A mortgage is a mortgage, right? Sure the home mortgage rates might vary from one lender to another, and the length of the term, but that’s all a matter of doing the math to find the best mortgage rate, right?
Wrong.
There is a little matter about qualifying for the mortgage. And that is not as simple as an on-off switch. One lender might approve you, and another might reject you. One might approve you for a different amount than another. Both their criteria for acceptance and their calculation formulas will vary.
Which brings us to self-employed people, such as consultants, writers, plumbers, carpenters, tutors, web designers, translators, hair stylists – so many people work for themselves. What sets these people apart when they try to find the best mortgage rate is that they have no paycheck to show.
And the bank says “No”.
In some cases, if the person has been self-employed for many years, the bank might look at the income over the past decade and decide to offer a mortgage. And that mortgage might be on regular terms, or it might be with less favorable terms or higher rates than for other home owners.
Or the bank might just say “No.”
If you are newly self-employed…”No.”
If you have an uneven record of revenues (because some years are bountiful and others are lean)…”No.”
Self-employment offers you a lot of freedom. You are your own boss. But it can make things tricky when seeking a mortgage for your home.
That is why some lenders, such as Avrus Financial & Mortgage Services, Inc., specialize in a mortgage for self employed. Unlike the banks, a mortgage specialist like Avrus understands mortgages and does not have to fit their approach to mortgages into a larger approach to all sorts of other unrelated banking services.
The important things to keep in mind when self-employed are:
- You want the best home mortgage rates possible.
- Make sure a self-employed person qualifies.
- Seek out flexibility, so that you can pay down extra in those years of bounty and pay the minimum required in the lean years.
- Most important, a lender that won’t give you a hassle just because you work for the best boss in town.
Your first step is to avoid the banks. They are big and bureaucratic and need you to conform to their process. They won’t conform to your situation. Sit down and speak with someone who does only mortgages, someone who will look at your situation and determine what are your best options.
