St. Louis Mortgage Rate Update; Do I need to sell my home to buy another?

MAYBE…Many of my clients and prospects outgrow their current home, or relocate due to a job transfer.  Regardless of the motivation for keeping one property while purchasing another, let’s address this question with the mortgage approval in mind:

Do I Have To Sell? No you do not have to sell if you are in a financial position where you qualify, i.e. Debt-to-Income Ratio is satisfactory and on paper you can afford both your current residence and the proposed payment on the new home.  However, the borrower in this case must give consideration to other or additional expenses when maintaining multiple properties…increased property taxes, insurance costs, maintenance, un-expected repairs when making that decision.

What If I Rent My Current Property? If you’re not quite qualified to carry both mortgages, you may have to rent your current property in order to offset the mortgage payment.

In the old days, the lender would typically count 75% of the monthly rent you are proposing to receive on your current home. However, current requirements require at least 25% equity in your current home before any expected rental income can be counted to offset your current housing expense.  So if you are going to receive $1000 a month in rent and your current payment is $1500, the lender is going to factor in an additional $750 of monthly liabilities in your overall Debt-to-Income Ratios if you have at least 25% equity in your home.

In addition, many lenders require six months reserves on the old property, as well as six month reserves on the new property.  So, if you have a $1000 payment on your old house and a $1500 on your new home, you would need to show $15,000 in reserve.  Reserve requirements are incremental to the down payment on the new property.

What If I Can’t Qualify Based On Both Mortgage Payments? This answer is pretty straightforward: you will have to sell your current home before buying a new one.

Although every situation is unique, it is not uncommon for homebuyers to qualify for a mortgage on a new home while still living in their primary residence…it just depends.

St. Louis MORTGAGE INTEREST RATES for March 28, 2012:

  • Conventional 30-Year Fixed 4.125%/ 4.320% APR
  • Conventional 15-Year Fixed 3.250%/ 3.390% APR
  • Conventional 5/1 ARM 2.750%/ 3.019% APR
  • FHA/VA 30 Year Fixed 3.750%/ 3.991% APR
  • Jumbo 5/1 ARM 2.75%/ 3.01% APR
  • Jumbo 15 yr Fixed 3.375%/ 3.630% APR
  • Jumbo 30 yr Fixed 4.750%/ 5.010% APR

*The above mortgage rates are based upon an 80% LTV, o/o single family with FICO scores of 720.

Paramount Mortgage is a locally owned Mortgage Banker celebrating our 41st year. Great rates and programs are secondary to what is most desired in a lender relationship: Integrity, Communication and Customer Satisfaction. Be to check out our website: www.paramountmortgage.com

For more information or if you have questions on mortgage rates you may contact me by phone at my direct line, (314) 372-4319, email at rfishel@paramountmortgage.com or you can visit our company website at http://www.paramountmortgage.com.

 

📬 Stay Ahead of the St Louis Market

Get local real estate updates, trends & insights — as soon as they publish.

Homeowners, buyers, investors & agents rely on us for what really matters in STL real estate.

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

📬 Want St Louis real estate updates as they drop?

Leave a Reply

St Louis Real Estate Search®         St Louis Home Values

St. Louis Real Estate News        Contact Us

Copyright © 2026 Missouri Online Real Estate, Inc. - All Rights Reserved
St Louis Real Estate News is a Trademark of Missouri Online Real Estate, Inc.

Missouri Online Real Estate, Inc. 3636 South Geyer Road - Suite 100, St Louis, MO 63127 314-414-6000 - Licensed Real Estate Broker in Missouri

The owner and authors this site are providing the information on this web site for general informational purposes only and make no representations, warranties (expressed or implied) or guarantees of any kind whatsoever, as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or of any information found by following any link on this site. Furthermore, the owner and authors of this site will not be liable in any manner whatsoever for any errors or omissions in information on this site, nor for the availability of this information. Additionally the owner and authors of this site will not be liable for for any losses, injuries or damages in any way from the display or use of this information or as the result of following external links displayed on this site, or by responding to advertisements displayed, or contained, on this site In using this site, users acknowledge and agree that the information on this site does not constitute the provision of legal advice, tax advice, accounting services, investment advice, or professional consulting of any kind nor should it be construed as such. The information provided herein should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional tax, accounting, legal, or other competent advisers. Before making any decision or taking any action on this information, you should consult a qualified professional adviser to whom you have provided all of the facts applicable to your particular situation or question. None of the tax information on this web site is intended to be used nor can it be used by any taxpayer, for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer.
All of the information on this site is provided as is, with no assurance or guarantee of completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of the information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose.
This site contains external links to other sites not owned or controlled by the owner of this site, therefore the owner of this site does not control or guarantee in any manner the accuracy or relevancy of any information obtained through following such links. Links contained on this site are for users convenience and users should exercise extreme caution when following links. Including a link on this site does not constitute an endorsement of the site linked to or any views or opinions expressed on the site, products or services offered on outside sites or the companies or organizations that own and operate outside sites.
This site may accept payment for advertising, for displaying advertisements, through affiliate relationships with companies or may receive referral fees or commissions from companies as a result of recommending or referring people to a website. This site may also accept free product samples, free services, gift cards or cash to review a product or service. All paid and sponsored content may not always be identified as such. Any product claim, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider.