Buying a House without Spouse

[Moore72]

Is it possible to buy a house without the spouse? Spouse has not-so-great credit and is not working; and thought we would get better rate if only I applied. If we can, can I add the spouse after closing to the property deed/title? We are looking at buying a house in Virginia (if that has any bearing on this).

[AMDG]

Once you sign the papers, you cannot usually make changes to them. I signed our first mortgage under my name only because of the same reasons. I asked the same question and I was answered with a resounding no. In the meantime, we are doing other things to build her credit so that the next time there is not as big of a discrepancy.

[SydneyLynn]

You can, in most cases, apply for the loan on your own. Your spouse does have to be on the deed to the home, but not on the mortgage. I have not been on either of our mortgages, not because my credit is bad, just because I have no income. You should have no trouble doing that as long as you are using your own income. You just cannot use your spouses income on your own loan.

[StephanieHerndon]

I have gotten loans for house and cars in my name alone, but on the deed/title had both our names on them. Good luck.

[slymember]

You can buy a car or a home with your credit alone and your name alone. You may acquire the loans in only one name and the deed/title have both names. Do consider that there may be considerations for the spouse in calculating loan burden even if they're not included in the loan processing, an example of this is student loans. If your spouse has student loans, but no income, it may be presumed that the burden of paying that loan falls to you and it could be factored into your debt to income ratio. This may not always be the case, but be aware of it--the spouses' credit would still have no bearing on your credit worthiness, but the debt-to-income ratio would increase possibly decreasing the amount you are eligible for. Putting one or both names on a document could have future implications if there was ever a divorce, but since it would be acquired as martial property, both spouses would be entitled to rights to the property regardless of who's name is on the deed/title so it could be eaiser to go with one name. (Disclaimer: this can vary from state to state, but after a few homes and marriages myself, I would say it's common place that both parties have rights in all assets acquired during marriage.)