Credit problems/Mortgage loan.... Help? (1 Viewer)

[Malcolm R]

If all she ever did was call the bank, and didn't follow up with a letter, then she has given up some of her rights to protection from fraud. Every account I've ever opened says to call if cards/checks are lost or stolen, but to follow up in writing to protect your rights. A phone call by itself will not provide the fullest protection and provides no paper trail for anyone to follow as proof of loss.

 

[Glenn Overholt]

This might be another option for you two. You get the house by yourself and let her furnish it. Don't know if that would work, but if she did ever leave at least you'll have a roof over your head.

Glenn

 

[Prentice Cotham]

Are these accounts all with collection agencies? Has she had any communication with the collection agencies?

 

[Jose Arellano]

Scott, you should have no problem getting a loan on your own. You say you have low ratios, which is really important, but even if you find an expensive house that you want, there are ways around it with your scores. If you are comfortable with the payment, stated income programs will allow you to play with both your and your girlfriend's income to see what you can jointly afford while allowing you to qualify on your own. If you have problems or your loan officer says they can't do it, look elsewhere. Based on what you have said, you seem to be a model borrower, the type that mortgage companies love. Also, they should be able to lock your rate for as long as 120 days or so, depending on the company. The longer you lock though, your rate might be a bit higher. You do have to be careful though because a lot of the time, if you don't close your loan before the lock expires, you can get hit with a higher rate. Make sure you are aware of how long everything will take, and request an appropriate lock. Find a company that will lock you in for free or a minimal fee....there is no reason to pay a big amount for a lock. My company locks in rates for free, but then again, if the market improves, you are locked in. It is a chance you take. Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[Cary_H]

I don't know what the common-law rules are in your area, but where I reside your girlfriend would be entitled to half your home if you co-habitate, even if she isn't on title and your relationship went bad.

Your current payments will be a factor in what amount you'll qualify for as mentioned previously. Even any payments to service any lines of credit you carry on your credit cards/accounts can come into play.

FWIW,..the biggest warning flag that comes up for me is just what happened to a good friend of mine. He and his girlfriend bought a home together, the relationship soured, she split to whereabouts unknown leaving him holding the bag. He had to carry costs on his own income. He couldn't sell nor re-finance the mortgage without her signature. Even if he were able to sell he stood to take a big hit since the market had collapsed and he'd be liable to makeup the difference between the sale's proceeds and the higher mortgage buyout. Goodbye initial investment, hello rental landlord.
He hung in, the market turned back around, the interest rates fell, yet his ex still held trump.
OTOH, I can't believe your lender won't take a different view around the situation your gal has been put in.
Perhaps it's time to look elsewhere for your mortgage money.

 

[Scott Wong]

OK. Here's what happened after speaking with the loan officer just in case any of you care about an update on my situation.

I could get a mortgage in my own name but nothing that would be of interest to me. The loan officer said $105K would be the max. This does nothing for me here in the Twin Cities unless I were looking at purchasing a condo... and I am not. Couple of factors as to why I cannot get anymore than that:

1. My car payment. It's never been late but is high for a car payment. I am leasing a 2001 Lexus IS300. The monthly payment is $450.25/mo. and as far as revolving debt goes, this is literally all I've got.

2. I am divorced. Prior to the divorce, my ex-wife and I leased a 1999 Ford F-150. This is, unfortunately, a joint account so my name is on it. Her lease expires this December 2003 (thank God). In my divorce decree, it specifically states that I am indemnified and held harmless of this account and vehicle. Evidently, that statement doesn't mean shit to the loan officer. The payment is $365/mo. *and* it is the one negative thing on my credit report. My ex-wife was late with the payment in December 2002. This is on my credit report and it is essentially the one thing standing in my way from having 'perfect credit'. I guess you can take that for what it's worth. I don't know much about beacon scores. But the loan officer said mine is 795. Anyway, it essentially looks as though I am making two [very high] car payments and I am not. I can only hope that my ex-wife continues making the payments on time, as is.

The loan officer said my girlfriend's credit was a lost cause, in not so many words. There is nothing we use from her report since it is so poor. As of my original post, I contacted the Minneapolis Police Department and they are mailing me a copy of the police report. I also called the bank and they are mailing me a copy of the affidavit my girlfriend placed to them advising them of the stolen property. I don't quite know where to go from here. I did write letters to every collection agency explaining the situation. Perhaps they will advise me of where to go from here. I suppose in the end, I could always fax or mail off the police copy and the statement from the bank.

I did not get a very good vibe overall from the loan officer. She basically said there was nothing else she could do from me. And since there was nothing else in the deal for her, she was fairly short and almost abrupt, in a way. I am disappointed about that, but I'm more disappointed with the fact that all of shit is now coming up about my girlfriend's credit. I had no idea though and evidently, neither did she.

In the meantime, I have taken a more subdued plan of attack. As of December 2003, I will no longer have the luxury of going month to month with my apartment lease. And quite frankly, I'm growing less fond of paying these bastards $1,085/mo. As of this December, I can either move to different apartment within the complex and continue to go month to month (but they have raised the rent since then so it is more) or I can sign a 12-month lease and remain where I am. I am not happy with either of those choices. With that said, my girlfriend and I may opt to move in with her parents. It is a win/win situation if I can handle living with other people:

1. Her dad got layed off a while ago. His unemployment just recently ran out and he still does not have a job. They have been trying to sell their home for quite sometime but have been unlucky. We will be able to help them out by moving in temporarily and assisting with the mortgage... since her mom is going to have a tough time doing it on her own.

2. My girlfriend and I are going to get the entire lower level to ourselves. We'll be splitting the mortgage with them. So our "rent" will be just $650.00/mo. That's a pretty good savings compared to what we're paying now. By doing this, we'll be able to stash more cash away for an even bigger down payment and be closer to our places of business, as well. Also, this will buy me time to get all of this shit cleared up with my girlfriend's credit. *AND* this December, I lose the ex-wife's truck lease account which will free up a lot according to the loan officer. So this seems like a good thing to do.

What do you guys think? Obviously, I like living with my girlfriend in this nice two bedroom apartment, but biting the bullet and doing this just seems like it would really help things out financially. We aren't necessarily struggling at all right now. We'll just be able to save a lot more by doing this... and, of course, helping out her parent's by assisting with the mortgage is a benefit for everyone, I think. In the meantime, they have postponed selling until sometime next year. And by that time, hopefully, my girlfriend and I will be ready to go with another attempt at a *joint* mortgage.

Sorry this was so lengthy... again, I totally appreciate all of the replies and responses. This has been an awesome learning experience and I'm eager to get all this straightened out and save up even more money.

Let me know what you guys think and thanks again.

Scott.

 

[Drew Bethel]

If I were you I wouldn't rule out condos...you should at least check some out. $105k should be able to get you a decent 2 bedroom condo in a nearby surburb.

Don't listen to the old stories of condos being hard to sell, that's 80's and maybe 90's. With the median price of a homes in Minnesapolis topping $200k, there is a huge market now for condos and townhomes.

 

[Jose Arellano]

Scott, it seems your loan officer was not very good. A credit score of 795 puts you at about the top 2% of all people. My advice would be to call another mortgage company, and tell them you are interested in a stated income loan. Then, state your own income at what both your and your girlfriend's income is, although you are doing the loan on your own, to get an idea how much house that can get you. I can guarantee you that it will be much higher, and you will probably find something that benefits you so you are actually building equity in something for yourself. These programs are practically created for situations like yours, where you have very credit-worthy borrowers who can afford the payments without going through all the hassle of documenting it all(ie. your gf's income.) Email me if you have any questions.

Oh, by the way, one late payment more than 6 months ago should not affect anything. Your credit score reflects the total history on your accounts, and 795 is close to perfect. A perfect score is 850, and that is near impossible. Anything above 720 is considered excellent. Finally, I just thought of this, but it seems you had a very incompetent loan officer due to the fact that the payment on your ex's truck should not count, as the account is to be paid off by 12/03. The general rule in the business is that installment accounts that have less than 10 months to go on them are never even taken into consideration. Some banks only rule out those with less than 6 months to go, but you are well within any of those ranges. Again, let me know if you have any questions, but I am pretty sure you just need to get a second opinion without giving up due to one loan officer that frankly, didn't try.

 

[Henry Carmona]

Ove $1000 for an apartment????

Im glad i live in TX, but i guess your paid more up there.

My condos mortgage is approx $700 for 1100sqft.

I do hope you can get yourself a home soon, thats what im trying to do.

 

[Scott Wong]

Jose:

Well, now I'm disappointed. It is too bad that this loan officer didn't seem to put much effort into my girlfriend and I. I definitely won't be going back to her. It seems as though she had every excuse in the book and even the $105K that she quoted me was a "absolute best case scenario" as she so eloquently put it.

At this point, unfortunately, I'm sticking with my original plan. I *do* want a home of my own. More importantly, I want my girlfriend's income taken into consideration and I want to buy something somewhat nice.

I put in my 60-day notice with this shitty apartment compex. And I cannot wait to get the hell outta here. I am so tired of making out this rent check every month. It's sickening to see that kinda cash go right out the window. :frowning: So, as of the end of October, we're moving in with her parents. They have already put a door on the lower level where we'll be living. It'll be home for the next year. I'll be saving $600.00 on just rent alone... that doesn't even include my savings on utilities. If I continue to work as much as I currently am, I should have no problem saving $600-$800 per bank. This means, I'll have an even larger downpayment and we'll be assisting her parents at the same time. 12 months won't kill either of us.

Henry: My 2-bedroom apartment is 1,132 square feet and you already know what my rent is. *hint* there is a comma in the monthly amount due. I envy you.

Scott.