WORDS I LIKE — Confidence follows understanding.

You filed an extension in April.

Your CPA just finished the numbers.

The taxable income figure looked smaller than you hoped.

So you assumed your buying power shrank with it.

It didn't have to.

A bank statement loan doesn't look at your tax return. It looks at 12 to 24 months of actual deposits into your accounts. That becomes your income instead.

Mid-July is when a lot of self-employed buyers restart their house search. Your CPA just finalized the year's numbers. The taxable income figure in front of you might disappoint you.

Most self-employed buyers assume that number is the whole story — it isn't. The same deductions your CPA used to lower your tax bill don't have to lower your loan amount. A bank statement lender isn't reading your tax return.

This matters while the extension dust is still settling. Whether a 12-month or 24-month lookback works better for you depends on how your revenue moved this year. That's worth knowing before you assume anything about what you can afford.

I can look at actual bank statements and get you a rough number first. You won't need to ask your CPA a mortgage question yet. I can also loop your CPA in directly, so you're both working from the same picture.

Your tax return and your buying power don't have to be the same number. Bank statements can tell a lender a different story.

Three ways lenders can qualify you that don’t start with your tax return - free, four pages, no call required to read it.

Self-Employed Income Guide

PS
If you want me to run a rough bank-statement number on your own situation, reply "statement" and I'll walk you through it.

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No spam. No sales pitches. Just clarity.
— Neil Christiansen, Certified Mortgage Advisor