A true no doc HELOC, meaning a line of credit where nobody verifies your income or assets, is not generally available on a home you live in, and neither is a no doc home equity loan. Federal ability-to-repay rules require lenders to verify the income or assets they rely on for most closed-end home loans, and what gets marketed as “no doc” or “no income verification” is usually alternative documentation: bank statements, a profit and loss statement or asset statements in place of pay stubs and W-2s.
HELOCs are written out of that particular rule, so the checks on a HELOC are the lender's own, but the HELOC lenders whose pages we read still verify income. If you cannot document income at all, the product built for that is a home equity agreement. A company pays you a lump sum for a share of your home's future value, there is no monthly payment, and several of these companies state that they have no income requirement.
Our take: If your income is real but hard to show on paper (self-employed, gig or seasonal work), price a HELOC that reads bank statements first. If you have no income to show right now (between jobs, newly retired), an agreement with no income requirement is the realistic route, and it is the costlier one if your home gains value. Either way, walk away from anyone offering a loan against your home with no questions asked.
No income to show? Get an estimate from Splitero, which states that it has no income or employment requirement. Income that shows up in your bank accounts? Check your rate at Figure.
No income verification options at a glance
There are five realistic ways to tap home equity when you cannot hand over two years of W-2s. Only one of them comes with no monthly payment.
| Option | What must be documented | Typical credit needed | Monthly payment | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bank statement or alternative document HELOC | Income, shown with 12 to 24 months of bank statements, a profit and loss statement or asset statements in place of W-2s | Varies by lender. Chase's guide says generally 680 or higher. Figure lists 600 in most states | Yes | Self-employed or gig income that lands in your accounts as steady deposits |
| Asset-based qualification | Savings, retirement or brokerage balances you could draw on. The home itself does not count | Set by the lender | Yes | Retirees and others with assets but little monthly income |
| Home equity agreement | The home's value, your equity and your credit history. Several companies state no income requirement | 500 to 575 at the four companies featured below | No | No income to show right now, or no room for another monthly payment |
| Adding a co-borrower | The co-borrower's income and credit. A lender need verify only the income it relies on | Set by the lender | Yes | Households where one person has documented income |
| Waiting for two years of tax returns | Two years of signed returns, the history Fannie Mae generally requires for self-employed borrowers | Set by the lender | Yes | Newly self-employed homeowners who are not in a hurry |
The four lender rows are general information, not offers. They draw on Regulation Z, Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, Chase's no doc HELOC guide and Figure's FAQs, all read October 6, 2026. A co-borrower is fully responsible for the debt.
More: How to get equity out of your home without refinancing
Does a no doc HELOC exist?
Not in the literal sense. The rule behind that answer is the ability-to-repay requirement in Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.43. It says a creditor shall not make a covered loan unless it makes a reasonable and good faith determination that the consumer will have a reasonable ability to repay it, and that the creditor must verify the income or assets it relies on using third-party records. The official commentary adds that a borrower's own statement that they can afford the loan does not show the lender's determination was reasonable.
What the rule covers matters here, because it does not cover everything secured by a home:
| Type of credit | What the federal rule says |
|---|---|
| Home equity loans, cash-out refinances and other closed-end consumer loans secured by a dwelling | Covered. The lender must verify the income or assets it relies on. |
| HELOCs | Not covered. The rule's scope excludes a home equity line of credit subject to 12 CFR 1026.40. |
| High-cost HELOCs | A separate provision, 12 CFR 1026.34(a)(4), bars opening a high-cost line without regard to the consumer's repayment ability. |
| Loans primarily for a business purpose | Not covered, even when a home secures the loan. |
| Reverse mortgages and bridge loans of 12 months or less | Exempt from the ability-to-repay requirements. |
Source: 12 CFR 1026.43(a) and its official interpretation, and 12 CFR 1026.34(a)(4), read on consumerfinance.gov October 6, 2026. State law may add its own requirements.
So the accurate version is this. A lender may skip your pay stubs, but on a home equity loan it may not skip verification. On a HELOC the federal ability-to-repay rule is silent and the lender's own underwriting is not. The CFPB's plain-language summary of the rule says lenders must generally find out, consider and document a borrower's income, assets, employment, credit history and monthly expenses.
Chase makes the same point in its own guide to these products. It calls “no doc” a misnomer, says lenders still need to verify your ability to repay, and notes that Chase does not currently offer no doc HELOCs.
The home equity agreement route
A home equity agreement gives you a lump sum today. In exchange, the company receives a share of your home's future value or appreciation when you settle, which happens when you sell, refinance, buy the company out or reach the end of the term. There are no monthly payments in between, and the company records a lien on the home. The CFPB calls these home equity contracts, and some companies call them home equity investments.
This is why the route works for readers without pay stubs. A lender has to decide whether you can afford a monthly payment, and here there is none. Splitero puts it plainly on its eligibility page: because its investment has no monthly payments, it has no income or employment requirements. The companies describe the product as an investment and not a loan, although some states regulate it as a mortgage product. Point, for one, says its HEI is offered as a licensed mortgage product in nine states.
The trade is real, and you should see it before the offers. You give up a share of what your home is worth later. If the home gains value, the cost could exceed what a loan would have cost. Fees come out of your proceeds. And there is a term, 10 to 30 years at the companies below, by which you must settle in one lump sum. In its January 2025 review of these contracts, the CFPB wrote that homeowners who cannot pay the full settlement amount at the end of the term risk having to sell their home or face foreclosure. The home equity hub covers the other ways to use your equity.
What each company says about income
Do not assume every agreement skips income. We read each company's own eligibility and FAQ pages on October 6, 2026. Four state that they have no income requirement. Two ask for more.
| Company | Product | What its own site says about income | Published credit minimum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Splitero | Home equity investment | No income or employment requirement. Its eligibility page adds: “We will not ask for any documentation about employment or income.” | 500 |
| Unlock | Home equity agreement | No income requirement. It typically asks for a government ID, homeowner's insurance declarations and mortgage statements, and for proof of rental income only when the home is a rental. | 500 |
| Hometap | Home equity investment | No income or employment requirements. Hometap says its approval criteria look at your whole financial picture. | FICO 575 |
| Point | Home equity investment | No income requirements. Point underwrites each application and orders an appraisal, a credit report and a title report. | Above 500 |
| Nada | Home equity agreement | Proof of employment, with no minimum income requirement and no asset requirements. | 500 for primary and second homes |
| Unison | Equity sharing agreement | Unison says it evaluates credit, income and your property. Its loan-to-value and debt-to-income guidelines vary with your credit score. | Generally a mid-FICO score of at least 620 |
| Figure | HELOC | Verifies the income you state through connected bank accounts, qualified asset accounts, tax returns or pay stubs. Does not lend to unemployed borrowers. | 600 in most states |
Each company sets other requirements too, such as minimum equity, property type and state, and each may change its criteria. Meeting a published minimum does not mean you will be approved.
Best fits if you cannot document income
These are the four companies whose own pages support the fit for this reader. Splitero and Unlock come first because each spells out its documents in writing. Hometap and Point follow in alphabetical order. This page carries no star ratings or scores.
Why it is here: Of the pages we read, only Splitero's says outright that it will not ask for any documentation about employment or income. It offers up to $600,000, limited to 25% of your home's value, on homes appraised between $200,000 and $5,000,000, and its term runs as long as your senior mortgage, from 10 to 30 years.
The catch: Splitero charges a 4.99% origination fee, subtracted from your proceeds, plus about $1,000 in third-party closing costs. Pre-qualifying is a soft credit pull, and the full application is a hard credit check. It serves eligible areas of 17 states, and at settlement it receives an agreed share of your home's value.
Why it is here: Unlock's FAQs list no income requirement and name the documents it typically asks for: a government ID, your homeowner's insurance declarations and your mortgage statements. It offers up to $500,000, asks for home equity of at least 30% and a home value of at least $175,000, and lets you buy it out in partial payments during the 10-year term.
The catch: Unlock charges a 4.9% origination fee at closing plus third-party appraisal, inspection and recording costs. It may require that some of the proceeds pay off certain debts or liens as a condition to close, it says it may need additional documentation in some cases, and it needs to verify rental income if the home is an investment property.
Why it is here: Hometap states there are no income or employment requirements and that its approval criteria look at your whole financial picture. To qualify you need a minimum FICO score of 575, at least 25% equity in your home and a property located in an eligible state, among other qualifying criteria. Investments run from $15,000 to $600,000 (the minimum varies by state) with no monthly payments during the 10-year term.
The catch: Settling could cost more than the amount you received, and the full amount is due in one settlement at or before year 10. Hometap's fee is 4.5% of the Investment amount, up to $20,000, and fees are deducted from your investment proceeds rather than paid upfront.
Why it is here: Point lists no income requirements, no monthly payments and no need for perfect credit. To be considered you need a home in an area Point serves, sufficient home equity and a credit score above 500. The term is 30 years, and you could exit at any time during it with no prepayment penalty.
The catch: Point charges a processing fee of up to 3.9%, with a $2,000 minimum, plus third-party closing costs. You settle in one lump sum, and the amount depends on what your home is worth when you exit. Point underwrites every application, and availability may vary by county.
More: Best home equity agreement companies, compared
If you have income but not pay stubs: a HELOC that reads your bank accounts
If money comes in but not on a W-2, a HELOC that verifies income from bank data could cost less over time than giving up a share of your home. Figure is the one HELOC lender linked on this page, and its FAQs describe the method. Figure analyzes the inflow in the accounts you connect to verify the income you state. That analysis could run on connected bank accounts, qualified asset accounts, tax returns or pay stubs, and business bank accounts are allowed.
| How it verifies income | Inflow in connected bank accounts (personal and business), qualified asset accounts, tax returns or pay stubs |
|---|---|
| Who may apply | Applicants must be employed, self-employed or retired. Figure says it does not lend to unemployed borrowers at this time |
| Qualified assets | Retirement, 401k, IRA, Roth, savings, brokerage, money market and CD accounts |
| Line amounts | $15,000 to $750,000 in most states |
| Minimum credit score | 600 in most states, 660 or higher for investment properties |
| Terms | 10, 15, 20 or 30 years |
| Fees | An origination fee of 0% to 4.99% of the initial draw. No account opening fees, maintenance fees or prepayment penalties |
| Availability | 48 states and the District of Columbia. Not Hawaii or New York |
Source: Figure's Home Equity Line page and FAQs, read October 6, 2026.
The catch is that this is a loan with a monthly payment from the first month. The full line, minus the origination fee, is drawn at closing, so interest starts on the whole amount. If the income Figure verifies comes in below what you stated, it says you could connect more accounts, provide pay stubs and tax returns, or take a lower line, and in some cases it may decline the application.
Figure says approval may be granted in five minutes and funding could arrive in as few as five business days for qualifying loans. That timeline assumes a loan under $400,000 closed with its remote online notary, and final approval is subject to verification of income and employment.
Which route fits your situation
| Your situation | Look at first | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Self-employed with steady deposits | A HELOC that reads bank accounts | Figure verifies stated income from connected personal and business accounts. Fannie Mae's two-year return standard is not the only way in. |
| Gig or seasonal income that swings | Price the HELOC first, then an agreement | If the months of low deposits sink a bank-statement review, an agreement with no income requirement does not depend on them. |
| Retired with savings | A HELOC with asset accounts, or an agreement | Figure accepts retired applicants and counts retirement, brokerage and savings accounts. The four agreement companies above state no income requirement. |
| Between jobs | An agreement with no income or employment requirement | Figure says it does not lend to unemployed borrowers, and Nada lists proof of employment. Splitero says it asks for neither. |
| Self-employed for under two years | An agreement, or wait for the returns | Fannie Mae may count less than two years when your latest returns show a full 12 months of self-employment income from the current business. Each lender sets its own rule. |
If you are 62 or older, a reverse mortgage is a separate product with its own rules. The most common kind, the federally insured HECM, requires counseling before you sign, and reverse mortgages sit outside the ability-to-repay requirements described above.
How qualifying works without pay stubs
Credit
With income off the table, credit and equity carry more weight. The published minimums are 500 at Splitero and Unlock and a score above 500 at Point. Hometap‘s published minimum is a FICO score of 575. On the lending side, Figure lists 600 in most states, and Chase's guide says an alternative document HELOC generally needs 680 or higher and often more home equity.
More: Home equity options by credit score
Equity
Every route needs room in the home. Unlock asks for home equity of at least 30%. Splitero limits its investment to 25% of your home's value. Hometap asks for at least 25% equity in your home. Unlock and Splitero also list recent bankruptcies and foreclosures among the things that make an applicant ineligible, so read each eligibility page before you apply.
Property type
Rules shift when the home is not your primary residence. Unlock invests in primary residences, second homes and rental properties, and asks to verify rental income on an investment property. Figure lends on primary, secondary and investment residences and sets a higher credit minimum for investment properties. The federal ability-to-repay rule does not cover credit that is primarily for a business purpose, which is one reason rental property offers are marketed differently.
State
Where you live decides which of these you could use at all. As of this update, none of the four agreement companies featured above lists Alaska, Arkansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas or West Virginia. For homeowners there, the honest answer on this page is a HELOC or a home equity loan with alternative documents, and Figure lists all eleven. The agreement company buttons on this page check your state first. If the company you chose does not serve it, the button sends you to another company that does.
What to prepare
“No doc” really means different documents. Regulation Z names the records a lender may use to verify income or assets, and they go well beyond pay stubs: tax returns or IRS tax-return transcripts, W-2s, payroll statements, financial institution records, records from an employer, government records of benefits, and receipts from check cashing or funds transfer services. Gather the ones that fit you before you apply.
- 12 to 24 months of personal and business bank statements
- A profit and loss statement for your business
- Your last two years of tax returns or IRS transcripts, if you have them
- Statements for savings, brokerage and retirement accounts
- A benefits letter from the Social Security Administration, if you receive benefits
- A government ID, your mortgage statement and your homeowner's insurance declarations page
- Leases or proof of rental income, if the property is a rental
The last two lines are what Unlock says it typically asks for on an agreement. One caution from the rule's commentary: a lender does not meet the rule by counting a deposit it has not confirmed is income. If large transfers move between your own accounts, be ready to explain them.
What it costs
On the HELOC side, less conventional paperwork could cost more. Chase's guide says no doc HELOCs may come with higher interest rates and higher closing costs or fees than a traditional HELOC. For one published example, Figure charges an origination fee of 0% to 4.99% of the initial draw, and on October 6, 2026 its site listed initial APRs from 7.35% to 14.85%, with the lowest reserved for the most qualified applicants.
On the agreement side there are two costs. The first is the fee that comes out of your proceeds:
| Company | Company fee | Other costs at closing | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Splitero | 4.99% origination fee | Appraisal, escrow, title and recording, about $1,000 | 10 to 30 years |
| Unlock | 4.9% origination fee | Third-party appraisal, inspection and recording costs | 10 years |
| Hometap | 4.5% of the Investment amount, up to $20,000 | Appraisal and other signing costs, deducted from the Investment amount | 10 years |
| Point | Up to 3.9% processing fee, $2,000 minimum | Third-party closing costs such as appraisal, escrow and government fees | 30 years |
Fees as published on each company's site October 6, 2026.
The second cost is larger and arrives at settlement. The CFPB worked a hypothetical in its January 2025 review: a $500,000 home, $50,000 received, the company holding a 20% stake in the home's value, and a 20% annual cap. If the home gains 6% a year, settling takes $86,400 in year 3 or $179,085 at the end of year 10. If the home instead falls 30% and then recovers 3% a year, settling takes $76,491 in year 3 or $81,149 in year 10.
For comparison, the same review priced a $50,000 interest-only HELOC at 9%: $375 a month, $45,000 in interest over 10 years, and the $50,000 still owed. The agreement cost more overall whenever the home appreciated. This is the CFPB's illustration and not any one company's pricing. Each company's formula, cap and fees differ, so ask for the settlement numbers at several home values before you sign.
More: HEI vs. HELOC: costs, requirements and how to choose
Red flags
The short version: a real lender asks how you will repay, and a real agreement company shows you what settling could cost. An offer of money against your home with no questions asked is the warning sign, not the selling point.
| Red flag | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| A home equity loan with no income or asset questions at all | For a closed-end loan the federal rule requires the lender to verify the income or assets it relies on. A lender that skips this is ignoring the rule or is not what it claims to be. |
| “Just write down a number” | Your own statement that you can afford the loan does not satisfy the rule, and you are the one who signs the application. Do not let anyone talk you into an income figure you cannot support. |
| “We will call it a business loan” | The rule does not cover credit primarily for a business purpose. Relabeling a personal loan to skip the checks takes it outside this rule's protections. |
| Pressure to sign today | The FTC says to read the closing papers carefully and not to sign if the financing is not what you expected. On your main home you could cancel a home equity loan or HELOC within three business days. |
| A last-minute email changing where to wire closing money | The FTC's guidance is direct: do not wire money in response to an unexpected email. Call your lender at a number you know is real. |
| An agreement pitched as free money | There are no monthly payments, but the CFPB's review found complaints from homeowners surprised by the size of the settlement. Get the numbers in writing first. |
Sources: 12 CFR 1026.43 and its official interpretation, the FTC's Home Equity Loans and Home Equity Lines of Credit, and the CFPB's January 2025 review of home equity contracts.
How to choose and apply
- Estimate what you could get. Start with the home equity calculator to see how much equity you have and roughly how much you could tap.
- Decide whether your income can be shown another way. If deposits, tax returns or asset accounts tell the story, price a HELOC first. It has a monthly payment, and it leaves all of your home's future value with you.
- If it cannot, check your state and credit score. Match yourself against the published minimums above, then confirm on the company's own site that it serves your state.
- Get two offers. Compare the share of your home's value, any cap on what the company could receive, the fees and the term.
- Read the settlement terms and plan your exit. Know whether you expect to settle by selling, refinancing or using savings, and by what year.
- Use your right to cancel if something is off. On a home equity loan or HELOC secured by your main home, you have until midnight of the third business day to cancel.
The bottom line: if you cannot document income, Splitero is the clearest place to start, because its eligibility page says it will not ask for employment or income documents. If your income shows up in your bank accounts, price a HELOC first.
No doc HELOC FAQ
Not in the literal sense on a home you live in. For a home equity loan, federal rules require the lender to verify the income or assets it relies on, and the HELOC lenders we read verify income too, often from bank statements. If you cannot document income at all, a home equity agreement is the usual route. Splitero, for example, says it will not ask for any documentation about employment or income.
It is a marketing name for a HELOC that does not rely on W-2s, pay stubs or tax returns. Lenders still verify how you will repay, typically with 12 to 24 months of bank statements, a profit and loss statement or asset statements. Chase's guide to these products calls the name a misnomer and notes that Chase does not currently offer them.
Yes, if your income can be verified. Fannie Mae generally requires a two-year history for self-employed borrowers, usually shown with two years of tax returns. Some lenders verify from bank data instead. Figure says it analyzes the inflow in your connected accounts and allows business bank accounts.
It depends on the lender. Figure says applicants must be employed, self-employed or retired and that it does not lend to unemployed borrowers at this time. Agreement companies such as Splitero and Unlock state that they have no income requirement, which makes an agreement the more realistic option between jobs.
Some do. Splitero, Unlock, Hometap and Point each state that they have no income requirement. Unison says it evaluates credit, income and your property, and Nada's eligibility page lists proof of employment with no minimum income requirement. Each publishes its own credit minimum and equity rules.
Published minimums at the companies featured on this page are 500 at Splitero and Unlock and a score above 500 at Point. Hometap‘s published minimum is a FICO score of 575. Unison says applicants generally need a mid-FICO score of at least 620.
The federal ability-to-repay rule does not apply to HELOCs, so that rule does not itself bar one. It does apply to home equity loans and other closed-end loans, where the lender must verify income or assets with third-party records. A separate provision bars opening a high-cost HELOC without regard to repayment ability, and state law may add its own requirements. In practice, the HELOC lenders we read verify the income you state.
Regulation Z lists tax returns or IRS tax-return transcripts, W-2s, payroll statements, financial institution records, employer records, government benefit records, and receipts from check cashing or funds transfer services. For a self-employed applicant that usually means bank statements and tax returns. For a retiree it means a Social Security benefits letter and account statements.
Often, if your home gains value. In a January 2025 review, the CFPB compared a hypothetical agreement with a $50,000 interest-only HELOC at 9% and found the agreement cost more overall whenever the home appreciated. It cost less only if the home's value fell at least 5% over 10 years.
How we checked this page
This guide is the editorial view of smarts.co, built from primary sources read on October 6, 2026. We read the regulation and its official interpretation, the CFPB and FTC pages below, and each company's own product, eligibility and FAQ pages. Where a company's page did not say something, we left it out.
- CFPB: Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.43, minimum standards for transactions secured by a dwelling
- CFPB: Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.34, prohibited acts or practices in connection with high-cost mortgages
- CFPB: What is the ability-to-repay rule?
- CFPB: Issue Spotlight, Home Equity Contracts: Market Overview (January 15, 2025)
- FTC: Home Equity Loans and Home Equity Lines of Credit
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide: B3-3.2-01, Underwriting Factors and Documentation for a Self-Employed Borrower
- Chase: What is a no doc HELOC? (chase.com)
- Splitero: Eligibility and How It Works (splitero.com)
- Unlock: FAQs (unlock.com)
- Hometap: home page and FAQs (hometap.com)
- Point: home page and help center (point.com)
- Nada: Eligibility (nada.co)
- Unison: FAQs (unison.com)
- Figure: Home Equity Line page and FAQs (figure.com)
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Start with the option this page leads with.
No income or employment requirement. Minimum credit score 500. Terms from 10 to 30 years.
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Terms, pricing and availability change. Confirm the current terms on the company's site before you apply.
