 |
His Credit Is Terrible |
| |
 |
Dear Ms. Lank, I am planning to buy a house with a friend of mine. I have good credit and can easily get a mortgage. My friend, however, has such terrible credit at this time that he won't even be considered for one. He made mistakes in the past and has cleaned up his act, but as we all know it takes a long time for one's credit history to clear up in these situations. My question is this. Is it still possible to make him a co-owner of the house without his name actually being on the mortgage? Also, will the money that he pays toward the mortgage have to be counted as income on my tax returns since I would be the only person listed on the mortgage?—D. L. L., Rochester |
| |
| |
 |
I worry about you taking complete responsibility for a mortgage debt when you own only half the house. I hope your friend is paying at least half the purchase costs.
You won’t be able to qualify for a low-down-payment FHA loan, because those require that all owners sign for the mortgage loan. What you suggest is possible, though, with a conventional mortgage.
He can give you up to $12,000 a year as a gift, with no tax consequences, and I suppose you could use that money to make your mortgage payments. |
| |
|
Edith
Originally published on December 6, 2006 |
| |
| |
|
Back to Summary
|
< Previous | Next > |
| |
|
|
