The biggest mistake I hear too often is around the income used to qualify for a mortgage. The Bank of Canada’s guidelines regarding income verification are getting stricter every day.
I’m here to tell you that a seasoned mortgage broker understands the eligible income lenders use and will not send you shopping for a home you may not qualify for.
When qualifying for a mortgage, people often assume their bonus, commission, overtime or second job’s income is automatically included in their eligible income. If you are paid a base salary plus commissions, overtime income, or bonus income, you need to prove this income is sustainable. The same rule applies for a second job. Lenders will want to use a two-year average of your taxable income. To do this, you will have to show your previous two years’ tax returns and a recent year-to-date pay stub, proving that you are on track to make this income again this year.
Just because a person makes a certain amount of money at the end of each month does not always mean the income is sustainable according to the regulations required by The Bank of Canada.
Before shopping for a new home, ensure you have a pre-approval in place, and have provided your mortgage broker with the necessary income documents. You wouldn’t want any surprises to come up.
