How can I help my( College aged) Son get financing for 1st house?

[Tracey Thornton]

Looking for advice on how to help my son get financing to buy his first house. He will be graduating in December 2019. But he wants to buy a house ahead of time so he can get it renovated by the time he is done with school. He has 750 credit score and is smart with his money. But banks won't seem to lend to him because he hasn't landed his main job yet. Any advice?

[Account Closed]

Originally posted by @Tracey Thornton:

Looking for advice on how to help my son get financing to buy his first house. He will be graduating in December 2019. But he wants to buy a house ahead of time so he can get it renovated by the time he is done with school. He has 750 credit score and is smart with his money. But banks won't seem to lend to him because he hasn't landed his main job yet. Any advice?

 It's a bigger question than it looks like at first. Banks expect to get paid back, imagine that. ;-) He needs three lines of credit that are a year or two old, always paid on time. That could be credit cards, auto loans, etc. He needs to have two years of employment. It's for his good as well as for the bank's. Also, the government insures most loans so don't take short cuts. It's called mortgage fraud and as a good dad you would never do that anyway. 

Co-signing is a terrible idea on a mortgage or a car. You can really mess up your credit if he misses a payment and if he defaults you still owe the money. This has happened to many a "helpful" parent and of course it "would never happen to you". I've helped many people get out of foreclosure, and I've made a ton of money, because they thought the same way. Life happens, be prepared for it and don't underestimate it.

What is so urgent that he needs or deserves to have something so expensive that he isn't ready for? What about renovation costs, emergencies, repairs? If he has any student debt this will worsen his situation.

You could always just buy him a house if it is that important. Since he can't qualify, you buy the house on your credit and rent to him until he can qualify. He fixes up the house and you sell the property to him when he can get financing.

That won't work, eh? Then it is not time for him to own a home and no bank will think differently.