I recently inherited a house. The mortgage lender said it’s required to determine my “ability to repay” before it will let me take over the mortgage loan. Is this true?

  Here are some common ways to get the title to a house:

• Inheritance
• Legal separation or divorce
• Other types of transfers:
  • Transfers to living trusts
  • Transfers from parents to children before the parent dies
  • Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship, when someone who co-owns a home with someone else gets full ownership when the other person dies
  • Other family-related transfers

Usually, when someone takes out a mortgage, a lender is required to make sure the borrower can repay the loan. This is called evaluating the borrower’s “ability to repay.” When the borrower already has the title to the house before they take on the mortgage loan, a lender or servicer is not required to evaluate the ability to repay the loan.

If you need advice for your situation, you may want to get help from a housing counselor. You can call (888) 995-HOPE (4673) to be connected to a HUD-approved housing counselor. You can also find a housing counselor near you.

If you have a problem with your mortgage, you can submit a complaint with the CFPB online or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).