Financing, at Rate

Mike Oswald, VP of Mortgage Lending at

The refinance deadline in a divorce decree is only as real as the lender who checked the numbers first. Mike runs divorce refinances, buyouts and assumptions every month, and he will tell you before the decree is signed whether the loan is real. Lending to Colorado families since 2001.

Schedule a call with Mike Call or text Mike: (303) 917-6737 Start a refinance application Get pre-approved to buy

Call or text 303-955-4220. A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree.

Divorce refinance

One name on the loan by the deadline

Limited cash-out treatment on a buyout when the house was jointly owned 12 months. Up to 95 percent loan-to-value on some files.

Buyouts

Refinance, HELOC or assumption

Which one keeps the payment sane, and which one the decree will actually allow.

Support income

Counted, with the paperwork

The decree, six months of receipts, three years of continuance. Mike checks the dates before you sign.

Buying again

One income, real programs

CHFA, metroDPA, FHA, VA, conventional, and the contingent-liability rule for the old mortgage.

Mike Oswald

VP of Mortgage Lending, Rate · NMLS 261003 · Rate, Inc. NMLS 2611

Colorado native, lives in Parker, lending since 2001. Office at 1221 S Clarkson St, Suite 301, Denver, CO 80210. Programs include conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, jumbo, down-payment assistance, bank-statement loans, reverse mortgages and Rate’s Same-Day Mortgage. Rate is a national lender founded in 2000 with 850-plus branches, named a Fortune Best Mortgage Lender for 2025.

(303) 917-6737 mike.oswald@rate.com Rate profile

Why a divorce-aware lender

Most settlements assume one spouse will refinance and buy the other out within a few months. Almost nobody checks whether that spouse can qualify before the deadline is written down. Mike checks. He reads the draft decree, runs the buyout as the loan amount, counts the support income the way the agency rules allow, and tells you and your attorney whether the date is realistic. If it is not, you find out before the decree, not after.

What Mike handles on a divorce file

Refinance to remove a spouse

New loan in the staying spouse’s name, funding the buyout in the same loan. Fannie Mae treats a buyout as a limited cash-out refinance when the house was jointly owned 12 months, which allows higher loan-to-value and better pricing than a cash-out. Freddie Mac classifies it as cash-out. Which agency the file goes to matters, and Mike knows before you apply.

The buyout math

Assumptions and releases

FHA and VA loans are assumable with credit approval; conventional servicers must process the title transfer under a decree but may refuse to release the departing spouse. Mike knows which servicers say yes and how long it takes.

How assumptions work

Qualifying on support income

Maintenance and child support count with the decree, six months of receipts (three for FHA on court-ordered support) and three years of continuance from closing. Mike compares the decree’s end dates to the three-year rule before you rely on the income.

What income counts

The old mortgage on your credit

A mortgage assigned to your ex in the decree can be excluded from your debt ratio (Fannie Mae B3-6-05) with the decree in the file. Mike documents it so it does not block your next purchase.

Buying again

Down-payment help

CHFA grants and deferred seconds, metroDPA for the Denver metro with no first-time rule, and the displaced-homemaker rule for first-time status. Programs with income limits and a $1,000 contribution.

The programs

Reverse mortgages after 62

HECM to fund a buyout with no monthly payment, or HECM for Purchase for the departing spouse. Costs and trade-offs explained honestly.

When it fits

What to send Mike before the decree is final

The draft Property and Financial Agreement showing who keeps the house, the buyout amount, the refinance deadline and all support amounts and durations.
A current mortgage statement and payoff quote, and the same for any HELOC.
The written valuation or appraisal.
Two years of tax returns, recent pay stubs, and bank statements showing any support received.
Your credit, frozen or not. He will tell you when to lift the freeze.

Questions people ask Mike

Can I refinance while the divorce is pending?

Usually only with your spouse’s written consent or a court order, because of the automatic injunction, and most lenders want the entered decree before closing. Pre-approval before the decree is the point; closing usually follows it.

How long does a divorce refinance take?

About 30 to 45 days from application. Start the week the decree is signed, and get pre-approved before it is.

What rate will I get?

Rates change daily. The Freddie Mac 30-year average was 6.95 percent on September 17, 2026; your rate depends on credit, loan-to-value and the loan type. Mike quotes real numbers on a real file.

Do I have to use Mike?

No. You may use any lender you choose. Kenna receives no fee, payment or thing of value for introducing you to Mike; we work with him because he does this well.

Disclosure. Mike Oswald (NMLS 261003) is a loan officer with Rate, Inc. (NMLS 2611), an independent mortgage lender. The Kenna Real Estate Group at Keller Williams DTC is not affiliated with Rate and receives nothing for referrals. You are free to shop for and select any lender. This page is general information, not a loan offer; all loans subject to credit approval.

Twenty-five years of Colorado lending

Mike Oswald is a Colorado native who has been lending to Colorado families since 2001. Before joining Rate as VP of Mortgage Lending he was a branch manager and senior loan officer with New American Funding in the Denver Tech Center, and he has guided thousands of households through purchases and refinances, including the ones that happen in the middle of a divorce: the buyout refinance on one income, the FHA or VA assumption that keeps the old rate, the release of liability that finally takes a name off the loan. He lives in Parker, and when he is not on a file he is hiking, fly fishing or on a golf course.

On the Colorado Divorce Decisions Panel™ Mike holds the mortgage seat: he teaches the lending segment in person and on Zoom, and he pre-approves divorcing homeowners on the draft decree’s numbers so that a refinance deadline is real before it is signed. The presenters.

Ask Mike

Can I refinance to buy out my spouse on one income?

Often, with the decree, six months of support receipts and three years of continuance, and a debt ratio under about 45 percent. Mike runs the numbers on the draft decree, before the deadline is written. What counts.

Does maintenance or child support count as income?

Yes, under the agency rules: signed decree, receipts, and at least three years left to run. Child support can usually be grossed up about 25 percent.

Can I assume our FHA or VA loan instead of refinancing?

FHA and VA loans are assumable with the servicer’s approval; the leaving spouse gets a release of liability. It keeps the old rate. Mike will tell you whether your servicer will actually do it, and how long it takes.

My ex is on the mortgage but the decree says I pay. Will that stop me buying again?

Usually not: a mortgage assigned to your ex in the decree, or paid by your ex for 12 documented months, can be excluded from your ratios. Bring the decree.

How fast can you pre-approve?

Same day on a complete file. Ask for the pre-approval before the mediation, not after the decree sets a 60-day clock.

Do I have to use Rate?

No. You may use any lender you choose, and Kenna receives nothing for the introduction. Mike is the lender the team trusts because he runs these files every month.

Schedule a call with Mike Call or text (303) 917-6737 Start a refinance application

Lender disclosure. Mike Oswald, NMLS 261003, VP of Mortgage Lending, Rate, Inc. (NMLS 2611), 1221 S Clarkson St, Suite 301, Denver, CO 80210. Not a commitment to lend; all loans subject to credit approval. You may use any lender; The Kenna Real Estate Group receives nothing for this introduction. Sources for the bio: Rate loan-officer profile, New American Funding and Zillow lender profiles, and the Kenna Real Estate Group.

Where to go next

Call your Colorado divorce agent

Questions about the house, the deed or the decree?

Call us today to talk through your situation and how we can help. A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree.

Call today 303-955-4220 Download the free divorce-home guide

Ask about the loan

Tell us whether you are keeping the house, buying out, assuming, or buying again, and we will get you to Mike the same day. Or call him directly at (303) 917-6737.

Call or text 303-955-4220

A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree. Prefer email? homes@kennarealestate.com