Bank Statement Loans in Vermont

Why Bank Statement Loans Matter in Vermont’s Market

Vermont home prices run modestly below the national average, with the strongest demand concentrated around Burlington and the state’s ski and lake communities. For self-employed borrowers, qualifying can still be a challenge, because conventional loans are built around W-2 employees and penalize business owners and contractors who write off expenses on their tax returns.

Here’s why bank statement loans make sense for self-employed borrowers in Vermont:

• Vermont has a deep self-employed and small-business base. The state is home to more than 81,900 small businesses, which represent 99.0% of all businesses in Vermont and account for one of the highest shares of small-business employment in the country. Self-employed workers and contractors make up a meaningful part of the workforce, especially across healthcare, higher education, tourism and outdoor recreation, specialty manufacturing, agriculture and food production, and the trades.
• Write-offs make qualifying harder than it should be. The same deductions that keep a dairy farmer, innkeeper, or small business owner healthy at tax time shrink the taxable income a conventional underwriter sees. IRS data shows that, nationally, sole proprietors report net income at roughly 20-23% of business receipts on average — well below the 50% of deposits Griffin Funding counts toward qualifying income by default. A profitable maker or shop owner can look underqualified on paper even when the deposits hitting their account each month tell a different story. A bank statement loan looks at real deposits instead of an adjusted tax figure.
• Higher prices make qualifying income matter more. With the average Vermont home value around $405,500, modestly below the national figure, and climbing fastest around Burlington and the ski and lake markets, self-employed buyers often need to qualify for larger loans to stay competitive. Conventional underwriting based on deflated taxable income can leave them short; bank statement loans qualify you on real deposits, so your true cash flow determines how much home you can afford.

Sources: Zillow home value data (June 2026); U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, Vermont 2025 State Profile; IRS Statistics of Income (Nonfarm Sole Proprietorships, 2008-2015; SOI Bulletin, Spring 2025).

How Vermont Bank Statement Loans Work

Vermont business owners and contractors who write off expenses often show a taxable income far below what they actually earn. This tends to leave them underqualified on paper for conventional loans, even when their cash flow tells a different story.

Bank statement loans qualify you based on cash flow shown in bank statements, rather than traditional tax-return income.

Griffin Funding reviews 12 to 24 months of bank statements and calculates income from actual deposit history. The percentage of deposits that count toward your income depends on whether you use personal or business bank statements. Personal statements count 100% of deposits; business statements typically apply a 50% expense factor, which can go as low as 10% depending on your business type.

To qualify for a bank statement loan, you’ll need:

• Credit score: 620 minimum
• Self-employment history: 2 years minimum (or 1 year if you’ve stayed in the same industry)
• Down payment: 10% with a 680+ credit score; 20% minimum with a 620-679 score
• Bank statements: 12 or 24 months of personal or business statements showing consistent deposits
• Property types: Single-family homes, multi-family homes, townhomes, condos, manufactured homes, and rural properties are all eligible
• LLC ownership: Properties can be held in an LLC

Prior bankruptcy requires a two-year waiting period before applying.

View Bank Statement Loan Requirements

Today’s Bank Statement Mortgage Loan Rates in Vermont

As a national direct-to-consumer lender, Griffin Funding cuts out the broker markup and keeps non-QM (non-qualified mortgage) rates competitive. Your specific rate depends on your credit score, down payment, loan amount, and buydown points.

Vermont Housing Markets for Self-Employed Buyers

From the Burlington-area metros with the most economic activity to lower-cost regional centers and premium ski and college towns, Vermont has real options for self-employed buyers at every price point. Here’s where borrowers are buying across the state.

Major Metros

• Burlington: Burlington: As Vermont’s largest city, Burlington runs on a diversified economy spanning technology, tourism and hospitality, manufacturing, and healthcare, with the University of Vermont Medical Center alone employing more than 8,500+ team members and medical staff. That gives self-employed contractors, consultants, and providers a steady client base across multiple sectors. Burlington is the priciest of Vermont’s true metro markets, so it’s worth running the numbers before you start shopping.
• South Burlington: Closely tied to the Burlington economy but built around its own commercial core, South Burlington holds a third of Chittenden County’s retail space and a quarter of its office space. Major industries include hospitality and retail, light manufacturing, and shipping and logistics, alongside a significant base of small contractors and service businesses. That commercial density gives self-employed contractors and service providers steady demand across the county.
• Rutland: The strongest standalone regional center outside northwestern Vermont, Rutland pairs long-standing manufacturers like GE Aerospace and OMYA with a major regional hospital and easy access to the Killington ski economy. For self-employed buyers, that mix of stable manufacturing jobs and tourism-driven demand comes at one of the more accessible price points among the state’s larger markets.

Affordable Markets

• Barre: Known as the Granite Capital of the World, Barre built its economy on the Rock of Ages quarry and still carries that manufacturing identity today, alongside its proximity to the state capital in Montpelier. For self-employed contractors and service providers, that industrial base and government-adjacent demand make Barre a practical value option in central Vermont.
• Bennington: In Vermont’s southwest corner, Bennington pairs a strong manufacturing and healthcare base with a lower cost of living than most of the state, along with a walkable downtown and Bennington College presence. That combination of steady local employment and affordability makes it one of the most accessible entry points for self-employed buyers in Vermont.
• Brattleboro: The economic hub of southeastern Vermont, Brattleboro has built a genuine small-business and coworking scene, boosted by Vermont’s 2018 Remote Worker Grant Program (since discontinued). An evaluation found its 140 participating households had aggregate income of $16.5 million, above the state average. That entrepreneurial base, paired with comparatively affordable prices, makes Brattleboro a strong fit for bank statement loans, which qualify buyers on real deposits instead of a write-off-shrunk tax return.

Lifestyle Markets

• Middlebury: Home to Middlebury College, this classic Vermont college town blends culture, dining, and a strong quality of life with steady demand from the academic and healthcare economy. Healthcare and social services, education, and industrial and manufacturing round out the local job base, drawing a significant influx of workers commuting daily from across the wider Champlain Valley. For self-employed buyers, that institutional stability supports a reliable client base outside the state’s bigger metros.
• Shelburne: An affluent suburb just south of Burlington on the shores of Lake Champlain, Shelburne draws steady visitor traffic from Shelburne Farms, Shelburne Museum, and the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory, along with special events that bring in thousands of visitors each year, which is steady business for local vendors and service providers. Shelburne’s strong schools and residential profile, meanwhile, make it an appealing place for self-employed buyers to settle down. 
• Stowe: Vermont’s classic resort and ski-lifestyle market, Stowe pairs world-class skiing and a real estate market built around luxury slopeside and ski-in/ski-out homes with a picturesque village that draws a steady flow of second-home buyers and vacation travelers year-round. For self-employed buyers in hospitality, guiding, design, or the trades, that means a customer base with real spending power and a lifestyle that’s hard to match anywhere else in Vermont, though at nearly $1.1 million average, it’s a market to enter with your numbers dialed in.

Free Tools for Self-Employed Borrowers in Vermont

Run the numbers before you commit. These free tools give you an instant read on your buying power and the Vermont market.

• Bank Statement Loan Calculator: Quickly estimate how much home you could afford with a Vermont bank statement loan. 
• Bank Statement Loan Refinance Calculator: See how much you could potentially save using a bank statement refinance loan in Vermont. 
• Home Affordability Calculator: Get a better idea of how much home you may be able to afford based on your financial profile and mortgage details. 
• Housing Market Insights: Explore estimated values, transaction history, and appreciation trends for properties across the state of Vermont. 

Apply for a Bank Statement Home Loan in Vermont

Self-employed borrowers with non-traditional income still have options to purchase property in Vermont. With a bank statement home loan, you can qualify for up to $4.5 million in financing, no tax returns or pay stubs required. Down payments start at 10% for qualified borrowers.

Griffin Funding has helped self-employed borrowers, small business owners, freelancers, tradespeople, and independent contractors qualify for bank statement mortgage loans across Vermont. We lend throughout the entire state, from Burlington and South Burlington to Rutland, Stowe, and Middlebury, and the value markets of Barre, Bennington, and Brattleboro.

Reach out today to learn more about how to qualify for a mortgage in Vermont if you’re self-employed. If you’re ready to get pre-approved and lock in your rate, get started online.

• Cody Unger, Griffin Funding Vermont Loan Officer | NMLS# 1295308
• Meagan Scheiwe, Griffin Funding Vermont Loan Officer | NMLS# 1799239
• Joe Yaeger, Griffin Funding Vermont Loan Officer | NMLS# 209681