TL;DR
This service turns your income story into a lender-ready submission so you can move with confidence on pre-approval, purchase, refinance, or transfer decisions.
Why this service exists
Most self-employed mortgage files fail for preventable reasons: incomplete tax records, unclear business-income trends, and rushed submissions under offer pressure. We fix those issues before they become expensive.
Our process is designed to make underwriting boring: complete documents, consistent numbers, and a lender path that fits your exact profile.
Who this service is for
- Business owners, sole proprietors, contractors, and commissioned professionals.
- Borrowers with strong cash flow but complex taxable income.
- Households that want approval clarity before writing time-sensitive offers.
Who this is not for
- Borrowers looking for a same-day quote with no documents.
- Files where major income gaps cannot be explained or supported.
- Borrowers unwilling to run downside scenarios before committing.
What lenders usually verify for self-employed files
| Borrower profile | Primary underwriting focus | Common evidence requested |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietor | Income consistency and trend stability | Recent Notices of Assessment, T1 history, banking support |
| Incorporated owner | Business durability and owner draw strategy | Corporate financials, shareholder income records, tax support |
| Commissioned professional | Earnings variability and debt-service resilience | Commission history, tax records, liability summary |
| Mixed-income household | How multiple income streams are treated by lender policy | Combined income package with clear source mapping |
Path comparison: broker-led vs bank-only vs digital-only
| Path | Best fit | Main risk | Pragmatic control |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broker-led (Pragmatic) | Files with income complexity or tight timelines | Extra options can create decision noise | Use one decision scorecard: approval certainty, cost, timeline reliability |
| Single-bank path | Borrowers who strongly prefer one institution workflow | Lower comparison visibility if policy fit is weak | Pre-check lender policy fit before full submission |
| Digital-only intake | Fast first look on straightforward files | False confidence before full-condition underwriting | Treat portal output as first step, not final approval |
Common decline triggers and how we prevent them
- Unclear income trend: we build a plain-language income narrative tied to evidence.
- Mismatch across documents: we run a pre-submission consistency audit.
- Down-payment source questions: we prepare source-of-funds proof before submission.
- Timeline compression: we define a fallback funding and lender path before condition deadlines.
14-day self-employed pre-approval sprint
- Days 1-3: gather tax, business, and debt records.
- Days 4-6: run document quality and consistency checks.
- Days 7-9: model affordability and debt-service under conservative assumptions.
- Days 10-12: compare lender-path fit and total-cost scenarios.
- Days 13-14: submit one clean package and prepare condition-stage checklist.
Behavioral traps that hurt self-employed approvals
| Mental model | Common trap | Pragmatic correction |
|---|---|---|
| Present bias | Rushing submission to "save time" | Invest early in one complete package and avoid rework loops |
| Anchoring | Fixating on one quoted rate before policy fit is proven | Prioritize approval certainty and timeline reliability first |
| Overconfidence bias | Assuming prior bank relationship guarantees approval | Validate current lender policy against this year’s income reality |
Best next step
- Use the mortgage documents checklist.
- Run debt-service scenarios with conservative buffers.
- Run affordability scenarios before setting your price ceiling.
- Create your free account.
- Start your pre-approval workflow.
