Fun comments from the mortgage agent...

[rantk81]

Not really from the mortgage agent... but here were some of the insane requests and terms from the bank (which was just selling the loan to Fannie anyway.)

(Mind you, I had liquid assets in excess of 2x the loan amount I was trying to get, my annual gross salary was about 50% of my requested loan amount in provable W-2 income, having no other debt, over 800 FICO, and I was putting 25% down...)

- Insisted on me sending screenshots of my bank account transaction screens to prove that the money I was using for closing was "mine" and not somebody else's.  The most recent bank statement PDFs were not enough, they wanted proof the cashier's check I brought to closing came directly out of my account.
- Scrutinized every single deposit on my checking account... and when they found out I had rental income, they wanted all the full-documentation-proof for both my rental properties (copies of tenants leases, proof i've been paying property taxes and insurance and HOA fees for the properties.)
- Even though they had my credit report and knew I had no outstanding mortgages, they asked me if my rental properties had mortgages, and if not, told me I needed to provide the "mortgage payoff statement" for one of them.  I never had a mortgage on it, as I had paid cash.  I linked them to the county records website so they could check that the rental had no leins on it... That wasn't good enough for them.  I finally was able to dig up the old HUD statement from the purchase of that rental, and they were OK with that finally.
- Scrutinized and questioned me about all withdrawals out of my checking accounts for normal stuff like moving money to my brokerage account.
- Insisted on me getting a notarized letter from the president of the prior condo association where I lived, stating that I was current on all of my HOA fees.
- Insisted on an escrow account to pay property taxes and insurance, because, ya know, I'm not responsible enough I guess.
- Insisted on having the lowest deductibles on the insurance policies.


Ahh the things I put up with to get a 3.625 30yr fixed...

[rantk81]

Almost Forgot -

One of my tenants lease was past 12 months, and they were continuing month to month.

The bank asked me to get them to sign a new lease.

It was at that point that I told them, No. They do not get to run my rental business.  They gave me the loan anyway.

Ridiculous.


And the icing on the cake?  At closing we were stuck there for 4 and a half hours, because the bank said we were lacking some documentation, and wouldn't wire the money yet to the title company.  The title company agent was furious because the bank wasn't being forthcoming on what exactly was missing, and was taking a really long time to respond.

Turns out, it was a 1 page piece of paper where I had to acknowledge that I could read and understand English. -- Even though I had been communicating with everyone in English the entire time throughout this process.  The funny part was, the faxed copy of that document was so blurry and distorted, it was essentially illegible anyway.

[Rocket]

Checked my score this morning, 850.  Last weekend I froze my credit at the 3 credit agencies.  My reasoning being I don't need to take out any credit so why let someone else do it through identity theft.

[Paul der Krake]

Not really from the mortgage agent... but here were some of the insane requests and terms from the bank (which was just selling the loan to Fannie anyway.)

Name and shame! Which bank was this?

[Dicey]

Not really from the mortgage agent... but here were some of the insane requests and terms from the bank (which was just selling the loan to Fannie anyway.)

(Mind you, I had liquid assets in excess of 2x the loan amount I was trying to get, my annual gross salary was about 50% of my requested loan amount in provable W-2 income, having no other debt, over 800 FICO, and I was putting 25% down...)

- Insisted on me sending screenshots of my bank account transaction screens to prove that the money I was using for closing was "mine" and not somebody else's.  The most recent bank statement PDFs were not enough, they wanted proof the cashier's check I brought to closing came directly out of my account.
- Scrutinized every single deposit on my checking account... and when they found out I had rental income, they wanted all the full-documentation-proof for both my rental properties (copies of tenants leases, proof i've been paying property taxes and insurance and HOA fees for the properties.)
- Even though they had my credit report and knew I had no outstanding mortgages, they asked me if my rental properties had mortgages, and if not, told me I needed to provide the "mortgage payoff statement" for one of them.  I never had a mortgage on it, as I had paid cash.  I linked them to the county records website so they could check that the rental had no leins on it... That wasn't good enough for them.  I finally was able to dig up the old HUD statement from the purchase of that rental, and they were OK with that finally.
- Scrutinized and questioned me about all withdrawals out of my checking accounts for normal stuff like moving money to my brokerage account.
- Insisted on me getting a notarized letter from the president of the prior condo association where I lived, stating that I was current on all of my HOA fees.
- Insisted on an escrow account to pay property taxes and insurance, because, ya know, I'm not responsible enough I guess.
- Insisted on having the lowest deductibles on the insurance policies.


Ahh the things I put up with to get a 3.625 30yr fixed...

Yeah, we've been through a similar ringer. We finally found a local lender who is landlord-friendly who we will be using for our next two acquisitions. Commenting to say "I feel your pain" and to make sure you fixed your deductibles as soon as the ink was dry on the mortgage.

Here's just one of the fun closed loops we experienced when purchasing our primary home:

Lender:  What's this checking deposit for $732.00?

Me: That's our federal tax refund.

L: We'll need a copy of that check.

Me: It was a electronic filing, there is no check.

L: We still need a copy. You'll have to contact the IRS.

Me: Look at the tax return in your hand. See the line that says Amount of Refund $732.00? (or whatever it actually says)

L: It does seem to match, but the underwriter still needs a copy of the check.

At that point, we said "Fuck You" and paid cash for the house. Still wish we'd scored some cheap mortgage money, but we've managed to do so on some rentals, which we will hang on to until the very last day.

I commend you on your tenacity, rantk81.

[OneDollarAtATime]

Question -- how safe is it for all these people posting their credit scores on this site?  I would be concerned about security but I don't know how easy it would be for the 'bad guys' to trace back to you.

On a side note for credit scores, I have spent 2+ hard years getting the fiance's finances turned around, fixing her credit score, etc.  She checked it the other month and was near 800.  Talk about a major 'high five' moment!  Always nice to see the hard work paying off.

[green daisy]

We just refinanced through a broker, Garden State Home Loans.  We may have overpaid very slightly on fees (by about $700 as compared to Aimloan) but the process was smooth as can be.  I strongly recommend them.  The process took 2 weeks and 3 days from the time I initially contacted them to the day that we closed.  They were extremely efficient and did not come back a million times asking for more documents, as we have had happen in the past.  15 years at 2.75%. Very pleased. 

[BTDretire]

Not really from the mortgage agent... but here were some of the insane requests and terms from the bank (which was just selling the loan to Fannie anyway.)

I Snipped a bunch of hoops the op had to jump through.

Ahh the things I put up with to get a 3.625 30yr fixed...

My wife and I got a mortgage 25 years ago and had to jump through some hoops also.
We had to produce bank records to show months of actually having a large balance.
 I think the banks just aren't used to people that actually have savings and assets.
  3.625%, oh so lucky. We bought our first home in 84'. The interest on a 30 year mortgage was 16-3/4%.
Yep, 16-3/4%. I got a 3 year balloon at 13-3/4% instead.

 

[tobitonic]

Not really from the mortgage agent... but here were some of the insane requests and terms from the bank (which was just selling the loan to Fannie anyway.)

Name and shame! Which bank was this?

+1. That was insanity from start to finish.

[david51]

     Last time I checked was about 10 years ago maybe, for a Refi. 843. The mortgage person said "there was an error". I said "what error?: He said "the score only goes up to 800." I said "no it doesn't, it tops out at 850." He said "really? I've never seen one over 800."

     I did not ask how long he had been working there.

[UKMustache]

This thread reminded me to go and check our score; 992 out of a possible 999.


Our mortgage is 23% of our net income per month; the thought of having any more petrifies me!

What kind of score is that? I've only ever seen FICO up to 850 (which is why over 800 is considered excellent)

It's an experian score in the UK.  We have different credit reference agencies over here.  Ironically you usually have to pay to access the experian score, though it's a perk of one of my credit cards.

More info http://www.creditgeeks.co.uk/credit-score/what-is-a-good-credit-score

[dreams_and_discoveries]

I still remember fondly getting my first mortgage - they credit scored, then as mine was in the top category, the advisor said 'Great, that's perfect, we don't need any proof or documents - just tell us your rough income'. 

My how things have changed with all the new rules now. The hassle alone puts me off remortgaging with another provider, luckily my current mortgage provider usually has very good rates, and I won't change for the ~£2 savings per month given the amount of hassle it would involve.

[rantk81]

Not really from the mortgage agent... but here were some of the insane requests and terms from the bank (which was just selling the loan to Fannie anyway.)

Name and shame! Which bank was this?

GreenTree (I think they were bought by Ditch now.)
My mortgage agent shops around for the bank with the best rate and lowest closing costs because she does what she calls a "zero cost refi".  At the time, her bank/servicer of choice was GreenTree.  After closing, she basically refunds you the amount of all the costs such as appraisal, title company fees, county recording fees, etc.  She pays this out of her "YSP" commission that she gets from the bank (basically splitting it with you.)

The ONLY reason I put up with that shit was because it was giving me a better rate, and I had to pay effectively zero costs to do the refi.  Not 100% sure if what she does is fully compliant with all the rules and regs, but it worked out for me.