Elise, When obtaining a mortgage the lender calculates what your mortgage payment with taxes and insurance will be monthly plus any other recurring monthly obligations ie; car payment, doctor bill; child support. credit cards, etc. Also, the number in the family. If you would like more info, please contact me and I will give you email addresses of a couple lenders in the area. There is a ratio of income to debt that determines how much house one can qualify for. Hope this helps.

Elise,

If you still need mortgage help let me know and I can provide you with an excellent reference to a great loan officer. I have many overseas clients and he is an expert getting them mortgages. Some other answers offered that you need US credit, but we've often been able to get international credit reports and other financial information. He's working with one Polish client now and we just closed on a loan for a Mexican National who had no US credit history. I'm not sure why, but not all loan officers seem skilled in working through the issues or have knowledge of what is needed to do a loan for an otherwise credit worthy client, but that doesn't have the typical US credit history and support.

Welcome to Texas.

Hello Elise,
In order to qualify for a mortgage, you must have a job. If you are moving here, an offer letter from your employer should suffice. It must state your income, job permanence and various other general information.

After that, hoe much you can afford will be based on your debt to income ratio. Usually this cannot exceed 28-40% based on your credit history. Say you make $5,000 a month. At 33% D/I, your mortgage payment can be no more than $1,650. The loan officer will calculate this against your downpayment and come up with a loan amount you can qualify for.

I am not versed in how credit may or may not transfer internationally, but I do know some pretty smart lenders. If you are looking for a home in San Marcos, I can assist you in your search and hook you up with a loan officer. If you would like my assistance, please contact me through my profile. In the meantime, you may use my website below to search for your San Marcos home.

Good Luck! Oh, what part of the UK are you from? My friend spent a summer traveling all over the island. The pictures were incredible!

Hi Elise!
You need to establish some credit here.
You can get a 'secured visa' card. Or maybe someone here can co-sign a loan for you?
You may have toi rent a while.