1-Year Self-Employed Mortgage Programs
Most lenders require 2 years of self-employment before they'll write you a mortgage. We have programs that accept just 12 months — paired with bank statement or P&L underwriting. You don't have to wait another year to buy.
- Just 12 months self-employed
- No tax returns required
- Pairs with bank statement / P&L
- Loans to $2M
- Up to 85% LTV
- 620+ FICO
- Primary, 2nd home, investment
- First-time buyers welcome
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Why Most Lenders Want 2 Years of Self-Employment
If you've been self-employed for less than 2 years, you've probably hit this wall already. You call a bank, they ask "how long have you been self-employed?", you say "fourteen months," and the conversation ends politely.
The reason: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac underwriting guidelines require a 2-year self-employment history to demonstrate income stability before they'll back the loan. Conventional lenders follow these guidelines because they sell their loans into the Fannie/Freddie secondary market.
Non-QM lenders don't sell to Fannie/Freddie. They hold loans on balance sheet or sell into private investor pools. That means they get to write their own qualifying rules — and several have built programs specifically for self-employed buyers with 12 months of history.
Same bank statement or P&L underwriting as our standard programs. Same calculation methodology, same documentation list. The only difference is that the lender accepts 12 months of self-employment history instead of demanding 24.
Trade-off: slightly higher rate (typically 0.25–0.50% above the 2-year version) and slightly lower max LTV (typically 85% instead of 90%). For a buyer who would otherwise have to wait 10–12 months to buy, the trade is almost always worth it.
Who this is built for
- Recent OnlyFans creators who went full-time in the last 12–24 months
- Newly independent consultants who left W-2 jobs for higher-paying freelance work
- Real estate agents in their second commission year
- E-commerce founders whose business hit revenue in year 2
- Content creators whose YouTube / TikTok / Substack income recently became their primary source
- Anyone who left a job in the past 12+ months and now wants to buy a home
How the 12 months get measured
The 12-month clock usually starts on one of three dates: your LLC or business entity formation date, the date your DBA was filed, or the first month your self-employment deposits exceeded any W-2 income you were earning at the time. Whichever date you can document cleanly is what we'll use.
Bank statements showing 12 consecutive months of business deposits are the cleanest proof. Tax forms (Schedule C from last year + this year's quarterly estimates) can also work as secondary evidence.
What's the Trade-Off?
If you can wait 12 months, the 2-year program will price better. If you can't, the 1-year program is meaningfully better than not buying at all.
| Factor | 2-Year Self-Employed | 1-Year Self-Employed |
|---|---|---|
| Self-employment history required | 24 months | 12 months |
| Income documentation | Bank statements or P&L | Bank statements or P&L |
| Tax returns required | No | No |
| Max loan amount | $3M | $2M |
| Max LTV | 90% | 85% |
| Rate vs. conventional | ~1–2% higher | ~1.25–2.25% higher |
| Min credit score | 620 | 640 (some programs 620) |
| Min reserves | 3 months | 6 months |
1-Year Self-Employed Mortgage FAQ
Other Self-Employed Options
Bank Statement Loans California
The income-calculation engine the 1-year program pairs with. Detailed walkthrough.
Self-Employed Mortgages (No Tax Returns)
Overview of all four non-QM programs and how to pick between them.
Home Loans for OnlyFans Creators
The 1-year program is especially popular with newer OnlyFans creators.
Don't Wait Another Year to Buy
If you've been at it for 12 months, you have options. Let's talk.
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