Ideal for Self-Employed
Bank Statement Loans
You had a good year. Your accountant did their job. Now your tax return says you cannot afford the house you can obviously afford. This is the loan for that problem. Qualify on what the business actually deposits rather than what is left after write-offs.
Why This One
What This Gives You
Built for self-employment
Designed for business owners, contractors, and freelancers rather than adapted for them.
No tax returns or W-2s for qualifying income
Bank statements do the work instead.
Competitive pricing for strong files
Credit and down payment still move the rate meaningfully.
Alternative documentation
More than one way to prove income when the standard method does not reflect reality.
In Plain English
How Bank Statement Loans Work
Standard underwriting reads your tax return and uses the income left after deductions. For a W-2 employee that is close to reality. For a business owner legitimately writing off equipment, vehicles, a home office, and depreciation, it can land far below what the business actually produces.
A bank statement loan reviews 12 to 24 months of personal or business statements and calculates average monthly deposits to establish qualifying income. Nothing about it is a workaround. It is a documentation method built for a common situation.
Worked example: tax returns showing $60,000 of income against bank statements showing $120,000 in deposits. The bank statement method lets you qualify against the deposit figure. Illustrative only, actual qualifying income depends on the expense factor applied to your file.
The Basics
What This Asks For
- 12 to 24 months of personal or business bank statements
- Credit score typically in the 620 to 680 range or better
- Down payment of 10 to 20 percent depending on loan size
- Self-employed at least two years in most cases
- Stable or increasing deposit history
- Available for primary, second home, and investment properties
Who Qualifies
This Is Built For
- Small business owners
- Independent contractors
- Freelancers and consultants
- Real estate investors
- Commission-based professionals
- Anyone whose tax return is complex enough to obscure real cash flow
The Honest Part
Where This Costs You
Pricing is higher than conventional. That is the deal. You are being qualified on income a conventional lender will not count, and the rate reflects the risk the lender takes. How much higher depends on credit, down payment, and which lender fits your file.
There is a strategic question underneath this, and it is why we would rather talk than just close the loan. If you consistently show very little taxable income, you are paying for it in mortgage pricing and possibly elsewhere. Sometimes the right answer is to take this loan now and adjust how income is reported going forward so conventional is available next time. That is a tax conversation as much as a lending one, and Heirloom Tax is down the hall.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Bring Us the File Someone Else Declined
Self-employed borrowers get turned down constantly for reasons that have nothing to do with whether they can afford the payment. Tell us what happened.