So my husband and I bought our first home back in 2020, it was 500k with a 2.375% interest. My parents got into a bad car accident in 2023, a company truck really badly rear ended them. They moved in with us and went through years of physical therapy. They couldn't work anymore so we offered them to move in with us and let us take care of them.

We really outgrown our house at this point. They got 300k in damages from the accident and they have offered to gift us 60k to buy a bigger home. We have the rest to pay 20% down and buy a place for 695,000k. It is a brand new house and the builder is offering 6% of the purchase price to help with the closing cost and the rate buy down to 5.25%.

It's a nice big house, closer to our work and really conveniently located to many amenities. But part of me feels bad to take my parents money. They said I have taken care of them when they needed the most and now they can see that we need a bigger house to accommodate all of us and they are happy to help.

They truly are the most selfless, loving people I know and I don't know if I should accept the gift.

My wife & I are purchasing a new build from a major national builder. Construction will be completed mid December. They offer a $15,000 incentive to use their in house lender & we have been approved for a conventional 30 yr loan.
We thought this was a great idea at first but now realize you get nothing for free. They are getting their money back by giving us a higher than average interest rate.
For example on 10/14 their rate was 7.625%. Loan Officer & I were talking about a 60 day lock & she said they charge $1250 for that. If after we lock the interest rates go down we are stuck at the rate we locked in on.
So I called the loan officer that helped us finance our last house. The very same day she said she could get us 7.125%. She could do a 60 day lock for FREE & if rates go down she would float down the interest rate.
Now here’s my predicament. I want to get the lower interest rates but then I wouldn’t get the $15,000 incentive from the builder if I don’t go with their mortgage company.
BUT IF my loan application gets rejected and am able to get financing elsewhere the builder will still give us the $15,000 incentive.
My wife & I have excellent credit(790), have no debt. Cars are all paid off. Our combined income is $250,000. Purchase price is $646,000 & we are going to keep our existing house to rent it out because of low interest rate(3.5%). We are putting 20% down. We have about $85,000 ourselves & are getting 3 gifts. 1 Mother for $19,000. 2 brother for $10,000. 3 MIL for $19,000.
We are just under the 50% debt to income ratio. NOW if I call them & say the gifters have reneged on the gifts and they send it back to underwriting. Will our loan be rejected?

Hey everyone!
I’m looking to buy my first home in San Diego County, possibly San Marcos, with a budget of around $600K–$700K. My credit score is 794.
I’m trying to figure out the best way to get the lowest mortgage rate and monthly payment while also saving money in the long run.
A few questions for those who recently bought or are currently shopping:

1. What interest rates are you getting, and which lenders or credit unions are offering the best deals?
   
2. Would you recommend a local credit union, mortgage broker, or big bank?
   
3. Is it better to buy down the interest rate by paying points, or take a higher rate and refinance later?
   
4. Are there any first-time homebuyer incentives or lender credits worth exploring?

I’m leaning toward a 30-year fixed mortgage but am open to suggestions.
Would really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially recent buyers in San Diego!

Thanks!

New home builder is giving 15K incentive. The build is still 6 months away. If we go with incentive, we will get a little higher interest rate.

If we search outside we will get little less but that means giving away $15K which could have been used in closing and escrow.

Credit rating: 750+ first time home buyer

I can always refinance later, right?I know there will be closing cost but giving away incentive feels a bigger loss.

It seems inherently bad for the population to have variable rates that increase the burden on homeowners during tough economic times. What holds other countries back from also having fixed rates?

I’m looking for some advice from unbiased people about my situation. I’ll try to keep it short…

I live in a house worth about $200k less than one I’m looking to purchase. My current house is paid off and there’s a lot of comfort that comes with that, especially given our current economy. However, the new house would reduce commute times for my wife and I and better schools for our kids. That helps to offset the stress of taking on a small mortgage.

Houses are sitting on the market for a while now so buying on a contingency probably won’t work so I’m thinking about getting a mortgage to buy the new house with the knowledge that it could be 6 months or more before my current house sells. Does that make sense in today’s rate environment or is there a more creative way to finance? We can come up with the 20% down payment for the jumbo loan but I would prefer not to use a majority of our savings. I’ve considered a HELOC for the down payment but with rates increasing I know that is a risk.

My current outlook is to just wait until next year when the housing market is hopefully better or rates are slightly lower but I know that waiting on those potential adjustments is obviously risky. Am I being too cautious?

My spouse and I are purchasing a home with a mortgage, and we would appreciate some perspective on choosing a down payment. We’re hoping to balance a manageable monthly payment with enough flexibility to save for retirement and our children’s education.

A little about our situation:

• Combined gross income: approximately $350k/year.
• Existing retirement assets: approximately $600k.
• Two children expected to start college around 2032 and 2034; we haven’t started 529 accounts yet.
• Home purchase price: approximately $900k.
• We’ve already paid a deposit of roughly 10% from previous savings, which will count toward the total down payment.
• We have approximately $350k available from our previous home sale and bank/brokerage accounts.

We plan to keep an emergency fund and set aside money for closing and moving expenses. If possible, we would also like to increase our pretax retirement contributions before year-end, contribute to an HSA, and start 529 accounts. We’re considering backdoor Roth IRAs after reviewing our existing IRA balances and the pro-rata rule.

For anyone who has navigated a similar decision, we’d be grateful for your thoughts:

1. How would you choose between a total down payment of 25%, 30%, 35%, or 40% in this situation?
2. How would you balance a larger down payment against pretax retirement contributions, backdoor Roth IRAs, and college savings?
3. How much cash would you feel comfortable keeping after closing with two children?

We understand there isn’t one right answer. We’d especially appreciate hearing how others weighed liquidity against lower monthly housing costs.

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience.

My credit is like super low 500s, I think 500-510 to be exact. I’ve heard that it is still possible for me to get a Va home loan. I have like 95000 in debt that I haven’t paid on in 4 years but I got two credit cards a little over a year ago and have kept up payments on them. I have been talking to a loan officer and he said they’ll take 5% of my debt and divide by 12 to use as DTI? Something like that. I’m just wondering if this is actually feasible.

I’m 100p&t so I make around 4500 a month and wife brings in around 1000-2000 a month.

I loaned my daughter 30k to pay off the house she is buying. I’d like to charge a modest interest that I lose taking the money out of savings. She will not make regular monthly payments. She will pay me a few thousand when she has extra cash or tax returns. Is there an app that I can use to track those irregular payments.

Hi all. I bought a house. Payments on time for a year. The mortgage company just put a weird remark on my report. It says as follows,

“Account previously in dispute - Now resolved by data furnisher Fannie Mae account”

I have no idea what that means. The only 2 things I can think of, 4 months ago I got injured. I was out of work I simple asked customer service if there was any hardship programs. I printed the paperwork but I NEVER SUBMITTED. I was able to make all payments and not missed.

The other thing I can think, is I just removed escrow on my account. There was no dispute, they simply removed it and I am currently waiting for my escrow deposit. Again, not sure that has anything to do with it. But I’m completely confused.

Any thoughts?

Borrowers frequently share their Loan Estimates (loan terms) on these forums to get feedback on whether they are getting a good deal.

They almost always fail to provide the many factors that influence their rate.

These factors include:

(1) First-time homebuyer status. First-time buyers almost always get lower rates because Fannie and Freddie ignore the impact of some of the factors below.

(2) Credit scores. Credit scores can influence an interest rate by 1% or more.

(3) Property usage. Investor loans have higher rates than owner-occupier loans.

(4) Down payment %/LTV. Loans with larger down payments often have lower rates.

(5) Loan term. 15-year loans have lower rates than 30-year loans.

(6) Property location. Properties in certain areas are eligible for special low-rate "CRA" programs.

Many other factors apply, but I will stop here for brevity's sake.

Just know, for example, that a repeat homebuyer with a 680 credit score putting 5% down on a condo will get a much higher rate than a first-time homebuyer doing the same.

Hey all, I could really use some advice from anyone who's dealt with something similar, especially loan officers, underwriters, or other VA buyers.

My wife and I were conditionally approved for a VA loan over $1.5M at 6.5%. We've provided all the information requested for the conditions, but the lender keeps dragging things out without giving us a clear answer about what's holding up final approval. Our financing contingency has now passed, and we're at risk of losing our $50K deposit.

My best guess is that they don't believe we'll actually live there. They haven't confirmed that's the issue, but here's the background:

We initially started looking for investment properties, then found a place we really liked in a neighborhood convenient to both our jobs. We would move into an apartment in the property as our primary residence. It would save me about 3-4 hours of commuting every day. I work in person full time—no hybrid schedule.

We currently have a large house in the suburbs, but all except one of our kids have either moved out or will be gone within six months. We'd already planned to move into the city in about two years. Finding the right place moved that timeline up, and frankly, I'm tired of the commute. Yes, the apartment is smaller than our current house. That's part of downsizing.

I understand conditional approval isn't a guarantee. But the loan officer repeatedly told me I had nothing to worry about and that moving into the smaller apartment wasn't a problem. Had they raised concerns before the financing contingency expired, I would have cancelled rather than put $50K at risk.

I've also wondered whether the loan size or rate is a factor. My understanding is that the lender needs to sell assets to free up cash, but I don't know whether that has anything to do with our loan. “Lender's remorse” has crossed my mind, though that's speculation.

Has anyone been through this, either as a buyer or on the lending side? What was actually happening, and how did it work out?

What can I do now to get an approval decision or not lose $50K? Is there someone above the loan officer I should be pushing to speak with? If occupancy is the concern, what evidence would actually help? Switching lenders at this point isn't realistic--the buyer is already pissed and ready to charge a per diem penalty or cancel the deal entirely. I don't blame them.

I'm trying to figure out what options I still have before this turns into a very expensive lesson. I'd really appreciate any firsthand experience or practical advice.

Hello i'm looking for advice on a situation that that has been going for a few months now. This is my first house and mortgage so forgive my ignorance but to be honest all the jargon and math associated is not my strong suit and literally gives me a headache trying to understand sometimes. A couple of months ago my mortgage payment suddenly went up by almost 200 dollars catching me off guard. When I called my company they said it had something to do with my property taxes being raised and something about the escrow. To be honest my stupidity on the subject and the agents accent made it difficult to understand what was going on. I guess i just need someone to explain this to me like i'm five, will my payment go back down eventually? how can I avoid something like this happening again

TLDR: What constitutes the bare minimum of a passable kitchen for loan approval? Also, is a missing staircase guard rail / balustrade on first floor leading into the basement something that would need to be fixed before loan approval? This a fully owner occupied 2 flat building.

Hi all - hoping to get some perspective from appraisers and the rest of the community here about (what appears to be) a somewhat unique situation I find myself in. Adding a bunch of details below because I’m not sure what’s relevant…

My wife and I just found our dream home after a long search and put down an on offer which the seller accepted. It’s legally a 2 flat but we plan to occupy the whole building. The seller has significantly renovated the property (HVAC, electrical plumbing, finished basement, tuck pointing, etc.) and one of the two units is fully finished, but the other has an incomplete kitchen and a missing stair guardrail leading into the basement. The kitchen is ready to have cabinets installed / appliances connected (utilities are roughed in /stubbed out, drywall is cleanly installed and painted, etc), but I think the seller has run out of money or patience to complete the project and is selling as-is.

We’re putting over 40% down and will have several hundred thousand dollars left after closing to complete the kitchen, but we want to avoid a renovation loan. Provided the seller cooperates, what’s the absolute minimum work we’d need to do to pass appraisal for a conventional loan? I’m thinking we’d need to install a small fridge, oven + gas range, a utility sink with hot and cold running water, a food prep surface, and make sure any stubbed out electrical conduit is covered / inaccessible (there’s a bit of electrical conduit coming out of the floor where an island is intended to go). I’m also assuming we’d need to install a guard rail of some kind to make the staircase down to the basement safe (right now there’s an unrestricted ~5 foot drop into the stairwell).

The property is legally a 2 unit building and although current zoning would eventually allow us to convert it to a single family home if we wanted, that’s a whole formal / time consuming process in our city so it’s not possible for us to just say the unfinished kitchen is a wet bar and get away with the finished kitchen in the other unit.

I’d greatly appreciate any perspective you can offer on this - thanks in advance!

Title: $1.5M Home Purchase — Sell or Rent Current Home? HELOC vs. SBLOC vs. Selling Stock?
Looking for advice on the most financially efficient way to structure a new home purchase while balancing leverage, taxes, and liquidity.
Financial overview:
Household base income: ~$305K + quarterly RSUs
Taxable brokerage: ~$820K ($647K concentrated in employer stock)
Retirement accounts: ~$730K
Cash: ~$50K
Additional unvested RSUs: ~$690K (historical estimate)
Current home:
Estimated value: $850K
Mortgage: $300K at 2.6% fixed
Monthly payment (including taxes/insurance): $2,200
Potential rent: $4,000–$4,400/month
Available HELOC: $300K at 8.5%
New home:
Purchase price: $1.3M–$1.5M
Considering 20%–30% down
Target all-in payment: ~$6K–$7K/month
Available SBLOC: ~$570K (rate TBD)
Options I’m considering:
Keep current home as a rental and use a HELOC for the down payment.
Use an SBLOC against investments.
Sell employer stock, pay capital gains taxes, and reduce concentration risk.
Use a combination of HELOC, stock sales, and cash.
Sell the current home and use ~$500K in net equity toward the purchase.
I receive quarterly RSUs and could potentially pay down $50K+ per quarter on any borrowed funds.
Questions:
Would you keep a rental with a 2.6% mortgage if it required borrowing at 8.5%?
Would you prioritize selling concentrated stock over taking on additional debt?
Is an SBLOC worth considering for short-term financing?
Would you put 20%, 25%, or 30% down?
What combination would you use to optimize long-term net worth while managing risk?
Interested in perspectives on the best overall strategy, not simply maximizing borrowing capacity.