Home foreclosure for many Americans and impact on K1 visa

[mikeandjoana 1]

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4668112n

Please read and check out the video link from cbs. What are the implications on K1 visa?

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(CBS) A Second Mortgage Disaster On The Horizon?

When it comes to bailouts of American business, Barney Frank and the Congress may be just getting started. Nearly two trillion tax dollars have been shoveled into the hole that Wall Street dug and people wonder where the bottom is.

As correspondent Scott Pelley reports, it turns out the abyss is deeper than most people think because there is a second mortgage shock heading for the economy. In the executive suites of Wall Street and Washington, you're beginning to hear alarm about a new wave of mortgages with strange names that are about to become all too familiar. If you thought sub-primes were insanely reckless wait until you hear what's coming.

One of the best guides to the danger ahead is Whitney Tilson. He's an investment fund manager who has made such a name for himself recently that investors, who manage about $10 billion, gathered to hear him last week. Tilson saw, a year ago, that sub-prime mortgages were just the start.

"We had the greatest asset bubble in history and now that bubble is bursting. The single biggest piece of the bubble is the U.S. mortgage market and we're probably about halfway through the unwinding and bursting of the bubble," Tilson explains. "It may seem like all the carnage out there, we must be almost finished. But there's still a lot of pain to come in terms of write-downs and losses that have yet to be recognized."

In 2007, Tilson teamed up with Amherst Securities, an investment firm that specializes in mortgages. Amherst had done some financial detective work, analyzing the millions of mortgages that were bundled into those mortgage-backed securities that Wall Street was peddling. It found that the sub-primes, loans to the least credit-worthy borrowers, were defaulting. But Amherst also ran the numbers on what were supposed to be higher quality mortgages.

"It was data we'd never seen before and that's what made us realize, 'Holy cow, things are gonna be much worse than anyone anticipates,'" Tilson says.

The trouble now is that the insanity didn't end with sub-primes. There were two other kinds of exotic mortgages that became popular, called "Alt-A" and "option ARM." The option ARMs, in particular, lured borrowers in with low initial interest rates - so-called teaser rates - sometimes as low as one percent. But after two, three or five years those rates "reset." They went up. And so did the monthly payment. A mortgage of $800 dollars a month could easily jump to $1,500.

Now the Alt-A and option ARM loans made back in the heyday are starting to reset, causing the mortgage payments to go up and homeowners to default.

"The defaults right now are incredibly high. At unprecedented levels. And there’s no evidence that the default rate is tapering off. Those defaults almost inevitably are leading to foreclosures, and homes being auctioned, and home prices continuing to fall," Tilson explains.

"What you seem to be saying is that there is a very predictable time bomb effect here?" Pelley asks.

"Exactly. I mean, you can look back at what was written in '05 and '07. You can look at the reset dates. You can look at the current default rates, and it's really very clear and predictable what's gonna happen here," Tilson says.

Just look at a projection from the investment bank of Credit Suisse: there are the billions of dollars in sub-prime mortgages that reset last year and this year. But what hasn't hit yet are Alt-A and option ARM resets, when homeowners will pay higher interest rates in the next three years. We're at the beginning of a second wave.

"How big is the potential damage from the Alt As compared to what we just saw in the sub-primes?" Pelley asks.

"Well, the sub-prime is, was approaching $1 trillion, the Alt-A is about $1 trillion. And then you have option ARMs on top of that. That's probably another $500 billion to $600 billion on top of that," Tilson says.

Asked how many of these option ARMs he imagines are going to fail, Tilson says, "Well north of 50 percent. My gut would be 70 percent of these option ARMs will default."

Edited December 16, 2008 by mikeandjoana

[sara..... 371]

from what i can say is if ur earnings are above the poverty level u do not have to include equity of ur home as part of the finances to show support then it wont hurt k1 visa. i could be wrong haven been before and sure i will be again

sara

[Zee Bee 61]

Unless you were going to use your house to meet the income guidelines you should be OK.

[CBR 0]

Ditto to what everyone said. I went through bankruptcy and home foreclosure during the k1 process. All they want to know is your income and see your past taxes. If you're above poverty lvl you're fine. If not you'll need a sponsor, foreclosure still won't be an issue.

[mikeandjoana 1]

Unless you were going to use your house to meet the income guidelines you should be OK.

Once I submit my bank statements with the I-134 it shows monthly payments to chase home finance. I'm not in foreclosure, but how am I supposed to avoid showing them a negative equity situation if that is the case?

What the heck am I supposed to submit? I'm pulling my hair out over this!

Edited December 16, 2008 by mikeandjoana

[CBR 0]

Why would you submit your bank statements?? You don't need to do that. Some people get a note/letter from their bank stating the date they opened their account and what their current balance is. There are no details on these "statements", it's not the statements you receive monthly from the bank. Don't offer that info, it's not necessary. I didn't and it wasn't asked for.

Is your income above poverty level? If so, submit only your past 3 years tax transcripts (or ful tax copies if you wish) w-2's, letter from employer stating how long you've worked there & current salary and you are good to go.

[mikeandjoana 1]

Why would you submit your bank statements?? You don't need to do that. Some people get a note/letter from their bank stating the date they opened their account and what their current balance is. There are no details on these "statements", it's not the statements you receive monthly from the bank. Don't offer that info, it's not necessary. I didn't and it wasn't asked for.

Is your income above poverty level? If so, submit only your past 3 years tax transcripts (or ful tax copies if you wish) w-2's, letter from employer stating how long you've worked there & current salary and you are good to go.

Ok, thanks for the advice. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now.

[mikeandjoana 1]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? I make 40,000 a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

Edited December 16, 2008 by mikeandjoana

[mikeandjoana 1]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? Let's say I make 38-48k a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

[lykatodd 0]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? I make 40,000 a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

I brought the bank statement of my fiance but the consul who did my interview never asked it..they only asked the W2 for 2 years and ITR for 2 years also of my fiance...

[pushbrk 13,124]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? I make 40,000 a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

The reference to your interest payments is a non-issue. Yes, submit the tax transcripts. Credit related issues including foreclosures are not evaluated for visa sponsorship. If you've kept your job, nothing related to your house is going to become a sponsorship issue. Just disregard this concern.

[mikeandjoana 1]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? I make 40,000 a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

The reference to your interest payments is a non-issue. Yes, submit the tax transcripts. Credit related issues including foreclosures are not evaluated for visa sponsorship. If you've kept your job, nothing related to your house is going to become a sponsorship issue. Just disregard this concern.

By tax transcripts, what do you mean? Should I send the entire packet I received after I filed my taxes from last year or just my W2's from work. The packet I got back from my tax guy is about 30 pages long, and I e-filed.

I'm a very abstract thinker. Please help.

[CBR 0]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? I make 40,000 a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

You're fine with your income (as long as you don't have more than 7 people in your household that you're supporting, lol).

Check out the Poverty Guidelines from USCIS

Definitely submit those tax transcripts too!! It doesn't take long to request them online or via phone and they send them to

you pretty quick.

I doubt they'll ask your fiance much about the affidavit. I'd just make sure she knows where you work,

understands what you do, and how much you make.

I don't know really how much the bank letter matters, but if you feel better having all your i's dotted & t's crossed just send it.

[CBR 0]

A tax transcript is an official document from the IRS which summarizes your tax return line by line. I called to get mine, but included a link for you below, to the request form in case you prefer that route. The USCIS info I've read states they actually prefer the transcripts.

You can obtain a transcript by calling (800)–829–1040 or by completing and mailing Form 4506-T (PDF), Request for Transcript of Tax Return, to the address listed in the instructions to request all types of transcript verification of non-filing, and wage/income information.

Form for requesting tax transcripts

Edited December 17, 2008 by CBR

[mikeandjoana 1]

The tax transcripts say that I've paid $17,000 in interest on my house loan this year, and it's out of state. There are millions of americans in the same boat I'm in right now. What do you recommend I do about that?

Should I only submit my W2's, bank letter, and letter of employment? I make 40,000 a year. How should my fiance handle this during her interview?

You're fine with your income (as long as you don't have more than 7 people in your household that you're supporting, lol).

Check out the Poverty Guidelines from USCIS

Definitely submit those tax transcripts too!! It doesn't take long to request them online or via phone and they send them to

you pretty quick.

I doubt they'll ask your fiance much about the affidavit. I'd just make sure she knows where you work,

understands what you do, and how much you make.

I don't know really how much the bank letter matters, but if you feel better having all your i's dotted & t's crossed just send it.

Thanks a million. I'll look for this in the packet I received from the tax guy from 2007 and 2006. I should send my originals, right?