In the process of building a new home and securing a new mortgage.
Anybody else who is refinancing or applying for a new mortgage getting hit with a question about ability to work remotely or at home.
Your employer needs to confirm you are allowed to maintain employment even if you cannot go to an office.
Doubt if that questions was out there 6 months ago.
This is a relatively new question that some lenders may be asking because of the large number of companies that have decided to allow staff to work remotely.
While the question itself may seem invasive, it's really nothing more than this particular lender trying to satisfy the GSE's (Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac) requirement to illustrate that you will continue to work and receive the income you provided on the initial application, going forward.
The GSE's require that a verification of employment (VOE) is conducted within 10 days of closing. With certain industries being shut down and some not, it's become a hot topic that has caused some investors to add additional requirements to "prove" or show that it's likely to continue. These are called additional overlays. Some have them some do not.
Here's the rub...if it were me, I'd ask the question "How can I prove that and what are you requiring me/my employer to provide?". Most of the time, the VOE itself will suffice and I've not heard of someone asking for something like this...but it doesn't surprise me.
In the end, they may simply be asking for you to say "yes, my employer has said that I can work remotely" and they are putting it in the file as an additional layer of risk mitigation. Although, at the end of the day, they know deep down that it doesn't really matter because the ONLY thing they are required to prove is that your employment is what you said it was on the initial application.
Edit: here's the thing to remember. It's their money...how they interpret certain secondary market requirements isn't debatable...it's their decision.
Edit 2: sorry, I see they want a letter. Not surprising.
