There is a lot of information out there to suggest that you have to have two year work income in order to qualify for a (low down payment) mortgage; that however is somewhere between over simplification and misinformation. The banks want to see the stability to be reasonably sure the mortgage will be paid and there are many sources of income that achieve this, some examples include:
- Employment in the same field as college education.
- Social Security or pension (in fact due to the extreme stability of these sources the banks might add between 10% to 25% in the income calculation, “gross up”).
- Investment income.
- Section 8 vouchers
- Having certain non occupant family members (and close family friends), back the loan.
- (Projected) rents (calculated at 75%).
Self Employment (Schedule C) income isn’t considered to be as stable as W-2 income, so two years, or at the very least one year plus year to date bank statements, will probobly be necessary.
And most importantly in my planning, more than one person’s income can be included to get a loan amount sufficient for your mutual goals.
Resources (I have no affiliation with these companies, I simply like their explanation:
https://gustancho.com/social-security-income-for-mortgage
https://www.theduplexdoctors.com/blog/can-you-use-rental-income-to-qualify-for-a-duplex
Gather up your income and tax documents and bring them to your lender, smaller banks tend to be more accommodating, and discuss your options. If the traditional banks don’t work for your income or plans, you can look into hard money lenders or private lenders/OPM Other People’s Money. If the deal is good enough, there is plenty of money in this country.
Abu Build 