Bankruptcy, divorce, credit dings, gift funds, co-borrowers — real scenarios from real files, written town by town for the Capital Region and NYC.
What a conventional underwriter actually does with a self-employed file — the add-backs, the averaging, the declining-income rule — plus the four programs that get these files approved and a printable document checklist.
Special SituationsAny lender can close the easy file. Here are the seven that get told no by a vanilla-only lender — renovation, self-employed, low credit, no down payment, land, rentals — and how each one actually gets done.
First-Time BuyersSONYMA's enhanced DPAL Plus program now offers up to $30,000 in forgivable down payment assistance at 0% interest. Here's who qualifies.
Industry UpdateA new appraisal reporting standard, UAD 3.6, rolls out through November 2026. Here's what's actually changing — and what isn't.
Under ContractYour accepted offer starts a clock. Nearly one in seven deals fell apart earlier this year — most on a date nobody was watching. The three that matter, and how to stay ahead of them.
First-Time BuyersA first-timer's checklist: the seven documents every lender asks for, why having them ready makes everything faster — and the printable version to check off as you go.
Pre-ApprovalThree phrases that sound the same and aren't — and mixing them up can cost you a house in a competitive Capital Region market.
First-Time BuyersYou don't need 20% down. Here's the real menu of low-down loans and DPA programs available to Capital Region buyers — SONYMA, county programs, and how to stack them.
BankruptcyThe real waiting periods for FHA, VA, Conventional and Non-QM — and the one document that can shave a year off the clock.