nearlyinusa

Hey,

Looking for some help and advice. I am moving to Delaware, next year with my wife, daughter and unborn child, (all of whom are American). My wife and I have been married for 4 years so I am not that concerned about the immigration process. This will be a permanent move and we will be living with my in-laws for 12-24 months to save for a deposit on a home.

Given that when I arrive in the US I will have no credit history, will it be difficult to go for a mortgage after only a year?
I have a credit score in the UK of 960, could they take this into account?
Does anybody have any tips for building credit quickly when I will be living with my in-laws and not paying rent or utilities?

Anyone who has come into these problems and has any advice to offer it would be much appreciated.

Many Thanks
M

Noorah101

Hi and Welcome to BE! Does your USC wife have a credit history in the USA? If she has good credit in the USA, that will help.

It shouldn't be hard to go for a mortgage after 1 year, no, just might have to pay a larger deposit.

The US does not take into account your UK credit score or history.

Get a secured credit card upon arrival, use it wisely, and then in about a year convert it to a real credit card. That's the best way to get started.

Rene

nearlyinusa

Hey Rene,

Thanks for the feedback. My wife has been in the UK for 10 years but has maintained student loan payments in that time, she also has a Macy's card which has been used and cleared a few times over the last few years. Although it is minimal, she does still have an active ongoing credit history.

M

tom169

If you have a good income and a good amount of money in the bank then look for manual underwriting. This is how I attained a mortgage after less than a year.

If you don't then it's probably not the time to buy - houses here can be a money pit.

RICH

Credit.score is only one criteria for a mortgage. You will need to show evidence of ability to repay a loan ie income, and a deposit, ie savings .

SpoogleDrummer

I had my father-in-law co-sign on my mortgage when I moved over so if your in-laws have good credit that may be an option if they're prepared to do it.

Glasgow Girl

I had a similar situation, albeit 20 years ago, I had been in the USA for about 18 months and applied for a mortgage with my husband to be. We were not married at the time and I only had an H-1 visa. I was approved for a mortgage with one of the regular banks but I did have to provide proof of savings from my UK bank accounts, so maybe keep your UK statements. Also, I had a UK based American Express card and upon arrival in the USA I opened one here as well. Somehow the USA version picked up my UK credit history (just for that card) and that helped a lot. It's possible I asked to transfer the UK based card to a USA one, I don't remember for sure, but it wasn't hard at all to get the USA based one. It may be worthwhile taking out a UK based AmEx card now and trying the same thing. I also had my husband to be co-sign for a couple of credit cards and by charging a small amount and paying it off in full every month my credit score built reasonably quickly over about 12 months. Maybe your in laws or wife could do this for you. Probably the most important thing is to get a Social Security Number as soon as you can. Hope this helps. Good Luck.

nearlyinusa

Hi All,

Thanks for all your help with this, this is a long way down the line. We can probably save about $30,000 in a year and we're looking at property in the region on $300,000-$400,000, so we'll probably be at my in-laws for about 2 years in order to save a 20% deposit. My in-laws would be more than willing to co-sign for the mortgage, so this is an option, however, I would rather do it without them if we can. I guess it's a case of talking to the bank I open my first account with and asking them the best way to prepare over the following two years.

Thanks again.
M

tom169

Talk to a credit union or local bank. They're probably more willing to work with you (rather than some computer work with you).

Don't get a cosigner. Dinner won't taste the same at the Inlaws when you are in affect owing them money.

mrken30

I just call it an expensive hobby. One year a roof, next year a deck, then paint the house, then remodel. Then once in a while pay an arborist.

robtuck

You can get a mortgage with a lower deposit - FHA. Requires you to pay an insurance premium on top of the interest and principal amount.

Shop around, some banks/credit unions will take UK history into account during the underwriting process, and a year is plenty to start a credit score off. Be prepared for some effort though, many will be less inclined to take someone so new into the equation, but some will.

I just got a mortgage after 20 months and wife is also on a Visa, so less than you have! Rate isn't amazing, the cost of being a newbie, and the underwriting process was slow - lots of bank records, extra information from employers, and questions that often seem odd at first - like why did I get a pay rise? and needing the company to verify that - to avoid money laundering/using the company to inflate income etc.

Just be upfront and prepared for some extra input, should be fine.

mrken30

FWIW I got a mortgage after being here 6 months in 2009 when the regulations were a lot tighter. they took into account my total employment in the field that I work in and the fact I had a full time job. I had to present evidence of income from the past 2 years and I put down 20%.

Giantaxe

A lot has changed regarding mortgages in the last twenty years... for example, when I moved to the US on an L1, I got approved for a mortgage here and bought a house before I'd even transferred to the US. I doubt that would be likely these days.

petitefrancaise

I know we all hate them but Wells Fargo has an international mortgage program that uses your UK PAYMENT history ( credit cards, mortgages, bills,car payments) to build you a US credit score. They start with the assumption that you have excellent non-US credit and use your payment history to justify a high US score. What I have been told and also my own experience of getting a mortgage with them, is that you should apply as soon as you possibly can since the longer you are in the USA, the more they have to take into account your (crappy) US credit score. The international program can only be used within the first 12 months of arriving in the USA, after that you have to go the normal route.

Wells Fargo is the US' largest mortgage provider by a very, very long way. We got our mortgage on this program and got a really good deal.

RICH

But Ethics? I work for another big bank, and every time Wells gets dinged, we get another set of training classes on how to avoid getting busted like them. I mean how not to be bad like them!