Loan pre approval for first time home buyer

[Daniel Rines]

I'm a first time home buyer, applying for a FHA loan. I'm searching in the Western Massachusetts area I want to quick give you an introduction to my circumstances. I work as a traveling occupational therapist, meaning I work off of 3+ month contracts at various physical rehab facilities, but do receive a W2 from one company. My concern is there are gaps of time (1-3 weeks typically) in between jobs that go unpaid BUT working as a traveler I bring home around $1500/week when I am working. My other concern is that a large portion of that take home is tax-free housing and stipend pay meaning my W2 doesn't tell the whole story. I'm just curious if anyone could give some insight on my situation or are familiar with lending companies that will understand my unique circumstance. Any help would be appreciated.

[Tony Nguyen]

@Daniel Rines from a lending standpoint, due to the inconsistent nature of your work a VOE is needed to verify your income. Did you just switch to another company a year ago? because you need to show and document 2 years of prior work history in order to even be considered for qualification. If you've only been in your line of work for 1 year then you wouldn't qualify because it's too short of a work history to go off of. But if you have been working in the same industry for 2+ years and you just recently switched companies last year then a second VOE from your previous employer would be needed as well.

Now to answer your stipend and tax free housing, if you can prove with documentation that the company has paid you consistently for free housing and stipends then you can use that for your income qualification as well. Otherwise, it won't be considered.