Can monthly trailer park payments be used as rental history when you apply for a mortgage?

By Harry Jensen, Trusted Mortgage Expert with 45+ Years of Experience

Edited by Michael Jensen, Mortgage and Finance Guru

Updated October 20, 2020

As long as you can demonstrate that the trailer park or campground was your permanent residence, then the monthly payments can be used as rental history when you apply for a mortgage. In an ideal scenario, your monthly housing payments -- be it for a mortgage, the rent, a trailer park or a campground -- appear on your credit report but we recognize this is relatively uncommon if you rent your home or pay trailer park or campground fees.

In this case, you are usually required to provide the lender cancelled checks, bank statements or account statements that verify that you made the monthly rental payments on time. Most lenders require that you demonstrate a track record of making your housing payments on time for twelve consecutive months to qualify for a mortgage.

If you cannot provide a twelve month residence history, including proof of payments, or if you incurred late payments during that time period it may be challenging to qualify for a mortgage. In some cases you may be able to provide the lender a letter of explanation that addresses the issue while in other cases you may be required to wait until you establish the required residence on time payment history before you apply for a mortgage.

Additionally, if you have multiple late housing payments over the past year, you may be required to wait longer than twelve months to apply for a mortgage, depending on other qualification factors including your credit score, debt-to-income ratio, down payment and employment history.

Review Mortgage Qualification Requirements

Our first recommendation is to get your payment documentation in order. The more detailed the paper trail you can provide when you apply for a mortgage the better, especially if you have an unconventional living situation. It may take some time to track down cancelled checks or account statements so it is good to organize this information early in the process.

We also advise you to contact multiple lenders to understand how they would handle your unique situation. It is important that you understand the lender’s residence history policy and verification requirements before you apply for the mortgage.

When you speak with lenders, review your situation and ask them to explain to you the specific steps that you need to take to get your mortgage approved, including the documents you are required to provide based on your residence history. If possible, request that the lender puts this information in writing so there is no confusion after you apply for the loan.

The last thing you want is for the lender to request documentation that you may not be able to provide after you submit your loan application. This could end up costing you a lot of time, money and wasted effort.

The table below shows mortgage terms for leading lenders in your area. Lender qualification guidelines for an applicant’s residence history may vary so we recommend that you contact at least five lenders. Shopping multiple lenders is also the best way to save money on your mortgage.

Sources

"B3-6-05, Monthly Debt Obligations, Rental Housing Payment."  Selling Guide: Fannie Mae Single Family.  Fannie Mae, February 5 2020.  Web.