Jason’s Story: Solving a Debt-to-Income Challenge to Save an FHA Loan

My realtor friend Joanna called with a referral: a new client named Jason who was ready to buy a home. I reached out, we had a great first conversation, and Jason applied with us right away at www.thezteamok.com. He let us know upfront that for credit reasons, his wife would not be on the loan.

Jason moved fast, supplying every income document we requested and responding quickly to each follow-up. With over three years of documented overtime pay, his file was strong. We worked up his loan options, reviewed them together, and issued an FHA loan approval so Joanna could get his offer accepted.

Ten days into the loan process, Jason called with what he thought was good news: his employer had given him a raise and moved him from hourly to salary. No more overtime pay. Without that overtime income, his debt-to-income (DTI) ratio no longer worked for the loan.

My team and I got to work. Since Jason’s wife wasn’t on the loan, we looked at his other debts and found the fix: a large car payment weighing down his DTI. I made a few calls and found a banker willing to refinance the car into his wife’s name only. That solved the DTI problem and put the purchase back on track.

We closed on time. Jason, his wife, and both Realtors were thrilled.

Justin’s Story: Relocating Closer to Family in Fairland, OK

My team and I helped Justin buy his first home in Perry, Oklahoma, a few years ago. He recently called again, this time to help him buy a home in Fairland, Oklahoma, about two hours northeast of Perry. Most of Justin’s and his wife’s extended family lived near Fairland, and they wanted to be closer to family. With two young kids, it mattered to them that their children grow up surrounded by cousins and close family connections.

The first challenge: Justin and his wife wanted to keep their home in Perry while buying in Fairland, so they’d have time to move, get the property in shape, and list it on the market.

The second challenge was bigger. Justin’s wife had recently transitioned from a W-2 hourly position to 1099 self-employment. She hadn’t been self-employed long enough for that income to count toward the loan, which meant Justin had to qualify to support two homes on a single income, with razor-thin margin for error.

My team and I worked out a plan: shift the couple’s debt into his wife’s name only, except for the mortgage on their current home. Oklahoma isn’t a community property state, so we were able to separate their individual debts between spouses and bring Justin’s DTI in line.

The final hurdle was that Justin didn’t have a job near the new home yet. We worked directly with his employer and secured a letter confirming he could relocate without any change to his pay, which gave us the stability we needed. Justin was determined to make it work: he kept the Perry home, and thanks to a four-day work week, he’s able to commute to Fairland to qualify for the loan.

It took precise documentation and a lot of strategic planning, but Justin and his family are now settled into their new home near the community they wanted to be closer to.

Phyllis’s Story: A VA Cash-Out Refinance That Freed Up $1,183 a Month

About a year and four months after we helped Phyllis and her husband Mike buy the home they’d been renting from a friend, Phyllis called again. This time she wanted to run the numbers on a VA cash-out refinance to pay off $24,000 in personal debt.

VA loans allow homeowners to access up to 90% of their home’s equity in a refinance. That gave us the room to pay off their existing mortgage and the debt in one move, saving Phyllis and Mike $1,183 a month.

The appraisal became the hurdle. Phyllis and Mike live in a small town, where appraisals can be tricky to get right. The first report came back lower than it should have. My teammate Lindsay compared it against the appraisal from their original purchase and caught the problem: the new report understated the square footage and left out a shop building on the property entirely. Lindsay pushed back with the appraiser, the corrections were made, and the value came in higher than we’d hoped for going in.

Michael’s Story: Same-Day Approval Turns a Weekend Deadline Into a Closed FHA Loan

Michael called me late on a Thursday afternoon with a house he wanted to make an offer on before the weekend. I walked him through how we work and asked him to apply that day, letting him know that if he moved quickly, I could have an answer in time for his offer the next day.

By the next morning we had his application and every document we needed. My team reviewed everything and secured his approval by 2 p.m. that same day, in time for his offer to go in.

That evening, the seller sent back a counteroffer, and Michael called with questions. We talked it through, and he later told me how much he appreciated having someone take the mystery out of the process at exactly the moment he needed it.

Once the contract was accepted, we paired an OHFA down payment assistance product with an FHA loan and coached his Realtor on how much to negotiate from the sellers to cover closing costs. Michael brought less than $2,000 to closing.

Michael had been referred to us by a friend, and at closing he told me we’d delivered exactly what that friend promised. He and his wife love their new home.

Scotty’s Story: A 100% VA Loan That Gave a Veteran Room for His Dogs

Scotty called us on a friend’s referral after two frustrating experiences: a national lender who talked over him, and a local bank that wouldn’t work with him because he didn’t already bank there. He was ready to stop renting and find a home with room for himself and his three dogs, away from a cramped neighborhood. He also mentioned, almost in passing, that he was a Veteran.

We got him applied that day. When Scotty came in for his appointment, he brought his girlfriend along to help him ask the right questions. We spent 45 minutes going through his options until every question was answered, and he left with an approval letter in hand for his Realtor.

A month later, Scotty was under contract. We paired his 100% VA loan with seller-paid costs we’d negotiated into the deal, so he brought less than $5,000 to closing.

Thirty days after that, we closed at the title company. Scotty found a home just outside of town with a little extra land, plenty of room for his dogs, and everything he’d been looking for.

Eli’s Story: A Manual Underwrite Makes a First Home Possible in Cushing, OK

Eli walked into my office to see if we could help him buy a home, and before I could say much, he told me five lenders had already turned him away. I told him: challenge accepted. I promised not to do that to him.

Eli had found a home in Cushing, Oklahoma, with a payment close to what he was already paying in rent. He was in his early 20s with limited credit history, but what credit he had was paid on time. His scores were below what’s typically required for a USDA loan, though his income was steady and he’d been at his job over two years.

I found an investor who would complete a manual underwrite for someone in Eli’s situation. That let us issue his approval and get his Realtor moving. The manual underwriting process had its own hurdles, but we closed, and Eli was thrilled.

Six months later, Eli’s credit scores have climbed thanks to his new mortgage tradeline, and his home has appreciated nearly 10% since closing.

Kyle’s Story: Selling High-Interest Debt to Buy a Newer Home

A past client, Kyle, called me last August needing help figuring out his options. He owned his home with real equity in it, but he also owed $31,000 on credit cards costing him $935 a month, $10,000 on a vehicle costing him $311 a month, and had 11 small unpaid collection accounts with a 605 credit score. He wanted to know if he could still buy a home.

We confirmed with his Realtor that Kyle had roughly $55,000 in net equity in his current home. That gave us room to work with.

The plan: an FHA loan with a small down payment on the new home, while his Realtor sold his current home and negotiated seller-paid closing costs on the purchase. Kyle needed only about $13,000 out of pocket to close, and all of his other debt stayed untouched through underwriting.

A week after closing, Kyle used the remaining $42,000 from the sale of his old home to pay off his credit cards, settle all 11 collections, and pay off his car, eliminating $1,246 in monthly payments.

Eight months later, Kyle has no credit card debt, a 700+ credit score, and money in savings.

Brian’s Story: A Multi-Year Credit Rebuild That Ended in a $100K Gain

I first met Brian back in 2016. His credit scores were in the high 400s to low 500s, with old collection accounts and student loans he hadn’t paid in over ten years. He owned his car free and clear and had a little money saved. We built him a step-by-step plan to get from where he was to owning a home.

Step one was contacting the Department of Education to start paying his student loans. After three months of on-time payments, that debt changed from a collection to a normal account. Step two was using his car as collateral for a credit union loan. Those two moves improved his credit enough to secure a credit card, and he kept making every payment on time while saving steadily.

Brian reapplied at the end of 2019, and his credit score had climbed enough to qualify for an FHA loan. We issued his approval in January 2020, and he and his wife started house shopping.

After looking at more than 15 homes, they found the one: a 1970s home with large bedrooms, walk-in closets, and a golf course backing the property, recently updated by the previous owners. We paired an OHFA down payment assistance product with the FHA loan, and their Realtor negotiated seller-paid closing costs, so they brought no money to closing.

Today, Brian has excellent credit, and his home has appreciated by about $100,000 since closing.

Amber’s Story: An FHA Duplex Purchase That Built a Rental Portfolio

Amber called with a plan: she and her husband already owned land and were building their dream home, but they wanted to buy a duplex to live in during construction, and turn their current home into a rental once they moved out. Their priority was keeping cash out of pocket as low as possible.

After reviewing their income and assets, we got on a call and worked through the numbers together. Amber chose an FHA loan for the duplex purchase, which gave her the best combination of interest rate and minimum investment.

Since closing, Amber and her husband have broken ground on their new home. They’re living in half of the duplex and renting the other half for 60% of their mortgage payment, and their previous home is rented out too. Between all three units, their rental income now covers 100% of their current housing expenses. Once they move into the new home and rent out the rest of the duplex, the three units combined will add $9,000 a year in positive cash flow, roughly $90,000 over the next decade.

David and Deanna’s Story: From Lifelong Renters to Homeowners

A past client reached out asking me to help her friends, David and Deanna, who were ready to buy a home but had no idea where to start.

In our first conversation, I answered their questions and worked through the worry they had about past credit hiccups and their current scores. By the end of the call, they were ready to apply.

We reviewed their documents and scheduled an in-person consultation. David and Deanna were hardworking people with a long rental history who hadn’t thought homeownership was possible for them. I walked them through the entire process, and when I showed them their electronic approval, they could hardly believe it.

Their Realtor found them the perfect home and negotiated a great deal, and we wrapped up the whole transaction in under 30 days. At closing, David and Deanna told me the house felt like an answered prayer.

Kevin and Robin’s Story: A Cash-Out Refinance That Erased $41,000 in Debt

Robin called me and got right to it: she and her husband were paying over $2,000 a month toward credit card debt that wasn’t going down, and she wanted to know if a refinance could pull $41,000 in equity out of their home to pay it all off.

Their existing mortgage was 5 years old, an FHA loan at 5.25%, with a payment of $1,028.86. Thanks to three years of home appreciation, they had roughly $100,000 in equity to work with.

Their new loan came in at 6.49%, with a payment of $1,449.91, about $421 more per month than before. But it delivered $41,000 in cash at closing and wiped out 100% of their credit card debt, saving them $1,578.95 every month once the debt was gone. That’s nearly $19,000 a year back in their pocket.

Since closing, Kevin and Robin have been applying part of that monthly savings directly to their new mortgage’s principal, putting them on track to pay it off in just over 14 years and save more than $160,000 in interest. The rest is funding their first emergency fund and their travel budget.

James’s Story: Qualifying a Self-Employed Relocation to Oklahoma

James reached out from Georgia with a plan: relocate to Oklahoma and build his dream home. He’d recently become self-employed, which gave him the freedom to live anywhere. I explained the importance of seasoning his self-employment income, and he built his timeline around it.

After settling into a rental in Oklahoma, James ran into obstacle after obstacle trying to build, thanks to pandemic-driven supply chain delays and inflation. Almost ten months later, he called with bad news: his rental was being sold, and his plan to build was falling apart. He needed to buy a home immediately.

James applied and provided every tax return and document we needed. My team and I found the path: loan guidelines allow approval for someone newly self-employed if the work is in the same line as their previous job, and James’s new business came largely from his former employer’s industry. That was enough. We issued his approval, and he and his wife closed on a property with sprawling acres.

Bill’s Story: A Bank Statement Loan Gets a Self-Employed Buyer Into Yukon, OK

A client called wanting to sell his home and move to the Yukon, Oklahoma area for the schools. He’d recently married and was expecting his first child.

He applied and provided every document we needed, but as I reviewed his file, it was clear his tax returns didn’t support the income he needed for the price range he wanted to shop in. He was self-employed, and tax returns alone weren’t telling the full story.

As a broker, I can work with multiple lenders, which let me find one who would qualify him using bank statements instead. I pulled his last 12 months of business account statements, added them up, set aside a few large deposits unrelated to his self-employment income, and calculated a true income figure. The lender double-checked our math and accepted it.

We issued the approval, and Bill closed on his dream home in Yukon, in time to bring his new baby home to it.

Dakota’s Story: Using Overtime History From a Past Job to Increase Buying Power

A trusted Realtor partner referred Dakota, who’d already been approved for a mortgage by a local bank, but his approved amount fell short of the homes he actually wanted.

Digging into his file, I found that Dakota had only been at his current job three months, with mandatory overtime every pay period. His bank hadn’t counted any of that overtime, since standard guidelines require two years of consistent overtime history at a job. But that wasn’t the whole picture: Dakota had also worked steady overtime at his previous job for more than two years.

That history was the key. I confirmed with underwriting that it could count, which meant Dakota’s real purchasing power was significantly higher than his original approval showed. We issued a new approval that let him shop in his preferred price range, and his Realtor got him under contract right away.

April and Todd’s Story: Turning a Construction Loan Into a VA Home Loan

April and Todd bought 47 acres during a challenging economic stretch, determined to build their dream home. Three years into the project, they came to me to make sure their financing was ready for the finish line.

What was supposed to be a 9 to 12 month build turned into 27 months once the pandemic and rising mortgage rates hit. Through it all, April’s steady, adaptable approach kept the project moving. Home values also climbed more than 30% during that stretch, building real equity into the property before it was even finished.

As the house neared completion, we revisited the permanent loan plan. Rates had climbed more than 4% since our first conversation, changing the math on a conventional loan. But Todd’s veteran status opened the door to a VA loan, and the property’s appreciation meant we could borrow up to 90% of its appraised value.

That VA loan paid off their entire construction loan and eliminated 100% of their other debt, leaving them with just the new mortgage. The savings from clearing their other debt largely offset the higher rate environment.

Jeff and Kassie’s Story: A USDA Loan Backed by Careful Income Documentation

Almost a year before they were ready to buy, Jeff reached out to ask what it would take to qualify for a home loan. We mapped out a credit and savings plan to get them there.

Nine months later, their landlord gave them an ultimatum: buy the home they were renting, or it would go on the market. Jeff and his wife Kassie had followed our plan closely and were ready.

They were drawn to a USDA loan, which offers 100% financing for eligible rural and suburban buyers with low to moderate incomes. The hurdle was that Kassie’s part-time income was essential to qualifying, and USDA guidelines require proof that income is stable and likely to continue. We flagged that requirement upfront, and Kassie gathered every pay stub, W-2, and record needed to demonstrate it.

That documentation carried the loan to Clear to Close, and Jeff and Kassie bought the home they’d been renting.

Mike and Samantha’s Story: Saving a Closing After a Layoff Mid-Process

Mike and Samantha came to us after a rough experience with another lender, poor communication and figures that didn’t add up. Samantha had accepted a position at Oklahoma State University, and Mike worked remotely and could relocate with a letter from his employer. We reviewed their documents and issued their approval quickly.

They found a home under contract fast, and our team had them Clear to Close 10 days ahead of schedule. Then Mike was laid off in a large-scale reduction, just as everything seemed settled.

Our processor Lindsay proposed restructuring the loan into Samantha’s name alone. She rebuilt the file from the ground up, recalculating debts and assets, and found a path that preserved both the approval and the original closing date.

Chris and Stacy’s Story: Financing an Accessory Dwelling Unit for a Veteran’s Family

Chris, a veteran, and his wife Stacy wanted a home with an accessory dwelling unit on a shared parcel, giving their family a layout that supported the independence and closeness they needed. Other lenders had turned them down over how the property was structured.

My processor Lindsay and I took on the file and worked through the guidelines that applied to a split-parcel property like theirs. The process required a survey to split the parcels, new utility accounts, address changes, and updated legal descriptions, layers of complexity most loans never touch.

Working closely with the sellers and both Realtors, we cleared each hurdle one at a time until the property, and the loan, were ready to close.

Trenton’s Story: A Three-Year Title Dispute That Finally Closed

Trenton’s purchase started as a routine loan, until a title report revealed a boundary line dispute involving a neighboring homeowner’s mortgaged property. The encroachment had to be resolved before either mortgage could be released and the land re-surveyed, and the fix only became possible once the neighboring property sold and the corrective paperwork became part of that transaction.

Three years later, the title issue finally cleared. But by then, Trenton had been laid off and his credit had slipped. Using credit-building software our team has access to, we gave him a specific plan to raise his scores, and within a month, they were where we needed them. His parents stepped in to co-sign, resolving the remaining income gap.

With the listing agent, buyer’s agent, sellers, and Trenton all still committed three years in, we closed the loan.

Michael’s Story: A New Career and a Hiring Letter That Made a Fast Move to Tulsa Possible

A Realtor friend sent Michael my way after he left a 10+ year career as a systems analyst in higher education to become a financial planner, a field with no track record behind him. Other lenders told him he’d need to wait two years to qualify. Michael’s new job was pulling him toward Tulsa, and waiting two years to buy wasn’t an option, especially once he and his wife learned they were expecting their first child.

My team dug into the guidelines and found the detail that mattered: his hiring letter guaranteed his base salary for three years. That was enough to satisfy loan requirements, and I issued his pre-approval.

They found a buyer for their current home and made an offer on a new one contingent on that sale, only for the sale to fall through and the new home to sell to another buyer. Michael paused the search. A few months later, once their old home sold, they picked it back up, found another home that checked every box, and because their file was already fully documented, we moved fast. They closed just before the holidays.

Michael and Kathy’s Story: Qualifying an Investment Property on Retirement Income

Michael and Kathy wanted to buy an investment property for their son, but another bank turned them down over high debt-to-income ratios. Their Realtor pointed them to us.

Their file was complicated: multiple properties and a reliance on fixed retirement income, with a short runway before that income would be locked in. My processor Lindsay worked through the guidelines to find a path that didn’t require standard tax return documentation, which their situation couldn’t fully support.

That approach cleared the DTI and income hurdles, and Michael and Kathy closed on the investment property they wanted for their son.

Katrina and Kim’s Story: A Cross-Country Relocation From New York to Oklahoma

Katrina called, referred by her aunt Chris, a past client we’d helped multiple times. She and her partner Kim were ready to leave New York for Oklahoma as soon as their home sold, but their contract’s closing date kept slipping.

Kim needed a job in Oklahoma matching her prior experience before we could move forward. We stayed in close touch for three months until Kim landed a position, and the family, including their kids and a pet, packed into an RV and made the drive to Oklahoma to wait it out.

Once their New York sale finally had a scheduled closing date, we issued their approval and the house search began. They went under contract in late November, and thanks to a responsive team on both sides, we closed in just 15 days, in time for the holidays.

Christina and Devin’s Story: Rebuilding Credit After a Layoff to Buy Again With a USDA Loan

Christina and Devin had to sell their home after Devin was laid off and Christina was navigating full-time student life during the pandemic, a stretch that left dents in their credit. Over the next two years, they both landed positions at the university and started rebuilding.

When they were ready to buy again, their credit history, including some late payments, meant we needed a manual underwrite, which calls for deeper documentation and a full look at their financial history. Their on-time rent payments, two years of stable income, and steadily increasing residual income all worked in their favor, even with limited savings.

A USDA loan gave them 100% financing, and that was the piece that made the numbers work.

Eric Zanotelli

About Me

1. 30 Years of Experience and 3,300+ Families Helped

2. He Takes the Mystery Out of the Home Buying Process

3. A Loan Problem Solver Who Maximizes Your Advantages

4. Deep Oklahoma Roots and Local Market Knowledge

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