Lending for 1099 + W2

[Drew Clayton]

My girlfriend is trying to get a primary residence mortgage loan with a low down payment, and has decent income, however she is running into trouble securing lending because she has both a 1099 job and a W2 one.

The lenders want to take the average of her income for the last two years, but they are telling her they can't use the W2 income from 2020 because she has only been at that job for the last six months. Thus, the lender will only accept the 1099 income (she's been at that job for over two years), which, of course, makes her income look much smaller than it is. Her 2019 taxes are lower than normal, reflecting months she took off for personal reasons. If they were able to use both income sources for 2020, it would make her 2-year average much stronger.

What's the rationale for not accepting the W2? From what I've heard, if you *only* have W2 income, lenders prefer but don't outright require a person to have been at a W2 job for two years; you just have to submit the last two paystubs. 

Anyone know of lenders who work with the low down payment FHA or conventional loans in Ohio that could work with this scenario?

Thanks