Rent-to-Own is a great way to purchase a home, especially if you have trouble buying a home through a traditional bank. Those with poor credit, lack a down payment, have a short credit history or no credit history often have difficulty qualifying for a home mortgage.

With Rent-to-Own, you, as the renter, agree to buy the home at a future date at a price that is agreed upon today. You get to “lock in” your price and stop throwing away money on just renting!

Our Rent-to-Own program gives you time to develop or improve your credit history. If you’re a business owner, it gives you the required “seasoning” time required by most banks. You will get connected with our fully vetted credit enhancement team and our preferred lenders, making it easy to qualify for a traditional mortgage by the end of your lease term.

In most cases, a Rent-to-Own agreement is a contract on a property that works like a lease and leads to a purchase. It’s often called a lease with an option – or a lease/option agreement for short.

The lease portion is a standard rental agreement that includes monthly rent, security deposit, and other typical terms.

The option in the contract gives you the right to purchase the property after a set time period – usually around 3 years. This gives you the ability to save money towards a down payment, repair credit, increase your income, or otherwise improve your ability to qualify for a mortgage.

Most of the time people use a traditional mortgage loan to purchase the property prior to the expiration of the option period, but there are other options if your financial situation has unique needs.

Rent to own isn’t for everyone but it can be a great path to homeownership for many potential homeowners. You may very well be in the 82% of potential home buyers that currently can’t walk into a bank today and get a mortgage. Rent to own may be the right option for you if you are:

There are a lot of benefits of a Rent-to-Own agreement!

In California, many successful people are using Rent-to-Own agreements as a way to get the home of their dreams… without having to qualify for a bank loan right away.

In the past few years, banks have been very tight on their lending criteria. Most people who use a Rent-to-Own agreement want a few years to get ready to qualify.

Here are a few more reasons to use a rent-to-own agreement:

• Try before you buy. You get to live in your rented home before you actually purchase it. This gives you time to make sure it’s truly your dream home. If you don’t like the house, you don’t have to complete the purchase.
• Own without great credit or a big down payment. You can start feeling like a homeowner right away while saving up and improving your credit.
• Financial Privacy. You’re not listed as the purchaser on any public records until the closing takes place, giving you years of privacy.
• Move in fast. Since you don’t have to wait for a mortgage, you can often move in right away – and get started living a new life in the home of your dreams!

Have you had a setback (divorce, job loss, unexpected medical expenses) that has damaged your credit? If you have a steady income and recovering from a credit crisis, Rent-to-Own may be the perfect solution for you now.

Often self-employed individuals are penalized by lending institutions. You may have great income, but an even better CPA that has been able to reduce your income “on paper”. That is a problem for banks. If you have a well-established, self-employment history, Rent-to-Own is a great way to establish your credit worthiness and build your down payment.

If you are young, or new to the job market, or recently divorced and don’t have a credit history of your own, Rent-to-Own is a great way to build up a down payment while developing a credit history that will make it more likely you will qualify for a mortgage.

Rent-to-Own is a great way to become a homeowner if you need time to become mortgage ready. Many people are derailed in their quest for home ownership by serious life events, like a death in the family, a divorce or maybe even a bankruptcy. Rent-to-Own gives you time to get back on track, improving your ability to obtain a mortgage.

Your credit score is made up of five components:

• Your payment history (35%)
• The amount you owe (30%)
• The length of your credit history (15%)
• The type or credit (10%)
• Credit you’ve recently added (10%)

Your payment history and the amount you owe make up 65% of your score, so a Rent-to-Own program gives you time to improve these two important components of your credit score. By paying your bills on time and reducing the amount you owe, your credit score will improve.

For those who don’t have much credit history (young buyers or divorced buyers who don’t have a credit history of their own), Rent-to-Own gives you the opportunity to establish yourself as a good credit risk.

 You must be at least 18 years old, but there are no upper age restrictions. You are never too old to own a home.  Your marital status and preference are not issues either.

Credit reporting bureaus also put more weight on your most recent credit activity. Over time, missed payments, defaults and bankruptcies will have less of an impact on your score.

Your credit score is a measure of your credit worthiness. It is a mathematical formula that calculates the likelihood that you will pay back any money you owe.

There are many companies that track your credit but the three main credit bureaus in the U.S. are Equifax, Experian and Trans Union.  The three credit bureaus collect information from lenders, collection agencies and court records.

The credit bureaus keep tabs on how much you owe and your payment history, including how often payments are late. They track your credit use over time to get an indication of how well you use credit and predict the odds that you’ll pay back the money you borrow.

The score ranges from 300 to 850 with “good credit” starting around 700 and “bad credit” below 600. While your credit score isn’t the only factor in getting approved for loan, those with good credit are more likely to get approved…and with the better interest rates.  For those with bad credit, you are more likely to get denied or must pay higher interest rates and fees.

The Rent-to-Own process is simple.

Once you’ve seen one of our fantastic properties, we’ll give you an application to fill out.

Don’t worry – we help people with all kinds of credit and financial situations, and if you can afford the property, we can probably help you to own it.

After you’re approved to rent the property, just sign the lease, pay your security deposit and rent – then move on in!

Your lease/option agreement (also known as the Rent-to-Own contract) will spell out the length of time that you have to complete the purchase of the property – typically 2-3 years, but in certain circumstances, we may extend your option if you need more time.

The purchase of your home usually takes place through a traditional mortgage loan, but there are other ways to complete the purchase, depending on your finances.

That’s the Rent-to-Own process!

Once you’ve completed your mortgage, you’re done – now you own your home!

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At HomeFetchers, we take several factors into consideration to get approved for our Rent-to-Own homes.  In addition to credit score, we look at income, down payment, job or business history, and patterns.

Sometimes the reason for the lower credit score was through no fault of your own.  Or it was something that happened a long time ago, but just hasn’t fallen off your report yet.  Many people were affected by the mortgage crisis that started in 2007.

We don’t rely on computers for approval.  In the end, we rely on the human element to make our decisions.  No guilt, no shame, no embarrassment. 

So… go ahead, APPLY NOW