Medical Professionals Real Estate & Home Loan Programs

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[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”8491″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Student loans have become prolific over the last decade. According to the Federal Reserve, students in the United States currently owe over $1.5 trillion in private and federal loan programs.

Relying on deferment, forbearance, or income-driven repayment programs to cope with the indebtedness and to keep from getting behind on their payments, helps borrowers stay current with minimum payments, but these create additional hindrances when trying to qualify for a home loan. Most conventional and government loans, like FHA (Federal Housing Administration), VA (Veterans Affairs), and USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), will not recognize any form of deferment or forbearance in student loans.

Mortgage credit guidelines require underwriters to qualify the would-be home buyer at a fully amortizing student loan payment. If this is not available, they will default to a percentage of the outstanding student loan balance to estimate a monthly payment. In many cases, the fully amortizing payment amount is more than the borrower can handle and blows the qualifying debt-to-income ratio beyond underwriting limits. This makes it impossible for many borrowers to qualify for traditional mortgage financing.

If you have found yourself caught in this situation, there is hope; a new breed of home loan programs for professionals appears to be emerging. For years, physicians and dentists have had access to “physician home loans” or “doctor mortgages” which allow qualifying Doctors of Medicine (MDs) to exclude their student loan debts or qualify based on their income-driven repayments. Some in the mortgage industry decided that, because the default rates were so low when lending to doctors, they would allow MDs to qualify without counting their student loans in their debt-to-income ratio.

Mortgage lenders have determined that homeowners with these professional designations are excellent credit risks and have begun to loosen the underwriting guidelines specifically around student loans and self-employment history.

The expansion of these more liberal underwriting guidelines to professionals beyond MDs may be coming at just the right time, as there are more medical professionals than ever seeking Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) which, in many instances, extends both the length of time and the amount of student loan indebtedness for borrowers.

Medical professionals that have high levels of student indebtedness or complicated non-employee (1099) income structures should rest a little easier knowing there are potential solutions for them.

Qualifying is obviously not guaranteed, but there are specialized loan programs available that are beginning to craft solutions to the student loan mania that we find ourselves in currently.

Seeking these specialized loan programs may not be easy, and many local banks or credit unions may not facilitate or be knowledgeable about these programs. We have several different loan programs geared toward medical professionals, and we can help overcome the challenges that student loans and complicated income structures present.

We look forward to helping you move forward successfully. Contact Us to schedule an appt.

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