A no income verification mortgage for your primary residence.

The honest answer first

Since 2014, every first mortgage on a home you live in has had to satisfy the federal ability-to-repay rule. A literal no-doc first mortgage on a primary residence does not exist from a licensed lender.

What does exist is alternative documentation through non-QM lenders: a P&L, or bank deposits, in place of tax returns. A HELOC on a home you already own sits outside that rule, so a true no-income-doc HELOC is possible.

Who this is for

• People who can't show income through deposits: a cash-heavy business, income landing in an entity account, or seasonal and lumpy deposits
• Self-employed borrowers with heavy write-offs
• People who haven't filed yet — on extension, mid-year, or with a new entity; a current-period P&L stands in
• People denied for income elsewhere, especially those owing less than half the home's value

The three paths, side by side

P&L-only mortgage

What stands in for income docsOne P&L; no bank statements, no tax returns

Credit & minimums640+ first position; purchase 20% down at 680+, 25% at 660–679, 30% at 640–659; $150K+ loan

Purchase or refinance?Both

Bank-statement mortgage

What stands in for income docs12 months personal, or 12 or 24 months business statements; deposits become qualifying income

Credit & minimums620+ first position; 660+ second position

Purchase or refinance?Both

No income verification HELOC

What stands in for income docsNothing; credit and equity carry the file; no bank statements

Credit & minimums680+; $150K+ line

Purchase or refinance?Refinance only (a second lien on a home you own)

The P&L-only lane

• Also marketed as No-Ratio or No-Income-Verification; it's the same program with the same terms
• The income file is one P&L from a CPA or licensed tax preparer (unaudited is fine; self-prepared on some programs)
• Minimum loan $150,000; credit from 640 in first position
• Purchase: 20% down at 680+, 25% at 660–679, 30% at 640–659
• Refinance, cash-out or rate-and-term: 75% LTV at 660+, 70% at 640–659

The bank-statement lane

• Reaches 620 in first position, and works at loan sizes P&L-only won't
• Options: 12 months personal, 12 months business, or 24 months business statements
• Primary residences and investment properties; not second homes
• Reserves, the expense factor on business deposits, and loan limits are set per file

Already own the home: the no-income-doc HELOC

• No tax returns, W-2s, pay stubs, or bank statements
• 680+ credit; lines from $150,000; no title seasoning
• A second lien, on a home you already own

Below 620 on a primary residence

• Home equity agreement: credit from the 500s, no monthly payments, on a home you own, in 12 states
• Oregon and Washington: a cash-out refinance on a free-and-clear home, over $200,000, at 50% LTV or lower, at any credit score

What you'll need, by lane

• P&L-only: the P&L, a government ID, and your current mortgage statement (on a refinance)
• Bank statement: 12 or 24 months of statements, an ID, and your mortgage statement
• No-income HELOC: an ID, your mortgage statement, and proof of homeowners insurance

Good to know.