We all know that the world is a different place in the wake of COVID-19, but sometimes it can take time for certain industries to catch up to those changes. The housing and mortgage market in particular, can be slow to adjust to economic shifts. Everyday there are more and more people looking to purchase mortgages who may have nontraditional jobs or who are self-employed. The economic fallout from COVID-19 will send plenty of tax returns into chaos, with banks and traditional lenders struggling to find new benchmarks for lending. Our strength at Mortgage Maestro Group is our adaptability to these types of changes, so let’s take a look at how we have been working with self-employed clients during this time.

INCOME

When there isn’t a global pandemic going on, determining income for mortgage applications is easier. Unfortunately for millions of people around the world, COVID-19 threw a wrench into their normal cash flow. Our Mortgage Maestro Group clients include business owners who have been affected by economic shutdowns during the pandemic, doing their best to stay afloat with PPP loans or other assistance. Many of these business owners are now in situations where their cash flow has returned during reopening, but they are still unable to qualify with retail lenders based on traditional income requirements given their tax returns  (yes, cannabis industry you as well). Our goal is to work with these clients in order to get a clearer picture of their real income post-pandemic. Many lenders have yet to adapt their lending qualification standards to these new circumstances. One way we do this is to perform a full accounting of income and cash flow, instead of relying on tax returns or other income criteria. If your self-employed and your personal finances are considered non-bankable or looking out-of-sorts from COVID and you are in the market for a mortgage, give us a call.

LAND LORDS

If you own rental properties, you probably understand better than anyone how difficult it can be to get approved for a new mortgage right now. With rent forgiveness programs in place all over the country, many landlords have seen wild swings in their cash flow and reportable incomes. It is not that anything has really changed in terms of personal finance for these folks, other than the fact that millions of renters have been out of work. Mortgage Maestro Group can offer mortgage options with expanded debt ratios and new credit score requirements that traditional lenders can’t, which means our clients are still able to take advantage of the current strength of the housing market. Our loan officers will work with you using these adaptive lending requirements to help get you approved for an investment property mortgage.

OPTIONS

Over the last two years we at Mortgage Maestro Group have learned time and time again that buyers want options from their mortgage lenders. Retail banks typically use fixed models that don’t accommodate the demographic of potential homebuyers who work nontraditional jobs. Our latest offerings, like mortgages with interest-only payments for maximum cash, are designed specifically to help people in these situations. We understand that stringent requirements for tax documentation and long-term income reporting are just not feasible for many in the market, despite the fact that they meet cashflow requirements. If one or any of these options is a good fit for you, feel free to give us a call at 303-779-0591