Question about documents needed for conventional mortgage

[Shuwei Wang]

It's my husband and my first time buying rental property. We are under contract for a duplex right now and our income can easily qualify a conventional mortgage. I did not know that when I was young my mom bought property with cash and my name is on this property X. Only until the lender started questioning me about it.

Fast forward now my lender/loan processor is asking me to provide proof for tax bill receipt and home insurance info for the property. Now here's the catch, my mom does not believe in insurance so there is no insurance info for this property. Would this affect mortgage get approved? I can try to find the property tax receipt but not sure about the insurance part they want proof for. We are both high income earners and this is something we can easily afford. 

[Doug Smith]

 Surprise! I hate it when that happens. Yes, that does come up in the mortgage process. They are going to want you to pull the tax bill and they will add that to your debt-to-income ratio. If the property is free-and-clear, which it likely is since you're not carrying insurance, ask the lender if they will allow you to do a "Letter of Explanation" stating that the property has no mortgage, that it's really a family members, and, since it has no mortgage, the family member had the decision to not carry insurance on the property. That might get you around it. To get the tax bill, try visiting www.netronline.com. Choose "Public Records Online" from the menu. Click on the state and then choose the county. It should give you the website for the tax collector. Most county tax collectors have a public records search that will allow you to download a PDF of the tax bill. Good luck to you!