Michigan Gives You Three Dates to Line Up, Not Two
Program and regulatory figures verified October 9, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
Everywhere else this is a two-date problem: when you close, and when you start. Michigan physicians applying for loan repayment have four dates in play.
The rule itself
A physician mortgage qualifies you on a signed employment contract rather than on pay stubs from a job that has not begun. The contract must show:
- a start date, no more than 150 days after the note date, and
- compensation defined over at least a 12-month period.
Agency underwriting runs on roughly 90 days between closing and the start of employment. The physician programme extends it to 150. An offer letter saying compensation is "to be determined" is not a qualifying document.
★★ The Michigan complication
If you are also applying for MSLRP, you are coordinating four fixed dates, and only one of them is yours to move:
| Date | What it is | Who controls it |
|---|---|---|
| ★ 30 April 2026 | MSLRP application closes, incomplete means screened out for the year | MDHHS |
| July 2026 (typical) | Academic employment start | your employer |
| ★ 1 October 2026 | MSLRP agreements begin | MDHHS |
| Your closing | must sit within 150 days before the start date | ★ you |
★ Work backwards from a July start and the 150-day window opens around February. That overlaps the MSLRP application window almost exactly, which is the practical reason to get the loan conversation started before, not after, you assemble the application.
★ Why the overlap matters to the file
MSLRP changes the debt behind your mortgage, but the agreement does not begin until 1 October. If you close in spring, the award is a future event at the moment your file is underwritten.
We are not going to pretend that is the same as having it. What it does mean is that your lender should know it is coming, because it changes the sensible shape of the loan, and because a physician who is awarded $300,000 over ten years has a different long-run picture than the training-year balance on their credit report suggests. How student debt is treated.
What the contract has to show
- The start date of employment, no more than 150 days after the note date.
- Salary or compensation covering at least a 12-month period.
- It must be signed. A draft, a verbal, or a letter of intent is not the document.
★ Contingencies are where files fail. A contract contingent on your medical licence or on ordinary administrative items such as background checks and drug testing is normal. One contingent on board certification, on credentialling beyond those items, or on a funding or probationary decision needs reviewing before you rely on it.
What still has to be true
The 150-day rule relaxes the timing of income, not the rest of the file: credit and income review, property qualification, the student-debt treatment, and cash at closing all still apply.
Send the contract early
Not when you are under contract on a house, when you receive it. In an Ann Arbor or Grand Rapids July intake, the difference between reviewing it in February and reviewing it in May is the difference between buying this year and renting another one. Why Ann Arbor concentrates this.
Mike Certo, NMLS #260555. (480) 296-6513 · mcerto@cfmtg.com.
Frequently asked questions
How early can a physician loan close before the start date?
Up to 150 days before the employment start date, on a signed employment contract showing a start date and compensation over at least a 12-month period. Agency underwriting works on roughly a 90-day runway, so a spring closing against a July academic start typically falls outside agency guidelines but inside the physician programme.What dates does a Michigan physician need to coordinate?
Four, if applying for loan repayment. The MSLRP application window closes April 30, 2026 and an incomplete package is screened out for the year; academic employment typically starts in July; MSLRP agreements begin October 1, 2026 and run through September 30, 2028; and the mortgage closing must sit within 150 days before the employment start date.Does an MSLRP award help me qualify for a mortgage?
Not directly at the time of closing, because agreements do not begin until October 1 and an award is a future event when a spring file is underwritten. It matters because it changes the long-run debt picture behind the file, so a lender should know it is pending when structuring the loan.What must a physician employment contract show?
The start date of employment, no more than 150 days after the note date, and salary or compensation covering at least a twelve-month period. The contract must be signed; a draft, a verbal agreement or a letter of intent does not qualify. Contingencies limited to your medical licence or normal administrative items such as background checks are ordinary, while a contingency on board certification or a funding decision needs review.Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about physician mortgage financing, not a loan commitment and not legal, tax or financial advice. The Michigan State Loan Repayment Program is administered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, not by Cornerstone; its terms, award amounts, priorities and application windows are set by MDHHS and change. Figures here carry the date we verified them against the programme's own published materials. Physician-loan program terms, eligible degrees and overlays are set by the lender and change. All loans are subject to borrower, property and program qualification.