APPROVED: The Mortgage Playbook Your Bank May Never Show You

APPROVED is a consumer guide to what a mortgage denial actually means and what to do next. It puts 48 real buyer questions into four parts: why you were told no, the FHA deal-savers, the loan programs beyond FHA that your bank may not offer, and a playbook for your next lender conversation. Each chapter opens with a 30-second answer, then explains the rule with real dollar figures. It is educational, not a loan offer.

Yes. The FHA minimum down payment is 3.5 percent of the purchase price for borrowers who meet the program's credit requirements, and the entire amount can come from an allowable gift rather than your own savings. The book walks through what counts toward the 3.5 percent, how gift funds are documented, and how seller credits can cover closing costs on top of it.

Yes. FHA allows gift funds from family members and other approved donors to cover the entire down payment. The catch is the paperwork: HUD's definition of family does not include everyone you consider family, so the same gift can require different documentation depending on who gives it and how the relationship is labeled. Chapter 10 covers the gift letter, the paper trail, and the labeling traps that stall closings.

Often, yes. FHA permits non-occupant co-borrowers, meaning a parent or other qualifying person can be on the loan and lend you their income and credit without living in the house. The book explains how it works, what the co-borrower is actually committing to, and the difference between a co-signer and a co-borrower.

It depends on the program. FHA and USDA allow seller contributions up to 6 percent of the price, conventional loans allow 3 percent at the lowest down payments (more as your down payment grows), and VA allows all customary closing costs plus a separate 4 percent concession that can even pay off the buyer's debts. Chapter 11 compares all four side by side, and Chapter 12 shows when a seller credit beats a lower price.

First, get the specific reason in writing. Then ask the question the book is built around: is that a HUD rule, or is that this lender's rule? Many denials are one lender's overlay, a stricter in-house standard sitting on top of the actual program rules, which means a different lender can approve the same file. Part IV gives you the APPROVED Checklist and the exact questions to ask the next loan officer.

No. FHA gets the deepest treatment because it saves the most denied deals, but Part III covers the menu beyond it: HomeReady, Home Possible, and HomeOne, zero-down VA and USDA loans, bank statement and asset-based programs for the self-employed, buying for a parent or adult child, and professional programs for doctors, nurses, teachers, and first responders.

Yes. Self-employed borrowers can qualify for the same conventional and FHA loans as anyone else, and when tax write-offs make the returns look thin, there are bank statement and asset-based programs designed for exactly that file. The book explains how underwriters read self-employment income and which alternatives exist when the standard math doesn't work.

No. The rules in the book are federal program rules, written to HUD Handbook 4000.1, and they apply nationwide. Florida-specific details, like the state's down payment assistance programs and county-level examples, are covered free on this site.

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