Purchase or Refinance During a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

Chapter 13 Plan

This post is written for folks currently in a Chapter 13 Plan. It is also helpful for those contemplating filing a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Reorganization Plan. This post is also helpful for those recently Discharged from Chapter 13. A mortgage refinance or a home purchase, while still in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, is possible; it is also a complicated financial and, legal transaction. To do this requires a highly specialized mortgage professional experienced with both FHA lending rules and Chapter 13 bankruptcy as well as local court rules.

The Chapter 13 Payment

One of the most important things to understand is the importance of on-time Chapter 13 Payments to the mortgage underwriting process. I strongly encourage you to read this: The Chapter 13 Payment. Your Chapter 13 Trustee payment is given the exact consideration as your housing (mortgage/rent) payment in underwriting. From the underwriting perspective, one thirty-day late payment of either the mortgage or Chapter 13 Trustee payment will sink your prospects of getting mortgage loan approval for at least a year. Mail your payment early or set your on-line bill pay or direct payment to the Trustee so that you always know your payment has had time to get to the Trustee’s office and be posted by the staff at that office. Too many times, on review of the Chapter 13 Payment history, we find a payment was posted on the 2nd day of the month. One day counts as a late payment. An experienced mortgage lender can help you check your Chapter 13 payment history in real time.

Mortgage Choices for Chapter 13 Debtors (purchase or refinance)

The only mortgages available, either for refinance or purchase, for those in a Chapter 13 Plan are those insured or guaranteed by the Federal government. These mortgages are either: insured by FHA,  guaranteed by VA or the USDA. Each

Any mortgage so long as it’s FHA, VA or USDA.

of these home loans are underwritten with the same guidelines as set forth in the FHA Handbook. How does a bankruptcy affect a borrower’s eligibility for an FHA mortgage? From the FHA Handbook:  “A Chapter 13 bankruptcy does not disqualify a borrower from obtaining an FHA mortgage provided the lender documents that one year of the payout period under the bankruptcy has elapsed and the borrower’s payment performance has been satisfactory (i.e., all required payments made on time). In addition, the borrower must receive permission from the court to enter into the mortgage transaction.*”  Most underwriters will consider the Chapter 13 Trustee’s approval as permission from the court.

Application to Incur New Debt

To get underwriting approval for a Chapter 13 Debtor to refinance the Chapter 13 Trustee (in Colorado) or the Judge must approve your application to incur new debt. Contact your attorney to determine how and when to best proceed, or not. There are situations when it may not be in your best interest to purchase or refinance while in Chapter 13. This is a process which you can only do with the advise and assistance of your attorney. Your attorney must prepare the financial statements to submit to the Trustee in order for authority to be granted for a lender to offer new credit. Your mortgage loan originator should be able to assist your attorney in completing the Application to Incur New Debt.

Mortgage Refinance After Chapter 13 Discharge?

Yes. One may refinance or purchase within 2 years following the Discharge. BUT, it is easier to get approved for a mortgage while still in Chapter 13. This is because, following Discharge, a manual underwrite is mandated. Few lenders are willing to take the risk of not having the safe harbor provided by Automated Underwriting. Begin reestablishing good credit as soon as your Chapter 13 Plan is confirmed and continue this discipline while your case is still open so by the time your Discharge enters, you have solidly reestablished good credit.

Two years following Discharge, with reestablished credit, one may qualify for a conventional or Qualified Residential Mortgages (QRM) to purchase or refinance a home loan.

Preliminary Requirements for Purchase or Refinance While in Chapter 13

• Twenty-four months of current housing payments with no 30-day late payments and, the likelihood of the income continuing for at least three years.
•  Two years IRS Returns showing your income is sufficient to pay the mortgage as well as your Chapter 13 payment and any debt not included in the bankruptcy payment.
• Minimum middle FICO Score of 620 . Most will need to practice what I’ve previously posted as FICO  101a, 101b and 101c for several months prior to making a successful application for mortgage credit.
• For anyone with a fear of having credit make time to read both Credit: Use It to Build It (Part 1) and Credit: Use It to Build It (Part 2).
• Begin rebuilding your credit as soon as your Chapter 13 Plan is Confirmed/Court Approved; this is when your property has been revested to you.
• The maximum limited-cash out loan to value on an FHA appraisal is presently 95% – Refinance.
• The minimum down payment is 3.5% of the purchase contract or appraised value whichever is less. – Purchase
• The maximum Debt to Income Ratio is 45%. This is pushing the envelope. While in Chapter 13, it is mandatory to have Court approval (in Colorado, the Trustee approval suffices) to obtain a mortgage.

There is more detail to this process than can reasonably be discussed herein but this is the essence of purchasing or refinancing while in Chapter 13.

*Reference: FHA Handbook 4000.1 II.A. 5.a.iii (H)(2)(3).

Disclaimer: This article does not represent that any of the information provided is approved by HUD or FHA or any US Government Agency.

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Financially Speaking™ James Spray, RMLO, CNE, FICO Pro |  CO LMO 100008715 | NMLS 257365 | November 1, 2010 – Revised May 2, 2018 | Copyright 2010-2018

Notice: The information on this blog is opinion and information. While I have made every effort to link accurate and complete information, I cannot guarantee it is correct. Please seek legal assistance to make certain your legal interpretation and decisions are correct. This information is not legal advice and is for guidance only. You may use this information in whole and not in part providing you give full attribution to James Spray.

The Chapter 13 Payment

That which matters is when your payment is posted to your account in the moth it is due. For example, if the payment is due in December, it must be posted in December.

While your Chapter 13 payments are not reported to the credit bureaus, when you apply for a mortgage (refinance or purchase) while in a Chapter 13 Plan or within two years of your bankruptcy Discharge, your Chapter 13 payment history will be reviewed by the underwriter. This review will consider your Chapter 13 payment with the same weight as a mortgage payment.  Just one 30-day late payment will disqualify an otherwise approvable loan applicant.

Exactly What Is A 30 Day Late Payment?

To illustrate, let’s say your payment is due on December 25th. Your payment has always been made on the 25^th. In fact, your November 25^th payment was received by the Trustee and posted in November as it was since your first payment. However, your December 25^th payment was not posted until January 2^nd. Oops, you now have a 30-day late payment.

The Payment Was Sent the Same Day as Always

We understand. However, the underwriting guidelines do not understand accidental, postal or electronic delays. Indeed, the system can be harsh. Being armed with this knowledge allows you to plan for the unexpected.

Rehabilitation Expectation – Minimum of 12 Months On-Time Payments

A minimum of twelve consecutive months of on-time payments immediately prior to applying for mortgage credit is essential for approval. This supposes that all payments have been posted on time with the Trustee’s office. However, there can be an exception of a 30-day late during the payment period so long as that isolated incident is not within the last twelve months. The exception of a 30-day late payment or an interruption of on-time monthly payments must be documented and sourced as completely outside the control of the debtor.

The Blizzard Made My Payment Late

A few years back, one of my prospective Chapter 13 home buyers diligently worked to get into a position to be approved for a new home loan. By way of background, at the time he lived in a cabin at St Mary’s Glacier. That year, there was a particularly severe snow event which left my prospective client snow-bound for several days. Still, his payment to the Trustee was only one day late. We argued that this was an Act of God and entirely out of my prospective client’s control. This held no sway with the underwriter and my prospective borrower was not approved. In the interest of full disclosure, this prospective client had another 30-day late payment about 15 months prior to the blizzard. The ‘Act of God’ defense might have worked had the previous late payment not been of record.

Automatic Bill Pay – Be Aware

Those of us that use on-line bill pay through our credit union or bank love the convenience. No stamps, no envelopes and no checks are but a few of the nice features. While in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy repayment plan, set your payment date early enough so there is sufficient time for the Trustee’s office to 1) receive your payment and 2) post your payment. Be aware of Federal holidays and back your payment date up a couple of extra days to make sure you never have a Chapter 13 late payment.

The Trustee’s Staff Said a Late Payment Is OK

We understand. While a single late Trustee payment (or two) will generally not cause for a Chapter 13 to be problematic or Dismissed, keep in mind, the Trustee is not your mortgage loan originator or mortgage lender.

The Trustee said it is ok do pay my Plan payments ahead of time. Talk to your attorney, this could be a problem.

What Is the Take Away of This Post?

For those with payments due to be in the Trustee’s office near the end of the month, we strongly suggest that you mail your payment a few days early every month to help ensure the payment is posted in a timely manner. Better yet, set the bankruptcy payment to be made via payroll deduction. If payroll deduction is not available, schedule an automatic monthly payment via your on-line banking.

Unpaid Mortgage Payments Can Cause a Discharge to be Denied

As discussed above, on time mortgage and Chapter 13 payments are essential to a successful plan. Let’s say one is nearing the final month or so of their Chapter 13 Payment Plan and the Trustee learns the mortgage payments, which were to have been paid outside the Chapter 13 Plan, were not paid as agreed. The Discharge can be denied and instead after all this time, the case is Dismissed. A Dismissed case is a failed Chapter 13 from a mortgage underwriting standpoint.

We wish you success with your Chapter 13 Payment Plan!

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Financially Speaking™  James Spray, RMLO, CNE, FICO Pro  | CO LMO 100008715 | NMLS 257365 |December 2, 2013 | Updated January 10, 2018 | Copyright 2013-2018

 Notice: The information on this blog is opinion and information. While I have made every effort to link accurate and complete information, I cannot guarantee it is correct. Please seek legal assistance to make certain your legal interpretation and decisions are correct. This information is not legal advice and is for guidance only. You may use this information in whole and not in part provided you give complete attribution to James Spray.

Refinance After Chapter 7

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You filed a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and all debts were discharged. You selected not to reaffirm mortgage(s). You have continued paying on your mortgage(s) and now you want the payments reported on your credit report. With one exception that is not going to happen. The fact is that there is but one permanent way to get your mortgage payments reported on the credit reports and that is to refinance your mortgage, when possible. When your bankruptcy was discharged, the Promissory Note portion of the mortgage was legally eliminated. As a result, the mortgage payments will no longer be reported to the credit reporting agencies. Consumers, for obvious reasons, cannot self-report their credit history. For further information as to why the bank or mortgage company doesn’t report your payment, refer to an earlier post I wrote on this subject.

How To Get “Credit History” For Your Mortgage Payments In Order To Refinance

How can you refinance when your present mortgage servicer does not credit report your mortgage payment? There are a couple of ways to do this. The least expensive is for you to obtain proof of your mortgage payments for the past twelve (12) month and provide this to your mortgage broker.  A temporary way to pull the mortgage payments onto the credit reports is via a proprietary system such as Rapid Rescore which is available only to mortgage brokers. Your mortgage payment history can be pulled onto the credit reports for the purpose of mortgage refinance by a mortgage originator in cooperation with a credit reporting service through a credit rescoring system. This is a temporary fix only; a bridge to refinancing once all other factors are in place. The only permanent way to get your credit report to reflect your mortgage payments is to refinance if and when you are eligible.

How To Qualify For Refinance After Chapter 7

• You have been paying your housing expenses [rent or mortgage(s)] on time every month for at least the last 24 months – in rare circumstances, 12 months.
• There have been no 30 day late payments on your mortgage(s) since filing bankruptcy.
• The CAIVRS Authorization system  provides a clean report regarding default on an applicant’s past Federal government loans or guarantees.
• Your current taxable income as well as that of the past two years proves you can pay your mortgage and your debt ratio is acceptable to the lender.
• The taxable income used to qualify for the home loan will continue for a minimum of three years.
• You did not have a junior mortgage prior to filing or it is also current with no late payments or see (*) below.
• No other real estate was included in your bankruptcy or was foreclosed, short sold or surrendered such as investment property or second home within 4 years.
• You have no new bad credit whatsoever and no open credit disputes.
• Your present property value is 10% greater than what you owe on your mortgage(s), i.e., the house can be sold to payoff the mortgage(s), in full, including the cost of sale.
• You have minimum 700 middle FICO® Score (not FAKO scores). To get an idea of your score range use the FICO® Score Simulator (garbage in = garbage out).
• All borrowers must have established new good credit and exhibit that they are managing it very well.
• If the property is a Condominium, it must be FHA approved for FHA home loans or VA approved for VA home loans.

Investor Overlays

Investor overlays are measures lenders take to manage risks. You may need to shop around as, some lenders require 36 months from the Chapter 7 Discharge. Most lenders require higher credit scores, say in the plus 700 range before considering a new loans. The higher the FICO® Score, the better the rate and the lower the cost of the rate will be offered. There is much more to be discussed on the subject of lender overlays

Reaffirmation Is Not Necessary To Refinance

If your mortgage lender/servicer/bank insists that the mortgage must be reaffirmed, you simply need to call on a more seasoned mortgage banker or broker. There are those who will tell you that you must reaffirm the debt. Neither your attorney or I would recommend doing this; nor should you, in any case, do so without seeking the advice of your bankruptcy attorney. Keep in mind that the reaffirmation must be done prior to the Discharge and that is only your bankruptcy judge that can approve a mortgage reaffirmation – my understanding is that many will not.

Readers of this blog most often read Credit Union Power and New Credit During And After Bankruptcy too.

(*) The junior or second mortgage lien was legally stripped from the property in the bankruptcy. Note: this is a very, very rare circumstance. Another option is: the mortgage has been settled, such as via a short payoff in which case a further time-out period may be required.

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Financially Speaking™ James Spray, MLO, CNE, FICO Pro

CO LMO 100008715 | NMLS 257365 | January 12, 2012 | Revised October 5, 2014

Notice: The information on this blog is opinion and information. While I have made every effort to link accurate and complete information, I cannot guarantee it is correct. Please seek legal assistance to make certain your legal interpretation and decisions are correct. This information is not legal advice and is for guidance only. You may use this information in whole and not in part providing you give full attribution to James Spray.