Your deposits are your income.
No tax returns. No W-2s. You hand over twelve to twenty-four months of bank statements, and underwriting counts what your business actually brings in — not the shrunken number left after your CPA's write-offs. If your deposits tell a stronger story than your Schedule C, this is the loan that finally listens to them.
How it works — the honest mechanics.
You provide 12 or 24 months of bank statements. If they're personal accounts, deposits generally count close to fully. If they're business accounts, the lender applies an expense factor — a haircut representing your cost of doing business — and the remainder is your qualifying income. The factor depends on your industry and can sometimes be customized with a CPA letter stating your actual expense ratio. Deposits get averaged, and that average is the income underwriting uses. Simple, and honest to how your business actually runs.
Who this is built for.
S-corp and LLC owners who pay themselves smart. Contractors and tradespeople. Truckers and owner-operators — and if you're in the 209, you know how much of our economy rolls on trucking. Salon owners, restaurant owners, e-commerce sellers, real estate agents. Anyone whose Schedule C tells a sadder story than their bank account does.
What underwriters actually look at.
Consistency beats spikes — steady deposits read better than one giant month. They'll notice NSF activity and large unexplained transfers, so keep your statements clean in the months before you apply, and route your business income through the accounts you'll be showing. Twenty-four months of statements can sometimes qualify more income than twelve if your trend is up. Little moves, real money — this is exactly the prep we walk you through before anything gets submitted.
What you'll need.
Bank statements (12 or 24 months), proof you've been in business — a license, a CPA letter, or similar — and the normal credit and asset picture every loan has. That's the stack. Compare that to the tax-return colonoscopy you got at the bank.
Straight answers.
Straight answers — the same way you'd get them on the phone.
Personal or business bank statements — which is better?+
Whichever tells your income story most cleanly. Personal statements skip the expense factor; business statements can work great when the deposits are strong. We'll look at both and run the math each way.
Do transfers between my own accounts count as income?+
No — and underwriters will spot them. We pre-review your statements the way a lender will, so there are no surprises.
Can I buy an investment property with a bank statement loan?+
Yes — and for rentals, also compare a DSCR loan, where the property's rent qualifies instead of your deposits. We'll price both.
Can I buy above the conforming limit on bank statements?+
Yes — bank-statement jumbo programs exist for higher price points, so a big purchase doesn't force you back into tax returns. Same deposit-based qualifying, larger loan.
How recent do my statements need to be?+
Current — typically your most recent consecutive months. If you're a few months out from buying, that's perfect timing to start keeping the accounts pristine.
Every situation is different — this is general info, not a loan commitment or offer to lend.
Send nothing yet.
Book the call, tell me how the money flows, and I'll tell you what it qualifies for.