# No Ratio: The Deal-Saver Your Clients Need By Shea Sherman (@sheasherman) · Published 2026-09-19 Canonical: https://voce.com/@sheasherman/ratio-deal-saver-clients-f9b6qe --- #### Key Takeaways - Qualifies buyers without income or employment documentation — even when tax returns show thin net income - FICO scores from 640 and loans up to $2.5M, primary residences only - Not just a product: a deal-saver that protects your closed transactions and referral relationships - Send a 'dead' file to Shea for a second look before you tell a client no You know the file. A client who is clearly qualified on paper — a profitable business, strong cash reserves — but whose tax return shows almost no net income because every legitimate deduction was maxed out. Your conventional lender says no, and the deal you worked for months starts slipping away. It does not have to. The No Ratio program qualifies your buyer without income or employment verification, using no-income-stated underwriting to close deals other lenders walk from. ## Why the No Ratio program saves deals For self-employed buyers, a bank's refusal is rarely about cash flow and almost always about paperwork. Conventional underwriting looks at W-2s and signed tax returns, so a business owner who writes off expenses aggressively looks poorer on paper than they are. A business generating $1.8 million in gross revenue that shows $195,000 in taxable income after every legal deduction walks into a conventional lender's office and gets qualified on the $195,000 — not the deposits ([Non-QM Mortgage for Self-Employed Borrowers](https://mbanc.com/blog/non-qm-loan-self-employed-borrowers)). The No Ratio program qualifies on what actually moves through the account, not what a tax return reports after deductions ([Self-Employed Mortgage Requirements](https://www.lendsurehomeloans.com/blog/self-employed-mortgage-requirements)). ## What the No Ratio program delivers No income stated, no income documents required. That single shift is what changes which deals close. Here are the numbers your buyers and referral partners need to hear: - **FICO from 640** — reaches buyers a conventional lender turns away on credit alone - **Loans up to $2.5 million** — covers upper-tier and luxury price points - **Up to 80% LTV** for purchases and rate/term refinances - Cash-out allowed, and may be used for reserves - Debt consolidation treated as rate/term - Reserves as low as 6 months - Only 30 days of asset seasoning - **Primary residences only** The high-deduction business owner described above. ## Who the No Ratio program saves These are the files that get pulled from the pile and revived. Each one is a deal another agent already told a client to walk away from. **The high-deduction business owner.** A business generating $1.8 million in gross revenue can show as little as $195,000 in taxable income after depreciation, home office, and retirement contributions are deducted ([Non-QM Mortgage for Self-Employed Borrowers](https://mbanc.com/blog/non-qm-loan-self-employed-borrowers)). A conventional lender qualifies them on the $195,000; No Ratio qualifies them on the deposits. That's the difference between their dream home and another lost listing. **The cash-rich retiree.** A retired buyer living off investments and drawdowns may carry plenty of assets but no steady W-2 paycheck. Under a conventional lender's income rules, they can look under-qualified despite deep reserves. With No Ratio, their assets and cash position do the qualifying work, and cash-out proceeds can even be used to cover reserves. **The rapid-move buyer.** Someone relocating for a job, a family change, or a market window does not always have 30 years of clean, verifiable employment history at their fingertips. When a buyer needs speed and their income story is complicated, the no-documentation path keeps the contract alive instead of letting it die in underwriting. ![Realtor and lender reviewing a file together](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1526948531399-320e7e40f0ca?cs=tinysrgb&fm=jpg&ixid=M3w5Mzk0NDN8MHwxfHNlYXJjaHwxfHxyZWFsdG9yJTIwYW5kJTIwbW9ydGdhZ2UlMjBsZW5kZXIlMjBtZWV0aW5nJTIwbW9kZXJuJTIwaG9tZXxlbnwwfDB8fHwxNzg5NjU3Mzk1fDA&ixlib=rb-4.1.0&q=80&w=1200&h=630&fit=crop&crop=entropy) ## When your conventional lender says no, send me the file No Ratio was not built to replace your conventional pipeline — it is the safety net for the clients who fall through it. When a buyer gets declined, that is not the end of the transaction; it is the moment to call for a second opinion before you break the bad news. ?Frequently Asked Questions3 questions 1Does the buyer need to be self-employed to use No Ratio? Yes. A buyer whose tax return shows heavy deductions can be declined by a conventional lender even when deposits are strong — exactly the situation No Ratio is built to solve. 2How do I send over a declined file for a second look? Bring the declined file to Shea Sherman at First Coast Mortgage Funding. The goal is a second look before you tell the client bad news, and a clear path to saving the contract. 3Is there any catch my client should be ready for? It is priced like the premium safety net it is. Because the lender takes on underwriting risk without income verification, the rate and fee structure runs above a conventional loan — a tradeoff worth explaining so your buyer sees the deal, not just the number. Before a buyer walks out the door labelled declined, get a second pair of eyes on the file. That is the value I bring to your pipeline — not just a loan product, but a partner who resurrects the deals other agents write off. No income documents, no income stated, FICO from 640, loans up to $2.5 million, primary residences only. Bring me the file you were about to give up on, and let's find a way to close it.