Changing Jobs When Getting a Mortgage

If you’re starting a new hourly position while applying for a mortgage, you need to start your job before closing on the home, not after. The lender will want to verify that you showed up to work, and you will need 30 days worth of pay to prove it. They want to reestablish what your work hours are going to be, as well as what your average income will amount to. If you have bonuses or overtime hours from your previous job, you probably can’t roll those over. Lenders only rarely factor in prior bonuses; they want to see a pattern of you receiving those bonuses from the job you currently hold.

Now, salaried workers tend to have a bit more flexibility. If you relocate to a new area for your job or are starting a new salaried position in the near future, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have guidelines that allow lenders to close transactions and allow the borrower to start their new employment up to 90 days or earlier from the closing of the transaction. That means their offer letter would have to indicate that they’re starting a new position within that period. The FHA requires 60 days.

Government-backed financing typically also requires that your offer be non-contingent. If you need to have a blood or drug test for the job, or you’re being kept on for an initial trial period, you’ll need to get a letter from your new employer stating that they’ve cleared you of those contingencies before you’ll be approved.

If you’re an agent who is trying to help your buyers buy a home and consider new employment at the same time and you have any questions, call or email us. We’d love to continue this conversation in more detail with you.