sr71Girthbird t1_iuj0xfd wrote on October 31, 2022 at 6:19 PM

Reply to comment by ArcticFox2014 in ‘The Only Reason We Got It Was That I Lied’ by King-of-New-York

I lied (in cooperation with my work) on my mortgage last year since the banks would only take my base pay into account when determining eligibility. Base pay is about 40% of what I get paid and my commission is extremely consistent since everything is paid out over the course of 12 months. Boss wrote a letter for me saying I was getting a raise, extra equity etc, put it on a company letterhead and signed it. Basically said I made 60% more money base and had a 20% variable commission instead of the 50% base 50% variable which is the actual target structure assuming I don't exceed sales goals.

I bought completely within my means but the banks were not having it based on my actual pay structure.

ComplexKodak t1_iuj42yw wrote on October 31, 2022 at 6:40 PM

That's nice of them but silly that you can't use something like a tax return to prove your AGI

sr71Girthbird t1_iujpq7h wrote on October 31, 2022 at 9:07 PM

Yeah though it was odd because I had read the standard was that commission income was counted if you could prove last 2 years, while I had 4 years of steadily increasing income at the same company. First lender went to said they basically instantly discount all commission based W2's by 40% regardless.

Scout-Penguin t1_iujiwd1 wrote on October 31, 2022 at 8:20 PM

What the hell kind of mortgage was that?

I have a jumbo loan where bonus income was accepted without a blink; and conforming loan standards allow commission or bonus income that's stable over a two year period.

sr71Girthbird t1_iujoxyv wrote on October 31, 2022 at 9:01 PM

Mine was jumbo as well, Citizen's Bank ended up not having an issue once I submitted that letter which essentially counted as written verification of income and employment, but a couple other lenders wouldn't even give pre-approval.

Scout-Penguin t1_iujpodq wrote on October 31, 2022 at 9:07 PM

Variability in underwriting standards is definitely a thing. I went with Wells Fargo and it definitely helped to have a mortgage banker that was prepared to go toe-to-toe with the risk/underwriting team at various points (I didn't have a "seasoned" credit file at the time I was looking to buy) but bonus income was not one of them for me.