Self Employed moving out of state and buying a house.

[David Niles]

A friend of mine and his wife are moving south to Florida, not to retire but to get away from the cold.  They are both self employed and have been for 30 years.  Their finances are great, no CC debt, fico in the 800's and tax returns that can substantiate their income no problem.  

Both are going to continue with the self employed fields they are currently in and thus the issue they have seem to run into. The lender they spoke with in Florida said basically their previous state tax returns wouldnt be valid with the move and thus they would need to reestablish the businesses and have 2 years in the new state. 

Is this really the only way they can qualify for a new mortgage?  They have the assets to put 20-30% down no problem and prefer not having to rent for a couple years.