Using self-employed income for home mortgage loan can be a real pain. However, it’s the best income we’ve got right now (my hubby is working on his Ph.D.). As you might know from before, we’re in a bit of
a tight spot, with regard to the whole mortgage loan thing, but we’ve decided on an FHA home loan, and now the real fun begins.

Even though we are pre-qualified at the bank, we do need to get together more documentation. And if we are planning to include my year-to-date income (which we are) with my 24-month average, the FHA requires an income audit. This is where a C.P.A. goes through my bank statements (and my Quicken file), to determine whether I really am making all that income. And I had to submit a list of people I do regular work for, so that they can take a sample of them to see if I really do work for them.

If I was willing to pay the higher interest rate for a stated-income home mortgage, this might be an easier process. But I’d still need a C.P.A. signature verifying that I work from home. But that’s a heck of a lot less expensive than a full blown income audit. Tomorrow, I’ll share the silver lining to this whole frustrating process.