How to Get Bank Loans, Credit Cards and Renting Properties as a Poker Player

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

How to Get Bank Loans, Credit Cards and Renting Properties as a Poker Player

It was only 3 years ago when I had enough money to pay a nice deposit on a house for myself and my family. At the same time I was looking to rent a property and also wanting to change banks and get a new mastercard. I was doing it all at once, I don’t do things slowly. I came to a grinding halt though with the words poker player were placed on each application. The housing loan application was the first bust, followed by the rental application. This left me in tatters as I wondered where I would live??

I had made income as a poker player and used the funds to purchase and pay online, I had also withdrawn in large sums and then not at all. I realised I was a risk in the eyes of most rental companies and re-evaluated what I needed to do. The mastercard was no issue as I had a fabulous credit history with them. The other two issues were huge though.

I looked at the situation from the eyes of the leaser and also the mortgage brokers and banks. They wanted steady income showing and let’s face it, poker players have variance in their earnings. This is when I realised that alike everyone else I had to show a history of the same amount of weekly deposits into my account as well as savings. I changed the patterns of my banking; my cash outs and basically it worked. This is what you need to do:

Let’s say you have weeks where you win very little and others where you take down quite a few tourneys and grab yourself quite a few thousand. Leave the few thousands in your player account and withdraw a weekly income at the same time every single week. Withdrawing it all at once does not show the banks a stable income.

Let me use an example: I win $2000.00 in 1 week. I withdraw $500.00 only. The next week I may earn more but still; on the very same day (maybe a Wednesday) I withdraw the same amount; $500.00. I do this week after week after week. This shows a steady income of $500.00 net.

There is always going to be the question of taxation. The questions that you are going to face next are “Are you self employed?” The obvious answer is yes. Next question; “If you are self employed please provide your accounts details. I suggest that you take these figures to an account, pay him $80 for the year and have him available to advise that you have continually earned this money and IF you were liable to pay taxes your taxable income is (Whatever your cashouts sum to) but you are not, meaning your gross income for the year is (whatever it may add to.

This of course applies to Australia. There is a fine grey line when it comes to paying taxation on income from gambling. Check with the ATO (without giving your name for goodness sakes) on whether or not you would be liable; also speak to your accountant while you have the appointment with him. I am unaware of the laws for the UK, USA, Canada and European countries.

In saying all of the above, you can always cash out more as your require (above your selected weekly income) so long as you ensure you have the funds to cash out the same amount each week (or each month even) every time.

To those who win more each week than imaginable and could buy their own home in just a few months, this obviously does not apply to you, unless of course you are after a personal loan for a Ferrari lol, in which case work out your figures based on the loan requirements and be very careful and tread carefully around the accountant and the tax office.

The bottom line is; steady income is required for all of these things: rental, mortgages, car loans, master cards or anything relating to loans or hire purchase. Make sure you have a trail of that steady income before you attempt any of them.