To obtain a mortgage, then you need to convince a lender which you can pay the loan back. The mortgage-qualification process involves checking your entire income, debts and work history to affirm that you have enough of a steady income to make monthly payments for ages. If you can prove your earnings is reliable, you can buy a home with no job.

Size

1 step in qualifying you will be to compare the dimensions of your PITI — the monthly payment of loan principal and interest, property taxes and insurance — along with your monthly pretax income, Investopedia says. Most lenders want a ratio of no more than 28 per cent, but some will allow as high as 40 percent. Lenders will also quantify your total monthly debt — including PITI, student loans, credit card invoices and cheque, for example — against your earnings, preferring a maximum allowable percentage of 36 percent.

Types

Any kind of income will qualify for a mortgage, the Homebuying Institute says. The Department of Housing and Urban Development, as an example, says that the Federal Housing Administration, which insures mortgages, will accept child support, pensions, military retirement benefits, Social Security and alimony as acceptable sources of revenue. What’s important is not the source but whether it is enough to pay the PITI and whether you can rely on it consistently.

Time Frame

Lenders want to see two decades’ worth of documents to show your income has become growing or consistent, the US Bank Rate site says. In case you have no job, your lender may want to see proof — payment slips, deposits, and taxation documents — of three or more decades of steady income. You will also have to show that the earnings, whatever it is, can be counted on for several years more.

Considerations

The better the other variables on your program, the better your odds of getting a mortgage without a job, the Homebuying Institute says. For example, superb credit may help; thus will a sizable down payment or a low amount of debt. If you can show you’ve got large enough cash reserves to deal with a few obligations, that is also a plus.

Solutions

There are kinds of loan made specifically for borrowers that don’t have readily recorded incomes, the Broker Outpost site says. If you apply for a stated income loan — also called a no-doc loan — the lending institution will accept your previous income without needing the usual tax documents or other paperwork to prove it. Lenders are often loath to grant such mortgages due to the risks, and you’ll need excellent credit to qualify for you. You have to pay a higher interest rate.

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