to see this history verified in tax returns, usually. Sometimes the lenders will figure your income as being the average income you claimed on your income taxes as profit, not your gross business income. Sometimes the lender will figure your income as the lowest of the two years and sometimes as the highest of the two years. Talk to your mortgage broker or lender and find out which way they verify. Sometimes lenders will figure a portion of your write-offs or deductions back into your income. There are ideas of other ways that a lender may be able to verify your income and if you are self employed it will help you to be able to show a more of your income.
A. Use bank statements as proof of income – Find a lender who will accept 1-2 years of bank statements as proof of income. It is becoming more common nowadays for lenders to verify your income this way. This way usually works better in proving income than going off of your tax returns, because you can usually prove a lot more cash flow than tax returns will show. On your tax returns you usually subtract each and every business expense before you claim any profit. When using bank statements, you are still proving income, this does not put as much emphasis on your credit score or down payment as the stated income or no doc loan will.
B. Do a stated income or no doc loan – These types of loans are done all of the time, where you need no proof of income, you only state on a form what your income is, and you do not need to verify it. This can help if you are self employed and want to state your income as it is and not worry about having the lender average out your income from the last two years instead. Make sure you are accurate in stating your income, because the lender may be able to obtain past taxes from the IRS to confirm it. When you do a stated income loan, this will put more emphasis on your down payment or credit score. So, you will usually need one of these factors to be strong if you want to go this route. Most of the time when you do a stated income or no doc loan, you will be charged a slightly higher interest rate because of the extra risk the lenders carries.
C. Put together a profit & loss statement stating accurately stating your profits and expenses from the last two years. This can be a time consuming project, but it can sometimes be used as income verification for a lender. It is more usable if you have had it signed or verified by your accountant.
There are many ways that lenders can work with you if you are self employed. There are many programs available to help you and if you have a down payment or decent credit, you are almost guaranteed to be able to get approved somewhere. To see our list of recommended lenders that would be able to help you, visit here: http://www.abcloanguide.com/mortgageloans.shtml or if you have credit problems, here: http://www.abcloanguide.com/lessthanperfectcredit.shtml
About The Author
Written by Carrie Reeder, Owner of http://www.abcloanguide.com. Carrie's website is an informational mortgage loan website. Her website has articles and a list of recommended mortgage lenders for many different types of mortgage loans.
carrie@abcloanguide.com
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