Did you ever think you could make too much money? Or what if you potentially could make too much money? Now that sounds just plain old silly, doesn't it? But believe it or not, different entities view your income in different ways. And depending on the situation, you might make too much moola.

Typically, an underwriter is going to be fair yet conservative when determining your income. If you make overtime and you want to count it, you're going to have to show that you've received it for a decent amount of time and that it will continue. If you've only been on your job for a few months, you're not going to be able to use anything but base income to qualify. Even if you're in the same line of work. Even if it's typical for the position and and you have a letter from your employer stating overtime will be available to you for the ten years. To an underwriter, in most cases, it's all conjecture and forecasting. Not the kind of stuff you want to base lending $100,000 dollars against. The underwriter is going to stick with base salary. This rule of thumb applies to conventional, VA and FHA loans. There's a little variance between agency guidelines, but not a ton.

Consider alimony. Maybe the court says you should get $300 a month, but your ex only pays you sporadically. You're probably not going to be able to count it. It's not fair that you can't, but don't bet on it. Most of the time you have to show where you have received the income for at least 3 months and more typically 6 months consecutively before you use that extra boost to your bottom line. You also have to show it's going to continue for at least three years

Now here's the funny part. If you are applying for a loan that has an income guideline or limitation, all bets are off. Some lenders will count potential income that you could start collecting. Others will average recent overtime into their equation. Typically, these type of loans go through two sets of underwriters (sometimes three!). The first underwriter will verify that the loan conforms to agency guidelines (Fannie, Freddie and Ginnie). When run through this gamut, you will see more traditionally conservative income guidelines applied. But say the lender is selling the loan to THDA (Tennessee Housing Development Agency). This agency has very strictly monitored income guidelines you must meet in order to qualify for the program. This entity will ensure you don't make too much money as a first time home buyer because its program is strictly for low to moderate income individuals or families. All of a sudden, your income looks different.

Here is an example of a loan I had recently. This loan was an FHA loan being sold to THDA. The wife on the loan had an ex-husband who should have been paying her court awarded child support in the amount of $320 per month. The ex had only sporadically paid her over the last 6 months, and when he did, it was only half of what he owed her. FHA would not include the income at all, yet THDA counted the full amount.

So which of the above underwriters was correct? Well actually, they both were. It just depends on what your objective is when determining the final figure. And that's why you can get two incomes cut from the same cloth.

Kristin's articles on Home Loans are very practical, consumer friendly information written in PLAIN ENGLISH. Consumer education is critical to what is most often a family's largest and only investment - their home.

Home loan Expert

Kristin Abouelata, Mortgage Specialist with Mortgage Investors Group Let my experience work for you!

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The state of Maine is a big and confusing and often can be a marketplace for Maine mortgage loans and it could be quite overwhelming to go out on your own without professional financial help. The sensible thing to do is to hire a Maine mortgage loan broker to help you with your needs.

Because it is the Maine mortgage loan broker's job to find the lowest mortgage rates and are often experts on the details of the business, they are the most suitable people to hire if you are planning on a acquiring a Maine mortgage loan. Over eighty five percent of Maine mortgage loans are transacted by mortgage mortgage brokers working for consumers. Because of their vast experience, they have the ability to exhaust all options to find the most appropriate mortgage for you.

When you are looking for a Maine mortgage loan broker, one characteristic that you should look for is truthfulness largely because it deals with money. Your Maine broker should stay true to their word and should meet all promises made to you. Always try to read the fine print before contracting with any broker. Try to also make sure that your broker has your best interest in mind and does not force programs or other deals onto you that you do not really need. A suitable broker will assest you in your financial circumstances and put you in a proper program. It may also be in your best interest to compare rates of other brokers and find out if their fees are rational.

Fees can differ widely depending on terms, rate of the loan, conditions and more. Most banks and brokers also may profit in several ways. It could often be categorized into three catergories: front end fees, back end rate and the combination of the two of them. Simply put, some brokers charge at the start of the mortgage loan, sometimes commission basis, and some do both. It is in your best interest to be clear about all terms and fees before hiring a broker for a Maine mortgage loan.

We hope you enjoy this article: http://www.mainerefinance.org

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If you have bad credit and a mortgage it can seem like there is no way out of the vicious cycle of poor credit. By not remortgaging on to the best possible loans millions of dollars are wasted each each by home owners across the globe.

So why remortgage if you have bad credit?

Well the first major reason is to save money. As you are probably aware your monthly repayments are dependent on two things, the amount outstanding on your mortgage and the rate of interest you are paying on your home loan. By remortgaging you may be able to lower the rate of interest you pay each month. Even if you reduced your rate of interest by as little as a half percent the savings could add up to thousand of dollars over the full term of your mortgage.

Another reason many people choose to remortgage is as a way pay off some off their other debts and in effect consolidate all of their debts into one place. First of all if you can take out a larger mortgage and use the money to pay of debts such as credit cards you will almost certainly save money because mortgages tend to be the cheapest for of debt out there. Secondly by effectively switching all of your debts to your mortgage you will only have to make one repayment each month making it much easier for you to keep track of your debts and repayments.

Specialist loans are available for people remortgaging with bad credit so it is easier than you think to move onto a better deal.

Learn more about exactly how to ge the best bad credit remortgage

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The current housing market is sluggish. For quite some time, the industry has been attempting to improve its performance. Mortgages are very common because they are the convenient and effective in providing home buyers cash and resources to purchase real estate assets. For homeowners, mortgages are used for using homes as collaterals to get higher amounts of loans to be used for different endeavors and investments.

With the depleting property valuations and higher defaults, banks and mortgage providers are basically charging clients high mortgage rates. There are added fees, penalties and other charges that the mortgage borrower might not be fully aware of. Thus, mortgage payments and bills are usually surprising and stressful. If you want to lessen your mortgage amount or at least get a fairer value, you should know more about the five common mortgage fees you should avoid. Yes, you can prevent yourself from incurring and shouldering the following charges:

Application Fees

Ask mortgage providers to hand you good-faith projections of mortgage expenses. The lenders are not obliged to provide, but upon request by clients, they readily will give out data and estimates. Be reminded that even if the mortgage product says there is no application fee, there probably will be. The fee will just be renamed, though its nature and function remains. In such cases, it is best always to identify such fees and determine combined costs.

Yield Spread Premiums

Among the most kept secrets of mortgage providers are the yield spread premiums. These charges are actually fattened payments in exchange for brokers' arrangement of loans. Usually, they are openly disclosed and are about 6% to 7% of total mortgage amounts. That is not a small price to pay especially when your mortgage loan is quite hefty. To prevent incurring yield spread premiums, ask the broker if the mortgage provider pays him or her flat percentage or rate commission. Ask for a copy of credit score so you could estimate for yourself your own projection for a 30-year mortgage fixed rate.

Risk-adjusted rates

Risk rates are imposed because lenders put value to possible threats and dangers to their investments. Unfortunately, you are sometimes made to shoulder risk factors. To avoid these fees, do a comparison shop before obtaining a mortgage loan. Some mortgage providers are more lenient not to impose risk-adjusted rates, especially if your credit history is good and outstanding.

Down payment penalties

Gone are the days when mortgage lenders offer zero down payment. The credit and housing crunch has forced such businesses to ask for at least a 20% down payment especially from big-amount mortgage loans. If the borrower in any means fail to give a 20% initial payment, a mortgage insurance will have to be required. The insurance usually costs about 0.5% of the total mortgage borrowed.

Closing Costs

It is at times surprising that when you are about to end your mortgage, another fee will arise-closing charges. The costs usually amount to about 2% to 5% the price of the home or collateral. Before signing a mortgage deal, ask the lender about the closing costs and how much exactly can they be.

Julia Vakulenko is a licensed broker associate with Tampa4U.com Realty. She has one of the hardest working Tampa Real Estate team in Florida and also in2Va Team for Northern Virginia Real Estate.

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