Self-employed mortgage: how do German banks assess your income?
The self-employed, freelancers and business owners often hear a "no" from their own bank first — variable income, no payslip, and scoring built for salaried employees. But a rejection is not a verdict on you: it is the view of a single bank, and the next bank assesses the very same tax figures completely differently.
Independently, we find the institution that reads your accounts and your numbers correctly. In Germany, an application like this is judged on three years of accounts, not a payslip.
How do German banks assess the income of the self-employed?
German banks assess the income of the self-employed on taxed profit rather than turnover, and with more documentation than employees provide. German lenders typically want three completed years, the income tax assessments and the profit calculation or annual accounts. Fluctuation between years is not a disqualifier, but it needs an explanation the bank can follow.
How many years of profit count for a self-employed mortgage in Germany?
A self-employed mortgage in Germany is assessed on three years of taxed profit.
- Which banks finance the self-employed? We compare 650+ banks and find the institution that reviews your figures individually instead of rejecting them automatically.
- Newly self-employed: some banks finance before three annual accounts: Yes, at some banks — for example with a clear sector outlook, prior experience in the field or strong equity.
- Which documents count? Three income-tax assessments, the matching profit calculation (EÜR or balance sheet) and a current BWA (business analysis). The document checklist.
- 650+ banks compared; §34i GewO authorisation; €0 advice cost; nationwide independent.
Why banks scrutinise the self-employed more closely
Employees hand over a payslip — done. For the self-employed that simple proof is missing, so banks look deeper and more cautiously. That is not arbitrary, it is risk logic. The point is: every bank weighs that logic differently, and many branch systems wave you away reflexively, because their standard process is built for employees.
- Variable income: Strong and weaker years alternate. Banks usually take an average — which years they use and how they treat outliers decides the outcome.
- No payslip: Instead of a salary statement, tax assessments, profit calculations and management accounts count. Prepared cleanly they become strong arguments — incomplete they become grounds for rejection.
- Automated scoring: Many high-street banks assess by automation. Whoever does not fit the grid drops out — even when affordability is there. A specialist bank assesses individually.
Which documents really count
The more complete and clear your figures are, the more likely the approval — and the better the terms. These are the building blocks that matter:
- Income-tax assessments (Basis): Usually the last three years. They are the anchor of the income calculation.
- Cash-basis accounts or balance sheet (Profit): The profit calculation matching the assessments — for freelancers usually the cash-basis accounts (EÜR), for those who keep books the annual financial statements.
- Up-to-date management accounts (BWA) (Timeliness): The management report shows the current year. It proves the trend is right — not just the past.
- Equity & bank statements (Substance): Proof of your own funds and a clean account history. Existing commitments belong openly on the table.
How banks calculate your income
Most banks take an average of the last three years. The details are decisive: a falling trend is viewed more critically than a rising one. One-off special effects — a particularly strong or weak year, a large investment — can be explained and put in context, if you know which bank has an open ear for it. And it makes a difference whether you are a freelancer or run a trade, whether you work alone or lead a company.
That is exactly where our leverage lies: we know the assessment logic of the individual houses and present your figures to the bank that reads them most fairly — instead of leaving you to the chance of your own bank.
Our promise of independence: we are not a branch apparatus and are not tied to any bank. We compare over 650 banks at once — your own bank knows only its own products. Advice, bank comparison and the financing enquiry are usually free for you; as a rule the financing bank pays the commission.
Constellations for the right pool of banks
It is precisely these constellations that are our daily business. A selection:
- Newly self-employed: Not yet three completed years? With a clear sector outlook, prior experience from employment or strong equity, some banks finance earlier.
- Freelancers: Doctors, lawyers, architects, consultants: academic liberal professions are seen by many banks as particularly sustainable — when the right bank assesses.
- Shareholder-directors: Salary, profit distribution, current account: your income is composite. We present it so the bank sees the full capacity.
- Fluctuating earnings: Project business, seasonality, several income types: with the right preparation and the right bank, not a knock-out criterion.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the best bank for self-employed mortgage applications?
There is no single best bank, because every bank weighs the risk of self-employed income differently. The next bank can assess the same tax figures completely differently. What matters is a lender that assesses self-employed income individually instead of applying a blanket discount. We compare 650+ banks to find it.
Which bank has a stronger lending appetite for self-employed borrowers?
It differs from bank to bank. Many branch systems assess by automation, and applicants who do not fit the grid drop out even when affordability is there. A specialist bank assesses individually. We compare 650+ banks and find the one that reads your figures correctly.
Can I get a mortgage at all as a self-employed person?
Yes. The self-employed and freelancers are financeable in principle; banks simply examine the income more closely. A rejection is not a verdict on you, but the criteria of a single bank — another calculates the same figures differently. That is exactly the bank we pick out of more than 650.
How many tax assessments do I have to submit?
Usually the last three income-tax assessments plus the matching profit calculation (cash-basis accounts or balance sheet) and up-to-date management accounts. How strictly it is assessed and which years count differs from bank to bank — we align that for you. More on bankability.
I've only recently become self-employed — is it still possible?
Fewer banks come into question, but it is not ruled out. Many banks want to see three completed business years; some finance earlier — for example with a clear sector outlook, prior experience in the same field or strong equity. We know the banks that go along early.
What does your advice cost me?
Nothing. Advice, bank comparison and the financing enquiry are free. As a rule the financing bank pays the commission.
Do you also provide tax advice?
No. We arrange financing and do not give tax or legal advice. You clarify tax questions with your tax adviser — on request we work closely with them.
Discuss your situation briefly — no obligation
Tell us about your self-employment and your plans in a free first conversation. I'll tell you honestly what is realistic and which banks fit your situation.
WhatsApp +49 177 3272788 · Phone +49 2151 3293344 · E-mail siegfried@perini-financeandproperty.com
Advice free · commission, as a rule, paid by the bank · §34i GewO · no tax advice · no financing commitment; terms depend on creditworthiness, loan-to-value and bank
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Editorially responsible: Olga Nikushkina — owner, §34i GewO (German mortgage brokerage), adviser register D-W-132-ZUCB-95. Specialised in German property financing with an international dimension: non-residents, foreign-currency income, cross-border workers, expats. Siegfried Perini is entered in the German intermediary register under this licence as a person directly involved in brokerage and advice (§ 11a GewO), active in real estate since 1992. Not legal or tax advice.