Student Loans and Debt to Income Ratio

Yes student loan payments would factor into the D part of the DTI ratio. Have you worked to complete your REBNY statement?

I assumed as much. A broker I met insisted that it didn't matter for purposes of the standard 25% DTI ratio sought by most boards; that they look at the overall financial picture but when the building looks at whether you meet their income requirements, they 25% (let's say) is only a matter of your income and mortgage and maintenance. This didn't seem right to me, so I wanted to post here to confirm. Thx.

You may find that some buildings think of it in two separate but related metrics -- they may want your housing expense to be a certain ratio, say 25%, and also want your overall DTI ratio to also be a manageable % but allow it to be slightly higher. Regardless, that broker is at minimum not giving you the whole story.

uptown_joe, I agree. That' why I posted the question here, hoping for someone with board experience to chime in. Broker insisted that this was the case for ALL buildings, which is what set off red flags for me. If it was just a specific building being referenced, I'd be less inclined to question it.

Most coop boards will look at both the front end and the back end of your DTI. The front end just includes your housing payments, back end would be inclusive of that and all monthly debits including student loans, gym memberships if they're automatically deducted, minimum credit card payments on revolving accounts etc. A typical NY board will require a DTI with a 25/30 split though some are less restrictive. Unless you misunderstood what that broker said I'd probably find another one to represent me.

Sounds like your broker is basically encouraging you to lie to create a more attractive board package. Mine did this too (using last year's bonus as part of this year's guaranteed income), I'm sure it's common.

I'd say ignore the broker, put everything on the package properly broken out (with statements, etc), and let the board decide for themselves on what they're like to include and exclude from their calculations.

Student loans should always be included in the DTI calculation unless the purchase application specifically asks for only housing related expenses.

Is income your AGI or after tax, or something else?