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◆ Spotlight
◆ DEBT & CREDIT
Your Debt-to-Income Ratio: What Lenders Actually Measure
Lenders care more about your DTI than your credit score when approving a mortgage. Here is how the ratio works, where the thresholds sit, and how to move yours.
- DTI = total monthly debt payments divided by gross monthly income. It measures current capacity, not past behavior.
- Below 36% is considered healthy by most lenders. Above 43% is where mortgage approvals get difficult.
- Fannie Mae caps manually underwritten loans at 36%, with exceptions up to 45% for strong credit profiles.
◆ HISTORICAL CASE STUDIES
What Was the 2008 Financial Crisis?
How a flood of bad mortgages, a broken rating system, and one catastrophic September morning in 2008 nearly brought down the global financial system.
◆ FED & MONETARY POLICY
What Is Quantitative Easing?
A monetary policy tool where the central bank buys large quantities of government and mortgage securities to inject money into the economy when interest rates…
◆ INVESTING BASICS
House Hacking: Buy a Home, Rent Rooms, Build Equity While Living There
How house hacking works, mortgage financing advantages, tenant selection, and building wealth from day one of homeownership.
◆ DEBT & CREDIT
What Is an Interest Rate?
An interest rate is the price of borrowing money. How the Fed sets it, what moves your personal rate, and what a 1-point difference costs on a $300k mortgage.