Understanding my debt to income numbers for HELOC appointment

[Jonny Morris]

BP – I would love your input on any of the following points (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) I am excited to be at this stage but wonder if I am a little ahead of myself. I have scheduled a HELOC meeting with the bank as I would like to apply for one and use some equity from our home to purchase our second deal. We have approx. $150k equity in our home. Owe $281k on the mortgage. The bank said they would check our ‘debt to income’ first before we go further. 1) I have a student loan (8k left) which I am aggressively paying down each month – between $750 -1000 but could deflate these payments if it negatively affects my HELOC success i.e. pay less per month. 2) I also wanted to clarify – my mortgage payment does that include the escrow payment for property taxes etc? My mortgage is $1,346 and escrow payment is $416. 3) Is my wife’s salary included in this (she earns more than me)? 4) When do I mention the income from our first rental? 5) I am have been studying and feel ready to at least have a HELOC in place so that when I find my deal …I can take action! Thoughts? Many thanks, Jonny