I am a non-resident alien and want to get a mortgage. Most mortgage originators will not talk to me. What can I do?
I'm a European citizen, running my own company for many years and looking to start a business in Arizona, Phoenix region. I'll start a new LLC, with a local partner and we're also looking for a place to settle. Instead of renting an office, I'd prefer buying a condo or townhouse in the $100,000-$150,000 range in my personal name and rent it to the LLC. It seems quite difficult to get a mortgage loan as a non-US citizen. I don't plan to actually move to the US on short term, but will be traveling a lot back and forth to attend my business. One of my partners would live in the condo or townhouse. Could you help out financing this project?
As you have discovered, it is difficult for a non-resident alien to get a mortgage in the United States. You might be wondering why this is the case. The US federal government has over the last 80 years created three federal credit agencies, which are second-layer lenders in the residential mortgage market. The three conduct secondary market activities in the buying and selling of loans and provide credit to primary lenders in the form of borrowed money. The three are the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. (Freddie Mac), the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), and the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae).
The three do not have direct contact with individual consumers, but have an enormous influence on the residential mortgage industry. Each buys a large number of residential mortgages from banks and other mortgage originators and issues mortgage-backed bonds to investors. Each has standards for the mortgages it will purchase from mortgage originators, such as Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Chase, and Quicken Loans. Loans to individuals who do not fit Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's standards are not as desirable or even sought by most mortgage originators.
It is possible for a non-resident alien to get a mortgage in the US, but it is not as easy as it is if you are permanent resident alien, for example. Were you a permanent resident alien, I would suggest that you visit the Bills.com saving center for a no-cost quote from pre-screened mortgage providers. However, as a non-resident alien, I suggest you use the US version of Google or Bing to seek a "non-resident alien mortgage".
I hope this information helps you Find. Learn & Save.
Best,
Bill