When will I qualify?

[met365784]

I keep on getting different opinions on when I can actually qualify for a mortgage. Here is my background, filed for bankruptcy may 2008, discharged aug 2008, included an FHA loan from wells fargo. Sheriffs sale was july 2008, next deed jan 2009, sold sept 2009, cavrs dec 2009. Bankruptcy was from medical bills and a reduction in pay / hours, I went from 75,000+ - 45,000. Reaffirmed car, paid off dec 2009 late at the end 2 30 days and 1 90 day.

Income 2009: 45,000 ; 2010; 58,000 2011: 23,000 (so far).

I started late rebuilding my credit but currently have 1 car payment and 2 CC, never late, PIF, low utilization < 20%. Being prior military I also qualify for VA. I don't have a lot saved up right now but by summer plan on having 3-6k. I'm only looking to purchase a house that is 125k or less.

Scores TU 643 (Aug 2010) EQ 633 (April 2011) EX 625 (Aug 2010, Fico)

Area I'm looking at is Michigan, Oakland, genesse or livingston county. Thank you for your help.

[ShanetheMortgageMan]

met - when you said "cavrs dec 2009" does that mean you paid your CAIVRS claim on the FHA defaulted loan in December of 2009?

So you said the BK was discharged August of 2008, but you had some late payments on your car just before December of 2009, was there a different reason for those missed payments?  It's just that they are a full year after the BK discharge, so an underwriter is going to want to know what happened then.  Lates after a BK are taken pretty seriously.

What do you do for employment?  Are you still full time?

[met365784]

December 2009 is when FHA paid the claim for the defaulted mortgage which was included in bankruptcy. Yes the lates were after BK, they came as a result of a continued decline in income, which we struggled to get through. My gross for 2009 was 45,000 and prior to that I was "use" to 75,000 - 85,000 a year. I'm still full time employed, I've always been a full time employee with the same company for the last 12 yrs. That was the only late I've had since the BK. I bought a different car in feb 2010 and have a perfect payment history on it.

[ShanetheMortgageMan]

For FHA or VA loans, as you may be aware, a CAIVRS check is performed, and when a CAIVRS screening indicates that you have had a foreclosure or claim paid on a loan from a Federal Agency (such as an FHA loan) , it needs to be satisfied.  Usually that means when an FHA loan was included, you need to repay the claim which FHA paid in order to clear the CAIVRS issue.  Each situation should be examined on it's own, and the only way to confirm you don't have a CAIVRS issue is by having a lender run a CAIVRS check on you.

It looks like somewhere between $45-58k/year of income will be able to qualify - since you are on track to make more than you did in 2010 it would be closer to the $58k/year of income figure.

Credit is very tough though, technically you have 12 months of clean credit, and if you never had the BK or FC then I'd say as soon as your scores are there you'd be OK.  But because of the BK & FC, and then having a late payment 12 months later, makes me think that you'll have a bit of a tough time until you have 24 full months of clean credit.  Worst case is if you go for a pre-approval you don't get approved, and then would just reapply later.  I'd wait until your scores get to a 640 level before applying in order to have the best chance of approval.

[met365784]

Though the bank preformed a forclosure to take back the house, there is no forclosure on my credit report, the house shows IIB. In regards to the caivrs I'm a little confused there, I tried to get a mortgage last year, 2yrs post bk, but didn't get any farther then the mortgage assistant. She told me that I wouldn't qualify until 3yrs after the FHA claim was paid. When does the 3 yr wait begin? From the discharge in BK, The sheriffs sale, 6 months after the sale, or after the claim was paid?

[ShanetheMortgageMan]

The three year period starts from the date that the claim was paid corresponding to the previous foreclosure on an FHA loan (so in your situation, when FHA paid the claim)... but you also need to clear up any CAIVRS records.