So, can you buy a house with Uber income? Yes, you can buy a house with Uber income and you can get a mortgage with 100% of your income from Uber. As a Uber driver, you are considered a self-employed person and lenders will require two years of income history to qualify your income.
In today’s tough housing market, it can be difficult to make ends meet. With technology companies like Uber, city dwellers are able to earn an income. For some; this income would be additional money for savings and bills. Others might be doing Uber full-time (or more) to earn a full-time income.
In any case, you can use your Uber income for mortgage in Canada. The country’s biggest prime lenders view Uber income differently than the traditional T4 employment income.
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Can I Get a Mortgage as a Uber Driver?
Yes, you can get a mortgage as a Uber driver. As a self-employed Uber driver, you need to have Uber income for a period of two years to get a mortgage.
When you work as a Uber driver; you are considered a self-employed worker or contractor. This immediately puts you in the self-employed mortgage category.
In the mortgage funding environment, prime lenders want to absorb as little risk as possible. To ensure this, they have different rules in place for self-employed applicants. If you are a Uber driver applying for a mortgage, you will need:
- Two years of notice of assessments showing Uber income
- Two years of Uber employment history (T2125 Tax Slips)
It is important that your Uber income to buy a house is seen on two years worth of tax documentation.
A lender will take the average of the two years worth of Uber income. If the second year of income is greater than the first year, there may be room to get them to use a higher income. However, this is not always guaranteed. You are advised to speak with a professional mortgage broker for confirmation.
Even though you check all the boxes to qualify for a mortgage with your Uber income, you need to make sure that these reasons why mortgage applications get denied don’t happen to you.
What If I’ve Been Driving for Less than Two Years?
If you’ve been working as a Uber driver for less than two years, the lender will not include your Uber income in your mortgage qualifications. A prime lender such as the big bank will want to see two years of self-employment history with Uber – as this proves consistency and longevity.
So, what you’re saying is if I’ve been driving for less than two years, my Uber income doesn’t qualify as income for mortgage purposes? Yes, but there is some good news.
Using Uber Income for Larger Down Payment
If your Uber income to buy a house doesn’t qualify as income for your mortgage – the actual earnings you’ve made will allow you to put a larger down payment on your property. A larger down payment will help with your debts and dictate what you can buy. Essentially, you will be able to buy a little more house with a larger down payment from your Uber income.
A larger down payment can come from many sources, and lenders always want confirmation that it is not another source of debt. If you can show them that you’ve been working as a part-time or full-time Uber driver – there is some room for slack.
Keep in mind that, Uber is largely advertised as a part-time opportunity to earn some income on the side. They constantly push marketing that promotes the “work on your own schedule” motto. If you can prove to the bank that your idea of your own schedule is a full-time job – kudos to you!
Are There Lenders for Uber Income Mortgages?
Fortunately, there are lenders who specialize in mortgages for self-employed income, Uber income and ridesharing income.
As a home buyer, you should also remember that there are different types of lenders in the market offering mortgages. A few popular types of lenders are:
- Prime Lenders / Direct Lenders – Banks
- Sub Prime Lenders / B Lending
- Non-Bank Lenders
- Private Lenders / Hard Money Lenders
With these different mortgage lenders in the market, you can always get approved for a mortgage with Uber income. However, you will have to absorb additional costs. These additional costs can be up front fees, registration fees and higher interest costs.
These second tier lenders will often consider your recent income from Uber. They don’t need to see two full years of income verification. By offering a lower barrier to entry into the mortgage market, these alternative lenders may charge a higher interest or require a larger down payment. However, the bottom line is that as a Uber driver, you can get a mortgage and buy a house.
Popularity of Uber Income with Canadian Lenders
According to Money Sense, there are 90,000 Canadians driving for Uber. With the rising popularity of this income stream, more mortgage applications now include Uber income.
However, given the instability of this income source – most lenders will be reluctant to consider this as T4 income. After all, only 0.2394% of Canadians are Uber drivers. If we take into consideration all types of ridesharing income and food delivery incomes, this may bump us up to 1% of the population.
There are mortgage brokers who specialize in different areas of the lending market. Find a broker who works with self-employed people. They will be able to direct your mortgage application to lenders who are more favorable towards applicants with T2125 income. Hopefully in the future, it’s easier to use Uber income to buy a house in Canada.
If you’re buying a new build home from the builder, find out when you start paying for a new construction home. You can use your Uber income for home loan, and only start paying when you close on the home.
Closing Remark
If you’re currently working for Uber as a driver or a food delivery driver, you need to decide how much income you wish to add annually to show for your mortgage. Once this is done, you need to work at it for two years and remain as consistent as possible. If your second year income is greater than the first – it shows your lender that it’s a serious source of income for you.
