Lease to Own - How It Works
- Tired of renting?
- Want to own your own home and stop paying other people's mortgage payments for them?
- Have problems with poor credit?
- Don't think you can afford to purchase a house of your own?
- Afraid of big closing costs?
At Gelven Properties LLC, we offer a "Lease to Own" option, which is geared towards helping people who have less than perfect credit and who can not currently qualify for a home loan. I can put you in one of my houses to lease from me, while my team goes to work on your credit. Most people who rent today, do so because they are unable to qualify for a loan, due to lack of money, poor credit, past financial mishaps or are just uneducated on steps to take to improve their financial situation.
I have put together a team of people who are incredibly smart, talented and experienced in their respective fields. I work with a mortgage loan officer (Dustin Lillidahl, of Midwest Mortgage Capital). Dustin will help secure a loan for you which best suits your individual needs at the best possible rate and as little money down as possible. I also work with a Credit Repair Specialist (Ben Dodd of Freedom Credit Solutions). He will help to repair your credit to the point that you are qualified to secure a loan to purchase the house you are leasing from me. This is usually done within 90 to 120 days, depending on what your current credit score is and how much repair needs to take place.
The houses I own are fixed up like brand new from top to bottom. They all have updated electric and plumbing, new flooring (tile,wood,carpet), new kitchen cabinets, new countertops, updated bathrooms, fresh paint, brand new stainless steel appliances, including refrigerator (with full warranties), and much, much more. Upon closing, I also purchase a 1 year home warranty for you. This would cover any unforeseen problems with the house for the first year of ownership.
In addition, if I don't have a current property that suits your needs, you can still benefit greatly from working with me. You can tell me what style house you are looking for and I can find one that resembles your needs and put my crews to work rehabbing the house to like new condition. The benefit of doing this is that you can choose your cabinets, flooring, paint and fixtures so that we can design it to your taste.
This is how the program works:
- Your credit is pulled and evaluated.
- We also ask you to gather these items:
- Your last 2 years tax returns (each person)
- Your last 2 years W-2's (each person)
- Your last 2 pay stubs (each person) and
- A copy of a statement(savings account, 401K, retirement account,tax returns) showing that you have enough liquid assets to pay closing costs on a loan when the time comes. (3.5% FHA, 5% conventional)
- At this point, the loan officer and credit repair specialist analyze your credit history and debt to asset ratio to determine how close you are to being qualified for a home loan.
- Once they determine that you are qualified, you and I go to view the house or houses. I normally have multiple houses in inventory. If I don't, I can help you find one to fit your needs. At this point, if you find a house you like and wish for us to help get you qualified to "Own" this property, we can sign a "Lease to Own" contract and you can move in immediately! When you sign the contract, you will pay an upfront non-refundable deposit which will be equal to your forecasted closing costs, or 3.5%.
- This down payment will go into an escrow account and will be held until the closing date, at which time the deposit will be credited towards your closing costs.
- You will know what your estimated mortgage payment will be on a 30 year loan before you ever sign the contract. This will include your mortgage, interestd, taxes, and insurance (MITI). While you are leasing the property from me and while we are fixing your credit, the lease payment will be $100 more than your mortgage payment will be. (Example: If we tell you your MITI is going to be $700/month for 30 years, you will lease the house for $800/month for the 90 to 120 days that you are leasing from me, while we fix your credit. Then, when we close on the home and you own it, your payment will be $700/month for the next 30 years.)
It is a very simple and harmless process. I have sold homes to people who never believed it was possible to own their own home. So, if you are tired of throwing your money away in rent with nothing to show for it and would like to build equity in your very own home, this is your chance!
You must first be pre-qualified to start this unique program. This entails a few key requirements:
- MUST not have filed bankruptcy or have a foreclosure in past 3 years
- MUST have 1 year of clean rental history
- MUST make an annual gross household income of $40,000 or more
- MUST have a bank statement showing that you have liquid assets to cover the closing costs before you start the program, and finally:
- MUST have a strong desire to be a home owner!
Please feel free to call us with any questions. We look forward to the opportunity to help you repair your credit and qualify you for a loan to purchase your very own home!
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