Buy or refinance your primary home with no income and no employment stated on the application — no tax returns, no W-2s, no pay stubs. Qualify on your credit, reserves and the property instead.
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A no income documentation loan — also called a no-ratio loan — is a mortgage that requires no income documentation of any kind and states no employment on the application. There is no debt-to-income ratio because no income is used. You qualify on credit (FICO from 640), reserves (6–9 months), and the home. It is available on a primary residence from $100,000 to $2.5 million, up to 80% LTV. Get a quote in ~60 seconds.
If you run your own business in California, you already know the frustration. You had a strong year, your bank account shows it, and yet the income on your tax return — after every legitimate write-off, deduction, and depreciation schedule your CPA worked hard to find — looks like a fraction of what you actually earn. Then you apply for a mortgage, a conventional underwriter reads that 1040 literally, and a purchase you can comfortably afford falls apart on paper.
A no income documentation loan solves that by taking income out of the conversation entirely. Instead of proving what you earn, you prove that you're a strong borrower in the ways that actually predict whether a loan gets repaid: a solid credit history, real skin in the game through your down payment or equity, and months of reserves in the bank. There is no pay stub to hand over, no W-2, no tax return, and no employer to call — the income and employment sections of the application are simply left blank.
Because no income figure is used, there is no debt-to-income ratio to calculate. That is where the industry name — a “no-ratio” loan — comes from. It is one of the cleanest forms of non-QM financing available today, and for the right borrower it is often the difference between owning the home and walking away.
It's worth being clear about what this is not. This is not the “stated income” loan of 2006, where a borrower could invent a number and no one checked. After the 2008 crash that product disappeared and was rebuilt under the non-QM rules that govern lending today. A modern no income documentation loan carries real guardrails: a minimum credit score, a meaningful down payment or equity cushion, verified reserves, and seasoning periods on any past credit events. It's disciplined lending — it just skips the one document that never made sense for a self-employed borrower in the first place.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Income documentation | None — income & employment left blank on the application |
| Occupancy | Primary residence only |
| Loan amount | $100,000 minimum – $2,500,000 maximum |
| Minimum FICO | 640 |
| Max LTV — purchase / rate-and-term | 80% (20% down) |
| Max LTV — cash-out | 75% · unlimited cash-out amount |
| Products | 30-year fixed & 30-year fixed step (no ARM) |
| Reserves | 6–9 months, 30-day seasoning |
| Down payment gift | Up to 100% may be gifted |
| Prepayment penalty | None |
| Seller concessions | Up to 6% |
On a no income documentation loan, your credit score does the work an income figure normally would. Because the lender isn't measuring your income against your debts, it protects itself a different way — by asking for more equity from borrowers with thinner credit, and less from those with stronger credit. The result is a simple sliding scale.
At a 720 score you can borrow up to 80% of the home's value — as little as 20% down on a purchase. Drop to 640, the program floor, and you're capped at 65%, so you'd bring 35% down. Every tier in between trades a bit more equity for a bit less credit. Cash-out refinances follow the same logic, held one notch more conservative because you're pulling money out rather than putting it in. Find your score in the grids below to see exactly where you land.
| Max LTV / CLTV | Min FICO | Reserves | Down payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80% / 80% | 720 | 9 months | 20% down |
| 75% / 75% | 680 | 6 months | 25% down |
| 70% / 70% | 660 | 6 months | 30% down |
| 65% / 65% | 640 | 6 months | 35% down |
| Max LTV / CLTV | Min FICO | Reserves | Equity kept |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75% / 75% | 700 | 9 months | 25% |
| 70% / 70% | 680 | 6 months | 30% |
| 65% / 65% | 660 | 6 months | 35% |
| 60% / 60% | 640 | 6 months | 40% |
Loans above $1,000,000 up to $2,500,000 are capped at 80% LTV/CLTV. Debt consolidation is treated as rate-and-term (up to 80%). Cash-out amount is unlimited. On a cash-out at 70% LTV or below, the cash pulled out can count toward reserves.
On a purchase, the down payment can be as little as 20% at a 720 score — and up to 100% of it can come from a gift, so a family member can fund your entire down payment. Assets and reserves need only 30 days of seasoning, and on a bank statement, individual deposits under 10% of the balance don't need to be sourced. Reserves run 6 to 9 months of the housing payment; on a cash-out at 70% LTV or below, the cash you take out can be applied toward the reserve requirement.
| Requirement | Guideline |
|---|---|
| Mortgage history | 0 x 30 x 12 (no 30-day late in the last 12 months) |
| Tradelines | 2 tradelines reporting 12+ months, or 1 reporting 24+ months with recent activity |
| Bankruptcy seasoning | 24 months |
| Foreclosure seasoning | 24 months |
| Short sale / deed-in-lieu | 24 months |
| Forbearance | 24 months after exiting the plan |
| Citizenship | U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or non-permanent resident (with U.S. credit) |
| Max financed properties | 10, including the subject |
| Property type | Max LTV |
|---|---|
| Single-family (SFR), PUD, 2-4 unit, modular, rural | Up to 80% |
| Detached condo | 75% |
| Attached condo | 70% |
| Non-warrantable condo | 50% |
| Log homes & manufactured homes | Not eligible |
The common thread among no income documentation borrowers isn't that they can't afford a home — it's that a standard underwriter can't see their income the way it really works. A few real-world examples:
The established business owner. Ten years into a profitable company, with aggressive write-offs that keep taxable income low. The bank statements are strong; the tax return isn't. A no-ratio loan looks at the borrower and the property instead.
The recent retiree. Plenty of assets and a clean history, but only a modest reported income from a pension or draw. Rather than untangle retirement distributions, they qualify on credit, equity and reserves.
The commission or 1099 earner between years. A great current year, but not yet the two-year average a conventional loan wants to see. No income documentation sidesteps the timing problem.
The privacy-minded professional. Some borrowers simply prefer not to hand their entire financial life to an underwriter for a primary-residence loan — and with strong credit and reserves, they don't have to.
In short, this loan tends to fit:
A business owner buys a $1,200,000 primary home with a 725 score. At 80% LTV they put 20% down ($240,000) — which a parent gifts in full — and show 9 months of reserves. No tax returns, no income stated.
A retiree with a $1,500,000 home and a 705 score takes cash out at 70% LTV. Because LTV is at/below 70%, the cash pulled out counts toward the 6-month reserve requirement — and no income is documented.
An owner rolls high-interest cards into their mortgage as a rate-and-term refinance up to 80% LTV — one lower payment, no income verification.
California is, in many ways, the market this loan was built for. The state has one of the highest concentrations of self-employed people, business owners, and independent professionals in the country — exactly the borrowers whose tax returns understate their income. Pair that with some of the nation's highest home prices, and you get buyers who comfortably afford a $1.2 million home but can't document it the conventional way. The program's $100,000-to-$2.5 million range is deliberately sized for that reality.
Save Financial works this market every day from two offices — our Newport Beach headquarters serving Orange County and the coast, and our Marina del Rey office serving Los Angeles and the Westside. We know which non-QM lenders price best on a Newport Coast purchase, a Westside condo, or a 2-4 unit in the South Bay, and we place your file accordingly. Call (949) 379-5320 to talk through your scenario.
| Program | How you qualify | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| No income documentation (this page) | No income or employment stated at all | Primary residence, self-employed / asset-rich |
| Bank statement | 12–24 months of deposits | Self-employed with steady deposits |
| DSCR | The rental property's cash flow | Investment property, no personal income |
| Asset-based | Your liquid assets | Retirees, high-net-worth |
| No-doc (overview) | Any of the above | Not sure which fits |
Not a primary residence? A DSCR loan gives you the same no-income-documented experience on a rental, qualifying on the property's rent.
A no income documentation loan is a non-QM program, so the rate is typically higher than a conventional loan — you're trading documentation for a modestly higher rate. Pricing moves with your credit, LTV and reserves, and every non-QM lender's guidelines and pricing differ. As a California mortgage broker (NMLS #377740, DRE #01875766) shopping many non-QM lenders at once, Save Financial places your file with the lender that qualifies you for the most, at the sharpest rate. One application, the whole market.
Getting started takes about a minute and costs nothing. Tell us the property, your rough credit range, and how much you're putting down (or how much equity you already have), and we'll come back with the tier you fit, a realistic rate, and the reserves you'll need — no tax returns, and no credit pull to begin.
Program terms shown are typical guidelines and are subject to change and full qualification. Available in California and most states; not offered in D.C., Maine, Maryland, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Washington, or West Virginia. This is a business-purpose-neutral consumer primary-residence program; all loans subject to credit approval.
Related: No-doc loans overview · Bank statement loans · Asset-based loans · DSCR loans · All non-QM programs
A no income documentation loan (also called a no-ratio loan) is a mortgage where you state no income and no employment on the application, and no income documentation is required — no tax returns, no W-2s, no pay stubs, and no bank-statement income calculation. Because no income is stated, no debt-to-income ratio is calculated. You qualify instead on your credit, your reserves and assets, and the property. It is a non-QM program for a primary residence, with loan amounts from $100,000 up to $2.5 million.
Yes. On a no income documentation loan the income and employment fields of the application are left blank, and the lender does not verify or document income or employment. This is different from a bank statement or 1099 loan, where income is still calculated a lighter way. Here, no income figure is used at all.
The minimum FICO is 640. Your score sets your maximum loan-to-value: 640 qualifies up to 65% LTV on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, 660 up to 70%, 680 up to 75%, and 720 up to the program maximum of 80%. Cash-out refinances require slightly higher scores at each tier (640 to 60%, 660 to 65%, 680 to 70%, 700 to 75%).
Loan amounts run from a $100,000 minimum to a $2,500,000 maximum. Loans above $1,000,000 up to $2,500,000 are capped at 80% LTV/CLTV, and any loan above $2,000,000 requires two appraisals.
On a purchase you need as little as 20% down (80% LTV) with a 720 score, and up to 100% of the down payment can come from a gift. Lower scores need more down: 25% at 680, 30% at 660, 35% at 640.
Reserves range from 6 to 9 months of the housing payment depending on your LTV and loan tier, and only need 30 days of seasoning. Nine months is required at the top 80% (purchase) and 75% (cash-out) tiers; 6 months applies below that. On a cash-out refinance at 70% LTV or below, the cash you pull out can be counted toward the reserve requirement.
Yes. Cash-out refinances go up to 75% LTV, and the maximum cash-out amount is unlimited. A straight cash-out at 75% needs a 700 score and 9 months of reserves; lower LTVs need lower scores and 6 months.
Yes. Debt consolidation is treated as a rate-and-term refinance (not cash-out), so it qualifies for the higher 80% LTV limit — a common way primary-residence owners roll high-interest debt into one lower mortgage payment without documenting income.
Single-family homes, PUDs, detached condos (max 75% LTV), attached condos (max 70% LTV), non-warrantable condos (max 50% LTV), 2-4 unit properties, modular homes, and rural homes — all as a primary residence. Log homes and manufactured homes are not eligible.
No — the no income documentation loan is for a primary residence only. For a rental or investment property with no income documentation, a DSCR loan qualifies you on the property's rent instead; ask us about that option.
A clean recent mortgage history (no 30-day lates in the last 12 months) and at least two tradelines reporting for 12+ months, or one tradeline reporting 24+ months with recent activity. A bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale, or deed-in-lieu must be at least 24 months seasoned, and there is no prepayment penalty.
It is the modern, fully-legal successor. The pre-2008 “stated income” loan let you invent an income figure; a no-ratio loan states no income at all and qualifies you on credit, reserves and the property under today's non-QM rules. For most borrowers who once used stated income, this is the equivalent today.
Because it is a non-QM program, the rate is typically higher than a conventional loan — you are trading documentation for a modestly higher rate. Pricing varies by credit, LTV and reserves. As a broker, Save Financial shops multiple non-QM lenders to find the sharpest rate for your file. Call (949) 379-5320 for a live quote.
It is available in California and most states. It is not offered in Washington D.C., Maine, Maryland, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Washington, or West Virginia. Ask us to confirm availability for your state.
Get a no income documentation loan quote on your California primary residence — no pay stubs, no tax returns, no income or employment stated. Free, no credit pull to start.