The Quick Read: Commission-only earners qualify by showing 12 or 24 months of consecutive bank statements, which the lender converts into an average monthly income after screening out deposits that are not earned income. This is a documented non-QM path, so qualification still rests on verified deposits, credit, reserves and debt load under the applicable program, subject to lender guidelines.
- Statements run 12 or 24 months, personal or business, and they must be consecutive.
- Only deposits traceable to your commissions count. Transfers between your own accounts, loan proceeds and refunds come out first.
- Business-account statements take an expense ratio (commonly 20%, 40% or 50%, or an accountant-provided ratio). Personal-account deposits are read closer to face value.
- Through select wholesale programs, subject to full underwriting, credit floors vary by scenario, debt-to-income runs to 50%, and reserves scale from 3 to 9 months by loan size.
Commission income is a hard fit for traditional personal-income review. Your return reports income after deductions, and your best commission months may sit next to your worst. A bank statement loan reads what actually landed in your account. Lendmire is a broker, not a lender, and it shops this question across several wholesale programs. The same file can look different from one program to the next.
Key Terms Defined
Bank statement loan: A mortgage that is reviewed around average monthly deposits instead of tax-return income.
Non-QM: A loan that falls outside the standard rules for the most heavily standardized mortgages, so each program sets its own documentation and underwriting rules.
Expense ratio: The share of business-account deposits the lender treats as business costs rather than income.
Eligible deposit: A deposit the underwriter can trace to your earned commissions.
1099 commission: Commission paid to you as an independent contractor and reported on a 1099 form, with no tax withheld.
Debt-to-income (DTI): Your total monthly debts, including the new payment, divided by your qualifying monthly income.
Reserves: Liquid savings left after closing, counted in months of the new payment.
DSCR loan: An investor loan that qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines.
Is a Bank Statement Loan Right for Your Pay Structure?
It fits best when your commissions reach your accounts as identifiable deposits and your tax return understates them. How you are paid decides which path to start with.
| Pay structure | Typical path |
|---|---|
| 1099 commission only | Bank statements, personal or business |
| W-2 commission only | Program-specific; ask early |
| Base plus commission | Often a hybrid; confirm per program |
| Mixed 1099 and W-2 | Depends on the program; confirm early |
HousingWire’s non-QM guide describes bank statement loans as one of the largest non-QM categories. It also describes separate 1099 programs for contractors and commission earners that use one to two years of 1099 forms.
Across a wholesale network, the treatment of W-2 commission earners is the least uniform piece. Payroll deposits arrive net of withholding. Some programs would rather read pay stubs and a W-2 history, and others treat you under alternative-income logic. Ask which route a program takes before you gather twelve months of statements.
What Underwriters Look At
Underwriters look at five things: your statements, your credit, your debt load, your reserves and the property. The program ranges below apply through select wholesale programs, subject to full underwriting.
- Statements: 12 or 24 consecutive months, personal or business. The bank portfolio jumbo program uses 12 months. Transaction histories never substitute for statements.
- Ownership: Business statements require at least 25% ownership of the business.
- Credit: The portfolio non-QM program has a 660 floor. The bank portfolio program sets 680. Above the super-jumbo line, which is $3,500,000 on a primary residence and $3,000,000 on a second home or investment property, the floor is 700.
- Debt-to-income: Up to 50% on a typical file.
- Reserves: 3 months to $500,000, 6 months to $1,500,000 and 9 months above. Each additional financed property adds 2 months, up to a 12-month maximum. First-time investors carry 12 months.
The loan sizes run from $300,000 to $30,000,000 across two programs. The portfolio non-QM program carries files up to $6,000,000. The bank portfolio program carries twelve-month-statement files up to $30,000,000 on its own size ladder. It begins above $4,000,000 and overlaps the portfolio program through $6,000,000. Every file above $4,000,000 is reviewed case by case before submission.
Credit sets the leverage you can reach. A borrower at the 660 floor and a borrower at 760 do not see the same ceiling at the same loan size.
How Deposits Become Qualifying Income
The lender totals your eligible deposits and divides by the number of statement months. If the account is a business account, it applies an expense ratio first. The formula is eligible deposits times one minus the expense ratio, divided by the statement months.
Here is a worked example using an index instead of dollars. Say your eligible deposits average 100 units a month after screening.
- At a 20% ratio (a service business with no employees), qualifying income is 80 units.
- At 50% (six or more employees, or any product business), it is 50 units.
- With an accountant-provided ratio, it is whatever the accountant supports, within program limits.
The ratio is the biggest lever in the file because it hits every deposit. The lender sets it, and you cannot choose your own. A lower ratio needs documentation from your accountant. A profit-and-loss method also exists, capped at 80%.
On a personal-account file, the lender reads deposits closer to face value. It then asks you to prove they trace to your work. Transfers from your own business into a personal account count at 100%.
Your qualifying income then feeds the debt test. Your new payment plus every other monthly debt must fit within the program’s DTI limit, which runs to 50% on a typical file. Unlike a DSCR file, your other debts count here.
Averaging also has a trade-off. A 12-month average gets pulled down by lumpy or falling months. If your income is seasonal or your last six months were your best, the 24-month window can help or hurt. Run both before you pick.
Which Deposits Count?
Underwriters sort every deposit into one of three bins. The sorting tells you how to prepare.
| Deposit type | Usual treatment |
|---|---|
| Commission payments from payers | Counts |
| Transfers from your own business account | Counts in full (personal program) |
| Transfers between your own accounts | Excluded |
| Loan proceeds, refunds, gifts | Excluded |
| Large one-time deposits | Needs a written explanation |
| Deposits from an unfamiliar payer | Needs documentation |
The underwriter is trying to avoid counting money that is not your income. The federal guidance on mortgage underwriting, in the CFPB’s small-entity compliance guide, flags a compliance problem when a lender sees an unidentified deposit and takes no steps to confirm it is income. That is why a mystery deposit costs you either a letter or a line item.
Commission earners get tripped up by payer names. A brokerage, a manufacturer and a referral partner may all send money under different names. Keep a one-page list matching each payer to the pay plan that generates the deposit.
Personal or Business Statements?
Personal statements are simpler when your commissions land in your personal checking account. Business statements make sense when you run commissions through a sole proprietorship or an entity you own. Business files need that 25% ownership minimum and an expense ratio.
Commingling creates trouble. If you run groceries and commissions through the same account, a lender may treat it as a business account and apply the ratio anyway. If you own less than 100% of the business, income is prorated to your share.
Many commission earners do better opening a dedicated account a year before applying. Move commissions in, then pay yourself with a clear transfer. It makes the statement history easy to read.
Why Non-QM Still Means Documentation
Non-QM is not a no-doc category. The general ability-to-repay requirement, found in 12 CFR 1026.43, requires a reasonable, good-faith determination that you can repay. Bank statements are the verification record. The program, not the regulation, sets the DTI ceiling.
A bank statement loan therefore is reviewed on documented income under the applicable program, subject to lender guidelines. That is the honest framing, and it is why the file asks for as many explanations as it does.
Leverage and Loan Size
On a primary residence purchase, the leverage ceiling steps down as the loan gets larger. Through select wholesale programs, subject to full underwriting, a typical ladder runs like this:
- 90% to $1,000,000, with credit at 680 or higher.
- 85% to $2,000,000.
- 80% to $3,000,000.
- 75% to $4,000,000 at the top credit tier.
Above $4,000,000, leverage is reviewed case by case before submission, and the bank portfolio program’s own ladder takes over from there. Second homes and investment property run about five points lower at every size.
For cash-out, proceeds are unlimited at or below 60% LTV on the portfolio non-QM program. Above 60%, cash in hand is capped at $1,500,000 on that program. Each of these ceilings assumes strong credit and a clean file. The exact numbers vary by lender and program and follow a full review of property, leverage, and credit.
Commission earners tend to land in the lower tiers, simply because the loan sizes match the income. The important point is that leverage and credit move together, so a higher score can buy you more leverage.
Documents to Gather
Build the file before you apply. A clean file is the difference between a smooth review and a letter-writing exercise.
- Twelve or twenty-four consecutive statements for every account you are using, with every page.
- Your commission agreement or a pay-plan letter explaining how and when you are paid.
- 1099 forms, if you receive them, to show the payers behind the deposits.
- An accountant letter if you want to use a lower expense ratio.
- Written explanations for any large or unusual deposit.
- Proof of reserves: statements for liquid accounts after closing.
The pay-plan letter is the underrated item. It turns your deposits from a pattern into a documented structure.
Why Commission Files Stall
Most stalls come from three causes: commingled accounts, unexplained deposits and thin history. Each is fixable, though some fixes take months.
- Commingled accounts: Separate business and personal activity going forward. Until you have a clean stretch, expect the lender to apply a ratio.
- Unexplained credits: Answer each one in writing before the underwriter asks.
- Thin history: A gap between closings leaves a month with no deposit. The 24-month window can smooth that out, but a recent drop in income can drag the average down.
- Debt load: Strong deposits do not help if existing monthly debts push DTI past 50%.
If a file stalls on deposits, the fix is usually a cleaner account, not a different lender.
When Another Route Fits Better
If you are buying a rental, a DSCR loan is usually the stronger fit. DSCR loans are designed for non-owner-occupied investment properties. Because they are business-purpose investor loans, they are reviewed differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage. The loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide walks through that path.
The split is practical. Use bank statement financing for your own home or a house-hack, where your income is the test. Use DSCR for the rentals, where the property’s rent is the test. Each new mortgage on a bank statement file stacks against the same personal income base, while DSCR files are reviewed property by property.
Bank statement programs can also cover investment property, at leverage about five points lower. If you want to see how Lendmire frames the deposit question in more detail, see its piece Can Commission Deposits Qualify on a Bank Statement Loan?.
An asset-based path exists for borrowers with significant liquidity. An asset allowance divides liquid assets by 36, 60 or 84 months to create qualifying income. Assets-only qualification needs no DTI when U.S. liquid assets equal the loan amount, closing costs and sixty months of any net loss on other residential property. Retirement accounts count at 70%, or 80% at age 59.5 and over.
Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified tax professional before relying on any deduction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a W-2 commission earner use a bank statement loan?
Sometimes, and it depends on the program. Payroll deposits arrive net of withholding, so many programs prefer pay stubs and W-2 history for this group. Ask the program how it reads payroll deposits before you collect statements.
Should I use 12 or 24 months of statements?
Use the window that gives the stronger average. A rising income trend favors 12 months, while lumpy or seasonal commissions often favor 24.
Do I need a separate business account?
No, but a clean account helps. Personal statements work when commissions land there and you can trace them to your work. Business statements need at least 25% ownership and an expense ratio.
What happens if one month has no deposit?
That month stays in the average, which pulls the total down. Many commission earners have gaps between closings. The longer window may smooth it out, and a written explanation helps.
Can I buy a rental with a bank statement loan?
Yes, through programs that allow investment property, at leverage about five points lower than a primary residence at each size. A DSCR loan often fits better because it looks at the property’s rent instead of your deposits.
Next Step
If you are financing a high-balance property on business or personal bank statements and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare super jumbo bank statement loan options based on your deposits, the property, credit profile, leverage, and your goals. Its consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states (AL, CA, CO, FL, GA, IN, MI, MT, NM, NC, OH, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA), so confirm availability for your property. Programs change, every file is underwritten individually, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Lendmire’s self-employed mortgages page presents both super jumbo programs, bank statement and DSCR, side by side.
About Lendmire
Lendmire — NMLS# 2371349 — is a DSCR and non-QM mortgage brokerage with investor loan programs in 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. DSCR eligibility is commonly reviewed by the lender around property-level rent rather than personal income documentation, subject to lender guidelines, and the brokerage helps arrange financing for LLC-owned portfolios beyond conventional financed-property limits. Recognized by Scotsman Guide as a Top Mortgage Workplace in 2025 and 2026.
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References
2. CFPB ATR/QM Small Entity Compliance Guide
This article is part of Lendmire’s super jumbo bank statement loan program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: How to Qualify as a Real Estate Agent for a Super Jumbo Bank Statement Loan · Bank Statement Loan vs Asset Depletion Loan for Physicians · How to Get a Super Jumbo Bank Statement Loan After Changing Fields
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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- Lendmire LLC · Firm NMLS# 2371349 · Verify firm licensure
Disclosure information. Lendmire is a state-licensed mortgage brokerage under NMLS# 2371349. Lendmire is not a depository institution, direct lender, or financial advisor — all loans referenced are placed through wholesale lender partners and are subject to each lender's underwriting standards. This article is provided for general informational purposes and is not a commitment to lend, nor does it constitute financial, legal, or tax advice. Loan programs, terms, rates, and qualification standards change without notice and depend on borrower profile, property type, and the state in which the subject property is located. Equal Housing Opportunity provider. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.