Salary + Room and Board - How will that effect my approval?

[Jason Wright]

Hello all!

I am in the beginning stages of "shopping" for a lender to purchase my first owner-occupied investment property. I do realize that every lender is going to be different and that there are a lot of factors that come into play when trying to qualify for a loan (FHA 203k specifically) - but, my current situation is a little less conventional than most. I have "good" credit, sitting right at 700, so I am doing everything possible to make sure that I keep it that way while applying for a mortgage. I am worried about looking for preapproval and getting the hard inquiries that come with the search - which brings me here!

My current job pays a very low salary, but I have room and board (I pay literally nothing out of pocket every month) to go along with the low salary. I am going to include the potential rental income in my mortgage search as well as my low salary, but will they take into consideration that my entire salary is going into savings each month? Also, if I end up switching jobs (for a much higher salary, but obviously it will be a brand new job) will that make me much less desirable to lend to? 

Thank you all for your input, it is greatly appreciated!