topic Re: Do I qualify? in Mortgage Loans

Do I qualify?

Woodpecker253 — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 15:27:59 GMT

Good morning all,

I have been lurking for some time now on this board and was curious if someone could educate me or give me their honest input.

A little backround...

I would like to apply for a mortgage in the next 1-2months, my landlord informed me that he will raise my rent by a substantial amount come Decemeber.

So..I am single with a dog, no kids. My take home pay is about $8400 a month, about 125k/year.

Mortgage scores are 729/735/741 as of last month.

My monthly debt is my car payment and 17k in CC payments, total $980.

I know it's alot of CC debt, but I had no choice during rough times..I moved it on one card with 0% interest now...soo I have 17k/out of 129k revolving credit utilization.

I have no derogatory on my report. no lates,charge offs, Bks, or anything like that..clean with no Inquiries for the last two years.

I want to apply for a VA loan, no down-payment, no PMI, no property taxes and VA funding fee is waived..I am 100% PT Veteran I may add.

I also looking at states with property tax exemption for 100%PT Veterans..soo TX,SC,AL.

What are you guys thought on approval odds on a 300k to 350kk house..I feel comfortable with a $2400 mortgage payment...maybe $2550.

I I don't want to be the guy talking to a loan officer and being told to be realistic, so yeah.

By the way..I do have about 12k saved for closing costs, and while going through the process will add to it.

Should I wait, pay off my CC first and be locked in another lease with a higher rent..or not?

Thank you in advance..amd do t hold back..lol!!

Re: Do I qualify?

ShanetheMortgageMan — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 17:02:33 GMT

Based on your credit scores, income and debt payments you should have an excellent chance qualifying for a $350k home using VA financing and the payment should be well within your target range. Your debt-to-income ratio (DTI) would be around 30% which would have no issue qualifying for a VA mortgage.

I'd save your money for closing costs in case you can't get the seller to give you a closing cost credit, and then after you close you can decide if you need to spend money on the new home vs. paying off the credit cards.

Be prepared with your VA service-connected disability income verification letter (can be obtained online at https://www.va.gov/records/download-va-letters) to prove you are 100% disabled and an experienced loan officer should be able to use that to get your property taxes waived from your DTI calculation and your monthly payment, assuming the state/county you buy in exempts 100% disabled veterans from paying property taxes.

Re: Do I qualify?

Woodpecker253 — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 20:03:33 GMT

Thank you for you opinion, I really appreciate it.

I wonder if going with my local CU is smart,or also apply with USAA and NFCU..are preferred lenders woth new builds a good choice ( I do read that they offer various incentives), or go to a Mortgage Broker all together?

You mentioned that State/County exempt property taxes..soo just to clarify, if I look in Texas..and the state has a property exemption, it doesn't necessarily translate to the county..let's say Hidalgo county?

Re: Do I qualify?

ShanetheMortgageMan — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 20:57:07 GMT

You're welcome.

I usually recommend people avoid USAA for VA loans. Their loan officers seem to do the minimal amount of work during the pre-approval process and I've seen them pre-approve veterans without obtaining a VA Certificate of Eligibility, which is a huge no no. Definitely not a benefit of service.

NFCU would be a better route, they seem to thoroughly pre-approve VA loan applicants, but it's all going to come down to the individual loan officer you'd work with. I've seen some of their loan officer miss major parts when pre-approving and then other loan officers impress me by catching everything that I do. Their VA rates are also so-so, you could do better by using a mortgage broker or a lender that doesn't have huge profit margins.

Builder's preferred lenders often have some of the highest interest rates and their loan officers tend to be unmotivated, because they have captive business referred to them by the homebuilder. Homebuilders also will usually tie in receiving closing cost credits or certain allowances to using their preferred lender, which increases the attractiveness to use them. It's something you'd have to compare when weighing out your options, because even though they may have a higher rate you might end up paying less at closing.

Every county in Texas has the 100% disabled veteran property tax exemption that I'm aware of. I just mentioned county/state because without doing research, I'm not sure if every county within a state would have the same exemption. I wouldn't want to mislead you by assuming since one county has the exemption that other counties also would. Hidalgo County Appraisal District can be contacted at https://hidalgoad.org/ or at 956-381-8466 and the 100% disabled veteran exemption form is https://hidalgoad.org/forms/50-114.pdf.

Re: Do I qualify?

Woodpecker253 — Tue, 06 Aug 2024 21:05:46 GMT

Thank you Shane..very much, all the information you have provided is extremely helpful!!

Re: Do I qualify?

VAMortgageGuy — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 17:17:18 GMT

@Woodpecker253 wrote:
Good morning all,
I have been lurking for some time now on this board and was curious if someone could educate me or give me their honest input.
A little backround...
I would like to apply for a mortgage in the next 1-2months, my landlord informed me that he will raise my rent by a substantial amount come Decemeber.
So..I am single with a dog, no kids. My take home pay is about $8400 a month, about 125k/year.
Mortgage scores are 729/735/741 as of last month.
My monthly debt is my car payment and 17k in CC payments, total $980.
I know it's alot of CC debt, but I had no choice during rough times..I moved it on one card with 0% interest now...soo I have 17k/out of 129k revolving credit utilization.
I have no derogatory on my report. no lates,charge offs, Bks, or anything like that..clean with no Inquiries for the last two years.
I want to apply for a VA loan, no down-payment, no PMI, no property taxes and VA funding fee is waived..I am 100% PT Veteran I may add.
I also looking at states with property tax exemption for 100%PT Veterans..soo TX,SC,AL.
What are you guys thought on approval odds on a 300k to 350kk house..I feel comfortable with a $2400 mortgage payment...maybe $2550.
I I don't want to be the guy talking to a loan officer and being told to be realistic, so yeah.
By the way..I do have about 12k saved for closing costs, and while going through the process will add to it.
Should I wait, pay off my CC first and be locked in another lease with a higher rent..or not?
Thank you in advance..amd do t hold back..lol!!

You can easily qualify for VA mortgage in your price range. The one thing that will be state dependent is whether or not a lender can exclude the property taxes from your debt to income ratios. I close VA loans all over the country and have been successful in excluding property taxes in some sates but not others. For example: In Texas your exemption is retroactive to the date you become the owner of the property but Alabama says "The property owner may be entitled to a homestead exemption if he or she owns a single-family residence and occupies it as their primary residence on the first day of the tax year for which they are applying." IL used to be the same way but I think they changed to make it retro like TX. In states where the exemption doesn't start until the year after you buy, we will have to count the taxes in the debt ratios.
Based on the info you provided, even if you had to include taxes, you'd still qualify with no problem. Another thing to consider is Texas has the Tex Vet Loan which offers a below market rate for Veterans with a service connected disability rating of 30% or more. Not all lenders can offer this program.
I second what @ShanetheMortgageMan said about USAA and other big box lenders as well as the builders.

Re: Do I qualify?

Woodpecker253 — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 18:13:21 GMT

Hey VaMortgageGuy,

Thank you very much for the additional information. You see, I would have never know..and I assume others do not either know the stipulation with the property exemption in some states. I am wondering about the TX program you mentioned, do you have to be a TX resident at the time.you apply, in my case I would be out of state..I currently reside in TN. I am sure I can Google the details..but maybe you can provide a little more info? I do appreciate about the biig banks..like USAA, I definitely will keep it in mind..my main banking goes through a smaller.CU in Washington State..maybe they are better? How does it work with a broker..in fact, how would I even find one..iam not good with that stuff, easily overwhelmed,frustrated.

Anyways..I thank you guys for all the information and reassurqnce.on my approval odds..it makes.me feel muxh more.confident when I decide to apply..just have to do more thinking to do!!

Re: Do I qualify?

VAMortgageGuy — Thu, 08 Aug 2024 19:57:47 GMT

@Woodpecker253 wrote:
Hey VaMortgageGuy,
Thank you very much for the additional information. You see, I would have never know..and I assume others do not either know the stipulation with the property exemption in some states. I am wondering about the TX program you mentioned, do you have to be a TX resident at the time.you apply, in my case I would be out of state..I currently reside in TN. I am sure I can Google the details..but maybe you can provide a little more info? I do appreciate about the biig banks..like USAA, I definitely will keep it in mind..my main banking goes through a smaller.CU in Washington State..maybe they are better? How does it work with a broker..in fact, how would I even find one..iam not good with that stuff, easily overwhelmed,frustrated.
Anyways..I thank you guys for all the information and reassurqnce.on my approval odds..it makes.me feel muxh more.confident when I decide to apply..just have to do more thinking to do!!

You're welcome. No, Tex Vet just requires that the home will be your primary residence in Texas and that you'll occupy it within 60 days of closing.

A side from steering clear of big box lenders/banks, I would focus on finding a loan officer that specializes in VA. Like I said, not all lenders have access to the Tex Vet program.