All Forum Posts by: Chris M.

That's a fair point and you're right I have become a little emotionally invested mainly because this house will work perfectly for my mom's retirement - just the right size, in great shape but still very affordable, only 1 story and with a nice backyard that she could enjoy.

@Jerry N. @Caleb Heimsoth @Odie Ayaga I have a very interesting update on the situation: my buyer's agent referred me to a gentleman who purchases homes in cash then sells them to the interested buyer via owner financing. He has offered to buy this home for us if we can put $5,000 down, then pay $950 per month (he would pay the property taxes) for 3 years. I've done the math and after he takes care of the taxes this would result in us paying about $35,000 total for the house, or $11,000 more than what we were going to pay, but it would enable us to get the house. It is a significant amount more than we wanted to spend on the house, but it would be spread out over 3 years. Also a little nervous about doing it this way, but my buyer's agent says he's a reputable guy who has done many deals this way. What do you guys think about that? At the very least I think it's good to have as an option.

I'm also considering the option of selling my vehicle which I could probably get at least $20,000 for, then using my excellent credit standing with the auto maker to purchase a newer vehicle with a couple thousand down and monthly payments. Since I would still be paying down the original loan amount on the vehicle, this would basically be like taking out a loan from the auto maker. But this idea is contingent on me being able to sell the vehicle promptly to a private party.

Thanks again for your thoughts here guys... yes I am a little emotionally attached to this home, but after lots of searching it really is a great deal and hope that we can get creative to make this happen.

Thanks, Jerry, it is reassuring to hear that there are usually ups and downs in this process. I've watched almost every single Bigger Pockets podcast (on YouTube), subscribed to so many real estate investing channels, read so many books... but man I have learned so much in this process. Experience really is the best teacher. If this deal doesn't work out I will certainly be more prepared the next time around. 

My mom has worked very hard her entire life from taking care of her brother and sister on her own, being an Army veteran, a college graduate with a Masters degree... she deserves to retire in peace and dignity and I'm determined to help her do that. 

Thank you to everyone for the replies this is very helpful. I sent the agent a request today to either a) let us delay the closing or b) if the seller is open to it let us put $5,000 down and pay the rest via owner financing. We had already proposed owner financing previously and the seller was not interested, but perhaps the $5,000 down offer will make it more appealing. Somehow I doubt it though, and I think the agent is probably pretty unhappy since the closing was scheduled on Monday. 

@Lynn McGeein interesting I never thought of a business loan using the house as collateral. This sounds like something maybe a credit union or local bank would be more apt to do unless you knew some organizations specifically? I was looking at secured personal loans where I could use my car as collateral but the highest I could seem to prequalify for was 10k or less.

@Guy Yoes My mom makes a small amount from social security each month (around $650). When we first proposed owner financing to the seller we explained that the monthly payment would be covered by her social security, but the seller didn't seem interested. However, they had the house on the market for a few weeks and had already lowered the asking price once, perhaps they would be more open to it given the conditions of the market. In regards to my dad, my parents have been divorced since 1988 and my dad has always been distant (geographically and emotionally). He's a good guy at his core, but let's just say he has some issues.

@Sharon Rosendahl yeah I should probably spend more time contacting local credit unions. To be honest I was just hoping to do it with friends of the family or my dad but since that doesn't look like it's going to work out local banks/credit unions are probably the best bet. Today I requested a delay OR if we could put 5k down and owner finance the rest on the property (the seller wasn't interested in owner financing previously but perhaps the 5k down would make it more appealing). My mom makes about $650 per month in social security which would cover the monthly payment. I think my buyer's agent is getting pretty frustrated with me at this point though, this is my first home buying experience and we've had some back-and-forths, ups and downs to say the least. But I suppose if my agent gets pissed at me I could still work directly with the seller and her agent right? I mean my buyer's agent is the one who showed me the house so I'm grateful for that, but if he stops communicating with me I could theoretically still get the place?

But doesn't a refinancing loan or HELOC require the same criteria such as income that a normal loan does? I thought about this idea too and appreciate any more insights you could give here.

Correct 24k total for the property, in a depressed area but in good enough shape that it will need mostly cosmetic work and will make for a perfect retirement home for my mom. It's not a lot of money but again we are of modest means and if I paid for it all myself it would put me in a very difficult situation. 

Thank you again for your information and advice. I am strongly considering asking to delay the closing, but am worried about putting the seller in a tough situation as well because we'll still have to find a way to get the funds. But this house is perfect for my mom's retirement, so I think it is worth the effort. Will reply to this thread with how it goes/what we decide to do.

My original plan was to get a personal loan but the request was denied from a few online lenders due to my lack of proof of income on my tax returns since I write everything off. I have been self-employed for 7 years. My credit score is okay, a little over 700. Conventional lenders seem very hesitant to work with self-employed people that don't show income. 

Thanks so much for the reply! When you say a "no-doc lender" does that mean a hard money lender? Is there a company or individual that you could recommend? Really appreciate this info. 

@Theresa Harris my mom has no money and if I used my own it would put me in a very difficult situation. I guess we could try desperately calling old family friends today, but it would be a little embarrassing. 

Hey guys, so we have a closing scheduled for this coming Monday, and I need to wire $24,000 to the closing company for this house today (Friday) to have the funds reach on time for the closing. This will be my first home purchase and we are going to use the home for my mom to retire in. I am self-employed and show no income on my tax returns, so we had to go through private sources to get the funds. The first private lender (mom's friend) backed out a couple weeks ago, and just yesterday (Thursday) our other private lender (my dad) bailed on us. I don't know what to do now since both of our private lending sources bailed on us. We are very modest people and $24,000 is beyond our personal budgets at this time. Is there anything you guys can recommend? Is there anyone out there who knows a hard money lender who could work with us on this? I'm panicking because we really found the perfect place for my mom to finally be able to retire in peace, but now both of our private lenders bailed on us. Any advice on this would be hugely appreciated... we need to figure out what to do today (Friday, September 6th) and are nervous wrecks over this. Thank you for any replies.