Bank statement (self-employed)

What this program actually is

These are non-QM loans, underwritten by lenders who hold or securitise them rather than deliver to the agencies. The analysis takes 12 or 24 months of business or personal bank statements, totals eligible deposits, removes transfers and non-business income, and applies an expense factor. Some lenders take a fixed 50% expense factor, some accept a CPA-prepared expense statement, some use your actual profit and loss.

That expense factor is where the whole approval lives. On a contractor with $420,000 of annual deposits, a 50% fixed factor produces $17,500 a month of qualifying income while a CPA letter supporting a 22% factor produces $27,300 (sample figures). Same borrower, same deposits, two very different approvals.

The cost is real: expect a higher rate and a larger down payment than an agency loan. Our standing advice is to treat a bank statement loan as a bridge. Buy the house now, then look at a conventional refinance two years later when your returns have been filed to support it.

Documentation

12 or 24 months of business or personal statements

Typical down payment

10% to 20% depending on credit and months documented

Expense factor

Fixed 50%, CPA-supported, or profit and loss based

Time in business

Usually two years, occasionally one with a related history

Prepayment penalty

Sometimes on investment property, never accepted quietly

What you get from us on this program

• A deposit analysis done before you apply, so you know the qualifying income in advance
• Three expense-factor scenarios modeled side by side
• A CPA letter template your accountant can sign without a phone call
• A written refinance exit plan with the tax-return profile you would need
• Explicit disclosure of any prepayment penalty, in writing, before you choose a lender

How the file runs

1. 01

   Deposit review

   Send twelve months of statements and we return a qualifying income figure in two business days.

2. 02

   Expense factor strategy

   We test fixed, CPA-supported and profit and loss approaches against each other.

3. 03

   Investor selection

   Non-QM investors differ enormously here. We place the file where the analysis is friendliest.

4. 04

   Underwriting

   Large deposits are sourced up front rather than argued about later.

5. 05

   Close and plan the exit

   You leave closing with the refinance criteria in writing.