Can I Get a Mortgage With a Bankruptcy? - This can be summed up in one word - Yes. Agressive programs from agressive lenders makes money available for people who have filed a BK.
Your chances will increase if you did not close out all your accounts in the bankruptcy. There are lenders that will ignore the BK if your score is 600 or higher and will even go to 100% financing. The main factor in this is established tradelines and if you closed all your accounts out in the BK you may not be able to qualify for 100% financing. You may still however be eligible for a lower amount such as 80%-90%
After a bankruptcy you can still be considered and qualify for a mortgage. You must consult with a mortgage broker to find the best deal available for you depending on your exact situation (what type of bankruptcy was filed, how long has it been discharged, is the BK still active, what are your current credit scores, is there any re-established credit since the bankruptcy, etc...) The chance of you obtaining financing after a bankruptcy at your local bank are slim to none. A mortgage broker will have the option to search hundreds and some times thousands of lenders to find the lender who it going to be best for your situation after the bankruptcy, whereas your local bank has 1 set of guidelines that you will most likely not fit into after a bankruptcy.
A bankrupcy does not exclude you from getting a mortgage. It simply means you are a higher risk to the lender. Your rate may be higher, the fees a bit higher but the mortgage can still be obtained.
You will often want to plan a two step strategy when refinancing out of bankruptcy. Refinance once now to get your affairs in order, pay off debts, lower your overall monthly expenses, and help you rebuild your credit, and then a second refinance in two to three years to take advantage of your new credit score and any additional equity in your home you may have built or gained throug appreciation.
There are two schools of thought when it come to evaluating mortgage loan risk for a borrower who has had a bankruptcy. The traditional thought is that because the borrower showed a record of complete mismanagement of their obligations and had to be releived of them through the bankruptcy, they are a very high risk. A newer school of thought says that very few consumers will file two BKs within a ten year period so a borrower with a recent BK is a very low risk to go bankrupt again any time soon.
It is also possible to refinance while you are currently in a chapter 13 bankruptcy. You will have to get permission from the bankruptcy court and show that you have made payments into the plan on time for at least 12 months. Keep in mind that the maximum loan to value on these types of loans are typically from 70%-80% depending on the lender.
To offset some of the higher rates that you may get after filing a bk you may choose to go with a short term arm such as a 2/28 or 3/27 where the payment is fixed for 2-3 years and at that point you can come back and refinance into a program that better fits your needs.
If you filed on mostly medical items and kept your car payments and/or credit card payments up to date your credit score may not be that bad. You may easily qualify for a home loan. The best course of action would be to pull your credit and see where you are at before you start looking at homes.
The type of bankruptcy that was filed will be the first determining aspect in deciding what type of mortgage financing you qualify for.
There are many programs that allow up to 100% financing 1 day out of a bankruptcy. Of course your credit score needs to be able to support this also. Basically if you have managed to straighten out your credit since the bankruptcy it is possible to have a decent credit score by the time your bankruptcy is paid off.
Getting a home loan after bankruptcy is not too difficult with sub-prime lenders, although the borrower should expect to pay a higher interest rate. Because of the high bankruptcy mortgage interest rates, when choosing different types of bankruptcy home loans, potential borrowers should expect to refinance the mortgages to lower interest rates after they have a chance to rebuild their credit in a couple of years.
Your chances for home financing will increase if you carried some accounts through the bankruptcy. Some lenders will also use your cancelled rent checks for a tradeline.
On a chapter 7 bankruptcy lenders usually look at the discharge date and not the file date. On a chapter 13, a lender may look at the file date unless the chapter 13 has been dismissed. Your mortgage broker will be able to get the best lender for your particular situation.
Getting a mortgage while in Chapter 13 - Although filing a Chapter 13 is considered a type of bankruptcy, it is still possible to refinance a mortgage as long as the refinance will allow the borrower to buy-out of the Chapter 13 pay-off.
It is also important not to incur any new delinquencies after filing CH 13. As long as the BK payments and any other credit payments were made on time, the borrower should be able to get a new mortgage.
In order to be able to refinance and buy out the Chapter 13 Bankruptcy you will generally need to have a good payment history on the Chapter 13 and you will also need to obtain permission from the trustee.
There are usually strong advantages to using the equity in your home to pay off the Chapter 13 bankruptcy. The biggest advantage will most likely be cash flow. Most borrowers will get hundreds of dollars in monthly cash flow savings by refinancing to pay off the Chapter 13. One other big advantage will be credit score improvement. The sooner the bankruptcy is discharged the sooner the borrowers credit score will start to see improvement.
It is also possible to find purchase money while in Chapter 13. There are two options that you may have:
1.) Show 12 months of perfect payment history.
2.) Temporarily come out of Chapter 13 to get the loan then re-enter Chapter 13.
Obviously the first option is the best. FHA loans are the best option if you can show 12 months of perfect payment history and will give you a much better rate than the alternatives.
For the borrowers who are currently in Ch 13 and wanting to purchase a house, the lender will allow you to get a new mortgage as long as you could prove to FHA and the BK trustee that the new mortgage payment won't hinder the payment schedule for the CH 13.
Chapter 7 BK - Often times people are so far in debt that they can never repay their debt. At this point the best solution may be to file a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. A Chapter 7 is very detrimental to your credit rating, but you are typically out of Bankruptcy in 6 months and you dont have to repay any debt. However the disadvantage is that this will show up on your credit report for 10 years from the date of filing your BK. With creditors starting to tighten their credit requirements, and you will be limited to certain types financing.
Make sure you work with someone who will not only advise you on the best mortgage but will help you restrucuture yourself. Taking the time to properly plan how to re-establish yourself is perhaps the best thing someone who has recently filed can do. If you have filed a BK and would like to see financing options you can call me at 888-418-4467 anytime!
It is important to review your credit report after your BK 7 is discharged. Some credit holders don't report the debt as being cleared even after the discharge. You may have to update your credit information yourself by providing the court documents.
Although Chapter 7 bankruptcy will severely damage your credit rating, you need to determine what's worse - killing your credit with constant late payments and high debt, or by filing chapter 7 bankruptcy and getting rid of your debt.
Many consumers can still obtain home loans after a chapter 7 discharge.
Chapter 7 bankruptcy isn't intended to let you rack up debt and then get out of it without having to repay anything. It is there as an option to give you a fresh start. Unfortunately, many people don't see it that way, and get trapped in the cycle of racking up debt and then filing for bankruptcy. However, you can only file once every 7 years, so be sure that if this is your only option, you use it as a stepping stone to move on to a better financial future.
