using of house to file I-864

[brown & orange 2]

I have had my interview at the US Embassy in Ghana two months ago and I was asked to look for a joint sponsor, my wife has tried all possible avenues but no one is willing to be a joint sponsor. Can she use her house as asset to make up for the money that was declared untaxable which caused the CO to ask for a joint sponsor in the first place and about using her home, prior to my interview she changed the deed of the house to include me as a joint owner of the house, would this be a problem if she is to go ahead to use her house as an asset to make up for the money?

[Ryan H 3,834]

If the house is a primary home, it may be disallowed because liquidating it in the event of the terms of the I-864 not being met would cause an undue hardship to the owner(s).

 

If it is allowed, then it would only be allowed under these circumstances:

• An appraisal by a professional appraiser would need to be done.
• The value in the appraisal would have to be subtracted by the amount of any mortgage or other liens owed.
• Any difference from appraised value subtracted from monies owed would be the countable figure.

 

Another thing, when using assets to qualify, the figure must be 3 times the deficit below the qualifying threshold in order to be counted.  For example, if you are $5000 short of meeting the threshold, then the value of assets would need to be greater than or equal to $15,000 in order to be used.

[geowrian 22,338]

Yes, usually the net value of significant assets (like a house) can be used to fulfill the I-864 requirements. As of the I-864 from 2016, they explicitly list a household as an eligible asset (previously it was usually deemed as causing a considerable hardship to do so). The net value would need to cover 3x the necessary income gap.

 

She will need to provide evidence of ownership of the property (certified copy of the title should be fine), evidence of the value of the property (a recent appraisal), and evidence of any mortgages or other liens against the property (or evidence of a clean title if she owns it outright). The total equity in the house is what will be counted towards the net value of the house...albeit the CO can take into account the cost of selling or refinancing when interpreting the net value of the asset.

Edited May 29, 2017 by geowrian

[Boiler 46,362]

Does not sound like it is an investment property?

[brown & orange 2]

8 hours ago, Ryan H said:

If the house is a primary home, it may be disallowed because liquidating it in the event of the terms of the I-864 not being met would cause an undue hardship to the owner(s).

 

If it is allowed, then it would only be allowed under these circumstances:

• An appraisal by a professional appraiser would need to be done.
• The value in the appraisal would have to be subtracted by the amount of any mortgage or other liens owed.
• Any difference from appraised value subtracted from monies owed would be the countable figure.

 

Another thing, when using assets to qualify, the figure must be 3 times the deficit below the qualifying threshold in order to be counted.  For example, if you are $5000 short of meeting the threshold, then the value of assets would need to be greater than or equal to $15,000 in order to be used.

Thanks for your response.... My wife owns the home and placed me on the deed prior to my interview so I'm a part owner...Would that be a problem going forward since I'm yet to get there.

She intends to get an appraisal by a professional  and yes we have noticed all of points you have made and we are in a great position ....So does that mean we can go through?

[brown & orange 2]

8 hours ago, geowrian said:

Yes, usually the net value of significant assets (like a house) can be used to fulfill the I-864 requirements. As of the I-864 from 2016, they explicitly list a household as an eligible asset (previously it was usually deemed as causing a considerable hardship to do so). The net value would need to cover 3x the necessary income gap.

 

She will need to provide evidence of ownership of the property (certified copy of the title should be fine), evidence of the value of the property (a recent appraisal), and evidence of any mortgages or other liens against the property (or evidence of a clean title if she owns it outright). The total equity in the house is what will be counted towards the net value of the house...albeit the CO can take into account the cost of selling or refinancing when interpreting the net value of the asset.

She has all the evidence ready, our only worry is prior to my interview she put me on the deed of the house making me a part owner. Would that be a problem?

She bought the house outright and has all the documents to go forward.

[brown & orange 2]

8 hours ago, Boiler said:

Does not sound like it is an investment property?

I don't understand what you mean, can you explain further?