Travel Nursing Mortgage

[Dave Green]

Hey there, I know there's already a thread about this, but I read through it and still don't feel like I have a great answer. My question is the same. I am a travel nurse, and I've had trouble getting a mortgage for 2 reasons. #1, my income looks much lower than it is on paper because a large portion of my pay comes from a travel stipend (tax free money for being a travel nurse) and can't be considered by the lender, and #2, my contracts change every 13 weeks, so it appears on paper that I'm unable to show consistent employment, even though I've never had a gap in employment. Does anyone have any suggestions for this? My credit score is 800 and my finances are great, in reality, it's just difficult for me to prove any of that on paper to any potential lenders and I'm on my third try. Located in southeast Michigan.

[Anastasia G.]

Hello @Dave Green

Several of my clients are facing similar challenges. When financing a home, lenders are looking for income that is stable, predictable and likely to continue - this is a cornerstone of traditional financings such as Conventional, FHA/VA/USDA;

Here is how lenders qualifying income for Traveling Nurses:

✅ Two-year work history as a traveling nurse is needed

✅ College/Nursing School is generally accepted as a work history for a standard and fully employed nurses. However, it is NOT considered work history for a Traveling Nurse.

✅If a Nurse moves from a fully employed nursing position and is now a Traveling Nurse, a minimum of one year as a Traveling Nurse is required.

✅Per Diem Income is not considered income because the purpose is for expenses.

✅When income is variable, the lender may average your income vs. using the income you presently earn.

If income from Traveling Nurse profession is not sufficient to qualify for Traditional financing, there are other options available: Non Traditional or Non-QM. We would see if a person can qualify for No ratio (no DTI, no income verification) or DSCR (debt service coverage ratio - investment) loan programs.

It all depends on your personal situation, timeline and most importantly strategic planning. Hope this helps to understand basic guidelines of Traveling nurse income.