Everyone knows that in order to be given a loan, especially a mortgage, that a good credit rating is vital. However, this is just the beginning of what a lender considers when reviewing an application. The lender looks at several different aspects of a persons financial health to gain an understanding of their situation. Much of this information is not found on a credit report. Since lenders generally cannot obtain this information themselves they require the applicant to bring in the documentation they need.
One of these aspects is found by calculating the debt to income ratio of the client. Basically, the debt to income ratio is a comparison of the applicants net income and his or her monthly debt payouts. The lender does this calculation to make sure they have not overlooked anything and requires income documentation in the form of check stubs and tax returns among other things. The perfect debt ratio is about 1.3; this means that the applicant has 30% more income than debts and expenses to pay every month.
Payment history is another important aspect of an applicants financial picture; lenders look for late payments on credit reports. On-time payments are very important to mortgage lenders. Payment history information is part of a credit report but lenders look closely because as part of the FICO score it is weighted differently than mortgage lenders weigh it. An applicants credit file is scrutinized closely to find out all there is to know about his or her payment habits. This goes far beyond looking at the credit score. Attaching a letter of explanation to a mortgage application would be helpful to a lender who is going to see several late payments.
Besides regular income, mortgage lenders also want information about other assets and holdings the applicant owns. This helps them decide whether their client has the ability to make an equity investment, or down payment. Semi-liquid assets like retirement plans and stock portfolios help to mitigate less than perfect debt ratios. Mortgage lenders feel more comfortable with applicants who have enough additional assets that paying a mortgage out of regular income will not be a problem. Again, this information is not part of a credit report so providing this sort of data with a mortgage application is important.
Another factor that lenders take into account has nothing to do with the applicants financial position, but deals with the property in question. All mortgage lenders will require a comprehensive appraisal of the property that the applicant is seeking to purchase. This prevents the lender from lending out more money than the property is worth. Should the loan turn bad and result in foreclosure, it is crucial to the lender that the resell value of the property be enough to cover the amount originally lent out.
Knowing what the mortgage lender looks for can help the potential home buyer get their application in good form. The above can help the potential mortgage seeker determine what elements of his financial position should be changed or corrected to make approval more likely.
Wendy Polisi is the founder of Credit Repair College and Finance the Dream. Credit Repair College empowers people to take control of their financial future by learning everything they need to know to repair credit on their own. For more information on credit repair please visit them on the web. Finance the Dream offers rent to own homes throughout the United States.