Self-Employed Home Buyers on Florida's Space Coast: What Lenders Ask For

Can you get a mortgage on the Space Coast if you are self-employed?

Yes. Lenders in Brevard County generally want two years of personal and business tax returns from a self-employed buyer, though one year can work when you have a documented history in the same line of work.

Brevard County runs on contract work. Aerospace and defense subcontractors, marine trades, construction, charter captains, hair and beauty professionals, and a growing number of remote consultants who moved to Florida's Space Coast specifically because the work follows them. A large share of the buyers I meet in Melbourne, Merritt Island, and Viera do not get a W-2.

Almost every one of them has heard some version of "self-employed people cannot get a mortgage." That is not true, and it has not been true for a long time. What is true is that the process asks for more paper and rewards preparation. Here is what a lender is actually going to want.

How long do you need to be self-employed?

The standard is a two-year history. Fannie Mae's stated reason is straightforward: a two-year track record demonstrates the likelihood that the income continues.

There is an exception, and it is more useful than most Space Coast buyers realize. Fannie Mae will consider a borrower with less than two years of self-employment when the most recent signed personal and business federal tax returns show a full twelve months of self-employment income from the current business, and the file documents prior income at the same or greater level in the same field, or in an occupation with similar responsibilities.

Read that second condition carefully, because it describes a very common Brevard County situation. An engineer who spent eight years on a payroll at a Space Coast aerospace contractor and then went independent doing the same work is a far easier file than someone who changed industries entirely. The full rule is in Fannie Mae's Selling Guide section on underwriting a self-employed borrower.

What documents will a lender ask for?

Expect the list to be longer than what a salaried buyer provides. Typical requests include:

• Two years of signed personal federal tax returns with all schedules
• Two years of business tax returns if the business files separately
• A year-to-date profit and loss statement
• Business bank statements
• Proof the business currently exists and is active, such as a state registration or a license
• A CPA letter in some scenarios

Fannie Mae has moved toward more transparency on the one-year question. The Selling Guide historically required two years of returns, while automated underwriting sometimes determined only one year was needed. The policy now allows one year of personal and business returns in qualifying cases, for both automated and manually underwritten loans. Your lender determines which path your file takes.

The number that trips people up

Here is the thing that catches nearly every self-employed buyer moving to the Space Coast.

Lenders do not qualify you on gross revenue. They qualify you on net income after your deductions, calculated from your tax returns. The same aggressive write-offs that lowered your tax bill for the last two years also lowered the income a lender can count.

To put it in hypothetical terms: a contractor in Rockledge who invoices well into six figures but writes the return down to a fraction of that is treated as a borrower at the smaller number. That is not a loophole being closed, it is arithmetic, and it is why the conversation about buying a house on the Space Coast should start a full tax year before you shop.

Some deductions get added back, because they are paper expenses rather than money that left your account. Depreciation is the most common. Depletion and certain business-use-of-home entries can also be added back depending on how they were taken. The exact treatment depends on your return and your loan program, so this is a conversation to have with your lender and your tax preparer together, well ahead of time.

What about FHA and VA loans in Brevard County?

Self-employment does not disqualify you from government-backed financing. FHA also works from a two-year history standard, with a shorter history permitted in defined circumstances involving prior related employment. The complete policy sits in HUD's Single Family Housing Policy Handbook 4000.1.

This matters on the Space Coast because FHA loan limits set the ceiling on those purchases. Brevard County is at FHA's national floor for 2026 at $541,287 for a one-unit home, which I broke down in FHA loan limits in Brevard County for 2026. Plenty of house in Melbourne, Rockledge, Suntree, or Merritt Island. Tighter beachside in Satellite Beach or Indialantic.

How to prepare if you are moving to the Space Coast

If buying in Brevard County is somewhere in the next two years, a few moves make the process dramatically easier:

• Talk to your tax preparer before you file, not after. Understand the tradeoff between the deduction and the qualifying income before the return is signed.
• Keep business and personal banking separate. Commingled accounts turn a two-week underwriting review into a six-week one.
• Do not restructure your business right before you buy. Switching from a sole proprietorship to an S corporation in the middle of a purchase can reset how a lender views your history.
• Get pre-approved early. Not pre-qualified. A real pre-approval with documents reviewed, so you know your actual number before you fall in love with a house in Viera.
• Expect conditions late in the process. Self-employed files routinely get additional document requests before closing. Respond fast and it is a non-event.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need two years of tax returns to buy a house in Brevard County?

Usually, but not always. One year of personal and business returns can be enough when the file also documents prior income at the same or greater level in the same field. Someone who left a Space Coast employer to do the same work independently often fits that description. Your lender confirms which standard applies to your file.

Can I use bank statements instead of tax returns?

Bank statement programs exist, but they sit outside the conventional and government loan rules described here, and they typically carry different pricing and different qualifying standards. If you are considering one, compare it carefully against a standard loan rather than assuming it is your only option.

Does 1099 income count differently than a business?

For underwriting purposes, 1099 contract income is generally treated as self-employment income and is documented through your tax returns rather than through pay stubs. If a Space Coast aerospace or marine contractor pays you on a 1099, plan on the self-employed documentation path even though it may feel like a regular job.

Buying on the Space Coast without a W-2?

Self-employed buyers close on houses in Brevard County constantly. The ones who have a smooth time are the ones who understood the qualifying income question before they started touring. If you are planning a move to Florida's Space Coast and want to work backward from what you can actually qualify for, I am glad to help you map it out.

My partner Nichole and I got your back. Reach out anytime at (321) 212-7676 or www.livingspacecoast.com.