Mortgage App Tomorrow-Nervous!

[Anonymous]

I signed a purchase contract this past Sunday to build a new house, and I have my mortgage application appointment with the in-house mortgage company tomorrow. The mortgage company is NVR, and they're pretty infamous for bad experiences, so I'm a little nervous!

To be honest, I'm applying sooner than I intended to. I have a secondary residence that's listed for sale right now, and I wanted to wait until it sold, and I used the proceeds to pay off some debt before I applied. But, the price of the house I'm building was scheduled to increase this past Monday, and combined with the new FHA rules going into effect at the end of March, it would have increased the cost by about $50 per month. The sales rep and my outside mortgage broker thought it would be good to try to get in under the old house price and the current FHA rules by applying now, conditional upon the sale of my other property and my current residence. So, I made the leap and went for it.

I've already signed the authorization for my credit to be pulled, filled out the financial information sheet, and sent the loan officer a stack of documentation, including paystubs, bank statements, 401(k) statements, tax returns, and current mortgage statements. I guess tomorrow we'll go over everything and do the formal loan application.

My DTI ratios will be totally out of whack right now, when you add the new mortgage to my current two mortgages, since I have substantial monthly income that likely can't be counted for qualifying purposes, which is why the approval will have to be conditional upon the sale of both of my current properties. After you get rid of the current mortgages and add the new one, my DTI will be about 53%. I also intend to pay off some other debt once my other property sells, which will take my DTI down to about 49%.

If I could count my other income, my DTI would only be 39%. I'm hoping that income can at least count as a compensating factor, to help make up for the higher DTI.

I have my debt payoff plan all laid out on paper for the loan officer, so she can see what I'm planning. I've got an LOE already written for the 90 day credit card late on my reports from May 2011, if she wants it. I have a paid medical judgement on two of the bureaus, which is actually due to fall off in April (less than two weeks), so I didn't write an LOE for that. I also put together a copy of my current monthly budget and proposed monthly budget with the new mortgage, to show how I plan to pay for the new, much higher, mortgage.

Anything I'm forgetting? I've tried to cover everything I can think of, but I have this fear that once I get in there, the loan officer is just going to laugh in my face and flat out deny me. I'm sure that's irrational though. Surely she'd at least wait to laugh until after I left, right?

[Anonymous]

Good luck! Nobody is going to laugh, they certainly wouldn't waste your time if nobody thought you stood a chance!  I'm sure there will be some tense moments, but hopefully everything will be fine!

[Anonymous]

I pulled my daily report from USAA this morning and had a mini heart attack for a split second when I saw the new inquiry on all three bureaus, until I realized that it was from the mortgage company, LOL. My appointment is this afternoon, so I just have to keep my nerves in check until then. Easier said than done!

[Anonymous]

We are officially applying this afternoon as well with our lender, and it's funny that you mention the inquiry because I got an email on my phone yesterday and when i got home, i checked and it was a scorewatch alert for an inquiry that had posted to my wife's account. I nearly had a heart attack myself, until i realized it was our lender.  Sad thing is she even called me to tell me she checked our credit scores and reports in advance of our appointment. lol.

Today will be fine. It's when they tell you that your file has been submitted to underwriting that you'll be freaking out!

[rehr22]

The one development under new contruction we are looking at is Ryan Homes also using NVR Mortgage.  I am keen to see your progress as I have also read mixed review with them.

[Anonymous]

I just got back from my appointment. It took about an hour and a half to go over everything. I signed a bunch of paperwork, explained a couple of things on my credit report, and that's about it. I have one piece of information to give the loan officer, and then my file will be sent off to wherever it goes next. A loan processor, I think.

My file may actually go to an outside broker that NVR works with, since we're trying to get an approval without having to have our current home sold first. The loan officer thought the broker might have a better chance of making that happen. I really, REALLY hope that it does, just for the sake of not having to worry about finding temporary housing for us and our dogs, until the new house is ready.

The loan officer was very nice, but it was clear that she's totally swamped, and she seemed a bit rushed, so I really hope no mistakes get made. Anyhow, I'm basically just waiting to hear something back at this point, which could be up to 30 days.

[Anonymous]

Congrats on starting the process! Here are a few tips I have learned through going through it. I know you are a Veteran at this but I just thought I would share for everyone:

1. If you don't get a call or email when the lender said they would, don't panic. Happens all the time as urgent things come up with other files that have a higher priority or someone got sick. They are most likely not planning the best way to break any bad news.

2. Get an inspection for new construction homes. A few of the issues found with our home were missing shingles, high Radon in the basement, small gas leak from hot water heater, structural landscaped deformity that could have cost thousands 5-10 years from now. By the way, the builder happily addressed all these things so don't be bashful, be bold!

3. First round of digital signing, writing LOEs, etc. does not necessarily mean you are done.

4. It is possible to get clear to close and close on the same day.

5. Get a realtor ALWAYS. They are your best friend in this process and they can effectively negotiate on your behalf and may provide you a gift at closing! My realtor bought us an additional 4 year warranty!

Wishing you the very best.

[rehr22]

Congratulations, Autumn! Wish you the best.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

My file may actually go to an outside broker that NVR works with, since we're trying to get an approval without having to have our current home sold first. The loan officer thought the broker might have a better chance of making that happen. I really, REALLY hope that it does, just for the sake of not having to worry about finding temporary housing for us and our dogs, until the new house is ready.

The loan officer was very nice, but it was clear that she's totally swamped, and she seemed a bit rushed, so I really hope no mistakes get made. Anyhow, I'm basically just waiting to hear something back at this point, which could be up to 30 days.

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Good luck! You may find a better deal with a mortgage company other than NVR. Some of NVR's representatives actually work as brokers on occasion when they don't believe a file with be approved by NVR.  We did our application yesterday as well, and our loan processor showed us two files that she had just received that day of people who were building Ryan Homes and either didn't want to go through NVR or couldn't. 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys!

The loan officer basically told me that NVR underwriters tend to be more strict, even to the point of seeming unreasonable at times, because they have to be careful that their relationship with Ryan Homes doesn't make it look like they'll just approve anyone. My issue is that I have foreign income that I really want/need to use to qualify, and although I can document it like crazy, it doesn't fit neatly into any particular FHA guideline, so the NVR underwriters likely won't use it. But, the loan officer has an outside broker that she can assign files to, and she said they tend to be more flexible and reasonable. So, my file may be going there. If we can use my foreign income to qualify, then we're in really good shape, and should be able to start construction relatively soon. I SO hope that's the case.