Are Stated Income Loans Out?
Technically, stated income loans, where someone cannot document their income and the mortgage broker and lender has to go with a number that the borrower “states” as an annual amount are harder to get today. Or so we are told repeatedly. However, you should realize that just because they are harder to get does not mean they are impossible. Lenders have become more vigilant regarding “liar loans” as they are called and are checking and double-checking numbers on mortgage applications to make sure exaggerations and aberrations get weeded out.
That being said, there are still a huge percentage of people who don’t get W-2s at the end of the year and just cannot document their income. These would include people involved in businesses, self employed individuals, and other professionals. The only way these people can buy homes is by stating their income. There might be some supplemental information they need to provide, like a good credit score, but stated income loans just cannot be thrown out for the simple reason that too many people need them… too many normal, honest people need them.
These individuals may pay a higher mortgage interest on the home they buy, but that is a small trade off for the privilege of being able to buy a home they can live in.