Would a new mortgage affect the K-1 process?

[Silove 0]

I've been living with my friend in her grandma's basement apartment for cheap. I planned on moving out once my fiance was here on the fiance visa, and save money until then. I've been informed that I need to move out by the end of March so that her relatives can rent there instead. 

 

My fiance and I were thinking about getting a house together shortly before or after our wedding (whenever that ends up being.) But now I'm considering buying a place now, rather than wait, since I need to find a place anyways. We are currently waiting for our NAO2, May would be the 5-month mark on that so I don't anticipate hearing from them before then. 

 

I make about $30k above the poverty line, and I'm wondering if buying a house and taking out a mortgage would affect the K-1 process negatively? Specifically when I have to send off the affidavit. How much do they look at Annual income, current checking/savings amount, would they consider a mortgage as an asset/investment? Anything else I should be thinking about as I consider this? Any help is appreciated!

[geowrian 22,335]

They would only know the mortgage information if you tell them. Even the property value doesn't need to be disclosed...assets are optional to be listed.

So...not an issue.

[TandSarahJane 178]

Mortgage is never an asset, always a liability 😊

 

Unless the rental market is rotten where u are, maybe consider it.  Think about it this way- it will always be "your house" and not "our house".  If u find a modest rental and gut through it, or maybe roomies website or something, then u can do house shopping and furniture buying together later.

 

...I earned these grey hairs u see.

[Lucky2Lucky 2,526]

A mortgage would not be a negative for a k1.

[C90 376]

7 minutes ago, geowrian said:

They would only know the mortgage information if you tell them. Even the property value doesn't need to be disclosed...assets are optional to be listed.

So...not an issue.

The I-134 does ask about mortgage:

 

Real estate information, question 8b. I have mortgages or other debts amounting to $ So OP would have to disclose that. No clue what kind of effect that has on the decision for K1. Seems to me that if you can proof what you pay per month on mortgage and that you still have more then enough left to support everyone in your household it shouldn't be a problem.

[geowrian 22,335]

4 minutes ago, C90 said:

The I-134 does ask about mortgage:

 

Real estate information, question 8b. I have mortgages or other debts amounting to $ So OP would have to disclose that. No clue what kind of effect that has on the decision for K1. Seems to me that if you can proof what you pay per month on mortgage and that you still have more then enough left to support everyone in your household it shouldn't be a problem.

Correct. But assets are optional...that entire section does not need to be completed unless you are claiming the property as an asset (in which case they need to know that to determine the net value of the asset).

[Silove 0]

20 minutes ago, TandSarahJane said:

Mortgage is never an asset, always a liability 😊

 

Unless the rental market is rotten where u are, maybe consider it.  Think about it this way- it will always be "your house" and not "our house".  If u find a modest rental and gut through it, or maybe roomies website or something, then u can do house shopping and furniture buying together later.

 

...I earned these grey hairs u see.

Yeah, I'm leaning towards waiting to do it together, because I think he would really appreciate going house shopping together. But also just trying to understand all my options  Renting is super expensive here, literally a few hundred less a month to get a mortgage. But I guess moving back in with the parents might have to happen 😐

[Ontarkie 13,916]

I would buy now. You can send links to houses you want to look at and do virtual tours together get his thoughts. There is no reason to wait until he's here and that can be months away or longer depending on the country. Many couples do this when they relocate it doesn't mean the house is not both of yours. 

[Crazy Cat 39,227]

A mortgage will not affect the K-1, but both names on a deed and a mortgage are a very good piece of evidence of a bona fide marriage when Removal of Conditions time arrives.

Edited February 5, 2019 by missileman

[C90 376]

Just now, Silove said:

Yeah, I'm leaning towards waiting to do it together, because I think he would really appreciate going house shopping together. But also just trying to understand all my options  Renting is super expensive here, literally a few hundred less a month to get a mortgage. But I guess moving back in with the parents might have to happen 😐

My husband bought a house 6 weeks before I arrived. We sent each other houses that we were interested in and we would discuss everything before we made the decision for our current house.

Only my husbands name is on the mortgage, to get my name on we would need to get a new mortgage and we're not doing that lol. But if you can put your fiance on the mortgage that would be good. If not, no big deal. Just put the bills in both names, put your fiance on the homeowners insurance and if possible, file a joint tax return after you're married (if you have the GC interview in 2020) USCIS understands that mortgages are a little more difficult then leases.

[Commish10 427]

I don't know where the OP lives, but with an income of 30K above the poverty line you might be very hard pressed to find a house at that income level. 

[Silove 0]

2 minutes ago, Commish10 said:

I don't know where the OP lives, but with an income of 30K above the poverty line you might be very hard pressed to find a house at that income level. 

It would be a tighter budget than what I have now for sure, and probably a condo, not a house. But an apartment in a safe neighborhood is often the same price monthly as a condo mortgage (in the modest price range I'm looking at, anyways.)

[Loren Y 2,732]

You have to look at a house as an investment,could go either way, but depending on market, usually it goes up in value. Of course it could go south like in 2007-2008, but it will come back. My house hit a low value of about 96,000 dollars back in 2009 I think it was, now it is back above 245,000. You can buy now and always add her to the deed later if you want. In my opinion renting is the biggest waste of money possible. You are paying hundreds if not over 1000 a month for something you will never own. My fiancee, now wife is more than happy with my house I have had since 2002, but I am not adding her to the house deed anyway, but it is always an option down the line. I say buy ASAP as housing values are steadily going up, along with the interest rates. Get in while you can. check your housing market trends where you live, talk to a few realtors, but the best reasearching you can do is on your own.

[Jeanne Adil 1,651]

Not an issue either way

only need to give immigration your new address

immigration  does not ask your debts or credit score

 

in  my state i could add my husband on my deed with a simple quick claim deed (small $25 fee at clerk office)

i actually did this while he was still in morocco as they like commingling after marriage to approve a CR1

but to add him to my mortgage i would have to do a refinance

 

owning your own home is always an assest especially at tax time when you are able to deduct the interest

you never get to deduct an apartment used solely for iiving space

 

only my opinion

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

While I don't see any negative impact on the immigration front, I would only suggest ensuring you approach it from a sound financial standpoint. Not to say you have not already considered all of this, but although a monthly mortgage payment may be less than a monthly rental payment (the same is typically common where we live), there's more to owning a house than just the mortgage payment. There's homeowner's insurance. Possibly HOA fees, depending on where you buy. Cost of repairs and maintenance falls solely on you, opposed to a landlord/rental company. You commented that there is possibly financial restrictions on you guys now, and considering the fees that constantly come up with the immigration process, I would just make sure to take all of that into account before committing to anything.

 

Regardless - your home would still be yours together, and the process could still include both of you even if you are still apart. Share listings between the two of you, FaceTime/Skype/etc. whenever looking at houses in person, etc. The decision can still be between the two of you, even if they are not here yet. So don't let that necessarily be a strong factor.

 

Good luck to you, either way! It definitely never hurts to see what's out there, regardless if you jump on anything now or not.