@tacos wrote:
I am a new US resident and want to know how long will it take to qualify for a mortgage? Also will it help if I already own a paid off house in the US?
I am thinking of buying one home using cash then try to get a mortgage for the second one, I've been in the US for almost a year now.
How much credit do you already have established in the U.S.? Credit cards? Auto loan? Anything?
Some of the MyFico bankers could tell you more than I, but bankers are probably going to want at least three well-established credit tradelines and may want two years of verifiable income.
While owning a house that you paid cash for will be a plus as far as demonstrating that you have assets, I'm not sure that paying cash for a big house will impress a mortgage lender. IMHO they'd rather see a demonstrated ability to earn a regular income and make regular, on time payments. But buying a house for cash could obviously benefit you in lots of other ways.
Welcome to the U.S. Sounds like you'll do well.
