Time was ticking away. I had some turnovers that day and my shot—usually reliable, sometimes infallible—just wasn’t working. 

My coach pulled me aside and said, “Just get out there and go for it. The past doesn’t matter. Everybody makes mistakes, that’s why pencils have erasers.”

Needless to say, that was a moment from childhood that stuck with me, and it seems especially relevant to the new seasoning requirements for people who have faced a foreclosure, bankruptcy or short sale. People deserve a second chance sometimes, but the forgiveness is not unconditional. There are some guidelines and requirements that borrowers with a short sale, foreclosure or bankruptcy on their credit report have to meet in order to qualify for the purchase of a home or an investment property.  

For some of the major lending institutions, the seasoning requirements for various types of mortgage loans available to real estate buyers and investors are:

• Conventional – The guidelines to obtain a conventional loan are among the most stringent. Borrowers with a foreclosure on their record will have to wait seven years from the date of completion. Those with a bankruptcy in their past will have to wait a minimum of two years from the date of discharge, and four years from the dismissal date. Buyers with a history of a short sale have to wait four years from completion.
• FHA – The requirements to secure an FHA loan are not as severe. Three years is the magic number for borrowers with a foreclosure on their record. Buyers with a Chapter 13 bankruptcy in their background will need to show satisfactory payment performance over the course of a year and also obtain permission from the court. Those with a Chapter 7 in their past will need to wait two years from discharge. For borrowers with a short sale, there is no seasoning period, provided they have made all their payments on time for the 12 months prior to the short sale, and made all their payments on time for the 12 months preceding the loan application for the new mortgage.
• VA – Borrowers with a foreclosure in their past will have to wait two years. The guidelines for those with a bankruptcy are the same as with FHA. Those with a short sale in their past will have to wait two years.
• USDA – The guidelines for USDA borrowers are exactly the same as with VA, except the seasoning policy for borrowers with a foreclosure is three years instead of two.
• Jumbo – Borrowers with a prior credit issue will have to wait seven years.
• Fresh Start – As the name implies, this loan has the least stringent guidelines. There is no seasoning requirement for borrowers with a foreclosure, bankruptcy or short sale in their past.
• Homeowner’s Access – This is another loan with guidelines that are not as strict as many other options. In general, borrowers who have experienced a credit problem in the past will have to wait two years before securing this type of loan.