All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

@Stephanie P.

Excellent point. Great idea. Thank you!

@Andy Nathan @Suzanne Player @Mike McCarthy thank you for replying and pointing out additional important questions I didn't even think of, much appreciated  

After years of analysis paralysis I have finally decided to stop thinking of excuses to get started, and finally get started. Today.

I talked to 4 banks today for mortgage approval, while in the process of setting up an appointment with the 4th lender I was informed that my approach was not recommended. 

At some point over the years I got the impression that I want to seek out a few different banks for loans and determine which was best for my situation before approaching a realtor, so that when I am ready to offer on that "perfect property" I know I have funding secured and can put an offer in immediately. Today I was informed that I should only start off with one approval from one bank to get my foot in the door with a realtor and start touring properties. Only when I have my "perfect property" picked out should I then seek out multiple options from multiple banks. 

The reasons I was told:
- I don't want multiple banks pulling my credit this week because if I don't find a property within x amount of days, they would all pull my credit again down the road to see if my score had changed. All of this credit pulling from multiple banks, multiple times, would be bad. 
- mortgage rates could fluctuate depending on how long it took me to actually find a property and get a contract on (although one bank I found would offer a rate lock for 60 days - If rates drop, mine drops. If rates go up, mine doesn't)
- overall, most banks will not drastically differ in options and therefore to meet with so many different banks would be a waste of my time. 

All of this advice was given to me by the loan officer himself from the last bank I spoke with, said he wasn't on commission and had no pressure for my business, he was simply recommending the path he thought was best for me. He was very friendly. 

The main question behind my long winded question - should I continue to seek out approvals from the 4 lenders I picked out, or should I cancel some of these meetings and only use 1 lender for the time being. I couldn't think of a better place for this question than the BP community.

As a little disclosure, there are many properties on my watch list that I am ready to tour inside and offer on. I know what I'm looking for and would consider myself to be familiar with my local market. I know what I want to offer on, it just comes down to how long it takes for an offer to be accepted and a deal to be reached. I just need to secure a lender.  

Thank you both for the help and advice!

Cheers to breaking the ice on my first newbie question!

I planned on getting approved for a loan this week until I was recently informed by a manager I could receive additional hours within ~ 1 month.

These hours would provide additional income of ~$520 per month BEFORE taxes. I would physically take home ~$200 more per month after all payroll deductions.

Should I wait another month for my income to increase prior to applying for a loan, or go ahead and get approved this week as planned? I know this additional income is nothing to write home about, but I also know this would affect my debt to income ratio. Outside of that I'm not too familiar with the loan process in regards to what amount of money would actually make a significant difference when getting approved. To wait or not to wait? 

I have excellent credit, zero debt, and a decent amount of cash in the bank. I'll have about 20% of the purchase price in the bank but I will not be putting 20% down, this is saved for minor updates and to cover for unexpected vacancy expenses, I'll be going for an FHA.

Something about typing this post up has my already knowing the answer, but I am still curious as to your opinion. Thanks in advance!