Self-Employed Home Loan

A high net worth person who wanted to refinance a home in San Diego came to me because he was being denied by lenders. He had bought his home with cash, and had income and equity, but his situation didn’t fit into any of the narrow categories that underwriters prefer.

The borrower was a business consultant and author with over five published books who is constantly traveling internationally for business. He had been living primarily overseas for the past 10 years but did purchase a home in the San Diego area for cash late last year with a plan to move back to the US. He didn’t even really need the mortgage, but his financial advisor recommended that he take advantage of the low rate environment from last year by refinancing a property and investing it in other ways.

The borrower, who was worth many millions of dollars, had bought a $2 Million dollar San Diego property for cash. He wanted only $1 million back to reinvest elsewhere. He was living overseas and had yet to move back to the subject property, which is the only property he owns. He is self-employed and files his taxes as such.

The lenders on this type of non-conforming Jumbo loan had tried their best to kill this loan. I was able to work through many underwriting issues, despite the borrower getting very frustrated throughout the process. It took us longer than expected to close but we finally did close at a great rate and we met the borrower’s goals.

This was a very complicated deal that fits into the first tenet in mortgage lending where mortgage lending makes zero common sense. This borrower was referred to me by a high-end financial planner that I have a 10-year relationship with. I had to put my loan whisperer skills to the test on this one and it was a crucial one to close since the financial planner who referred this borrower to me has the utmost confidence in my mortgage skills and letting him and his client down was not an option for me!

A retail store owner who is also a homeowner in Kensington, came to me looking to refinance. His home loan had a balloon payment that was coming due. The stakes were high: he needed to refinance soon or he could potentially lose his home. The current lender was poised to repossess.

His tax returns did not show the net income required to qualify for a conventional loan.

Using a CPA-certified profit-and-loss statement for the last two years, I was able to get him refinanced into a more stable loan at a lower interest rate. Thus, this business owner, and his wife and kids, were able to keep their beloved family home.

A married couple living in an apartment in the East Bay were looking to purchase their first home. They wanted to stay in the Bay Area, desired a family-friendly neighborhood, and a home with a big backyard where their 3-year-old daughter could have room to play.

The husband was the primary earner in the family, a tradesman, finishing up his apprenticeship. His business was growing and he had good credit, but his funds for a down payment were limited, and his income was too high for him to qualify for the Fannie Mae 3% down loan program (the borrower’s income must be within 80% of the median income level for the zip code of the property being purchased).

They found their dream home in Vallejo. I took their loan to Freddie Mac and got it approved because Freddie Mac doesn’t have an income requirement for that zip code. With this particular loan product, the family was able to purchase the property with a 3% down payment.