It’s wild how granular they get with those questions. I’ve had buyers get tripped up over a $20 Venmo from a roommate—like, who’s laundering money in $20 increments? I get the compliance angle, but it feels like the rules were written before digital wallets became everyone’s go-to. Honestly, it slows down deals for no real reason. If anything, it just adds stress to an already stressful process. There’s got to be a smarter way to flag actual red flags instead of nitpicking every pizza night...
Title: Loan Questions Getting Out of Hand?
“I’ve had buyers get tripped up over a $20 Venmo from a roommate—like, who’s laundering money in $20 increments?”
I get what you’re saying, but I’m not sure it’s as pointless as it feels. When I bought my place last year, I was annoyed by the same thing—my lender wanted to know about a $35 PayPal from my sister for splitting groceries. At first, it felt ridiculous. But after talking to my loan officer, I realized they’re not really worried about the $20 or $35 itself. It’s more about making sure every dollar in your account is accounted for, so there’s no “unseasoned” money popping up last minute.
It’s definitely outdated, especially with how common Venmo and Zelle are now. But I guess the rules are there because people have tried to game the system in the past. If they just ignored small transactions, someone could technically funnel in a bunch of small deposits to hide a bigger issue. Not saying most of us would do that, but I can see why the banks are paranoid.
Still, I wish they’d update the process. Like, maybe set a higher threshold for what needs to be explained? Or at least have a way to flag recurring roommate payments as “normal” so you don’t have to write a letter every time you split a pizza. The stress is real, though. I remember scrambling to get a “gift letter” signed for $100 my mom sent me for groceries, just so underwriting wouldn’t freak out.
It’s a pain, but I guess it’s the price we pay for low interest rates and not having to put 50% down. I’d love to see some smarter tech in this space, though. Feels like there’s a middle ground between “explain every $20” and “let anything slide.”
Honestly, the whole thing cracks me up sometimes. I had to explain a $15 Venmo from my cousin for movie tickets—felt like I was on trial for a crime I didn’t commit. I get why they’re strict, but man, it’s exhausting. You’d think with all the tech out there, lenders could spot what’s normal and what’s sketchy without grilling us over pizza money. Maybe one day...
Honestly, I get what you mean—some of these underwriters act like every $10 transfer is a secret offshore account. But I wonder, would you rather have them be too strict or too loose with their checks? Ever had it actually stop a deal for you?
some of these underwriters act like every $10 transfer is a secret offshore account
Yeah, I’ve run into that too. It’s wild how they’ll flag the tiniest Venmo payment like you’re laundering money. Honestly, I’d rather they be a little too strict than too loose, just because if something goes sideways with the loan after closing, it’s a nightmare. But I get how frustrating it is when you’re just trying to move things along and they want a paper trail for every coffee you bought in the last three months.
Had one deal almost fall apart because I transferred money from my savings to checking right before closing. They wanted a letter explaining why I moved my own money... felt ridiculous at the time, but I get it now. If you know what they’re looking for, it helps to keep your accounts super clean during the process—no weird transfers, no big deposits unless you can document them. It’s a pain, but it keeps things from blowing up at the last minute.
