A straight answer
Can I get a mortgage with SSI income?
The direct answer
Yes. I offer mortgages that count SSI income, for purchases and refinances. I review your SSA award letter, your proof of current receipt and the property. I'm Zach von der Linden (NMLS 1652805), a mortgage broker with West Capital Lending, based in San Clemente.
SSI is a needs-based federal benefit. The lender reads your award and your payments, not your health. Under FHA's rule, the lender may not ask about the nature of a disability or a medical condition. I put the financing together with a lender; the lender and the program set the rules. I work with buyers in California, Utah, Oregon and Arizona.
Zach von der Linden, mortgage broker and Branch Manager, West Capital Lending · NMLS 1652805
Wholesale pricing · California, Utah, Oregon and Arizona
5.0 across 66 reviews on Experience.com (read on 2026-09-24) · Text reaches Zach directly · Last updated 2026-10-19
Tell me your profession or income situation, the property state, and whether you're buying or refinancing. I'll explain which program requirements we need to review.
No credit pull happens from a text or a call. Texts and calls go to Zach's cell.
What happens after you text me?
Texts go straight to my cell, and I answer them myself when I'm free. I'll ask for the few details that actually matter, tell you whether the structure looks worth pursuing, and explain the next step. If I don't think the loan fits, I'll tell you that too.
A text or phone conversation does not pull your credit.
What is SSI?
Supplemental Security Income is a federal benefit for people with limited income and resources. Social Security's rule says "payments are to be made to aged, blind, and disabled people who have income and resources below specified amounts." It also says "Payments are financed from the general funds of the United States Treasury" (20 CFR 416.110).
Eligibility has its own tests. You must be aged, blind or disabled. "You do not have more income than is permitted." "You do not have more resources than are permitted" (20 CFR 416.202).
What does the lender need to see?
Proof that the benefit is awarded and that it is arriving. Fannie Mae says "The lender must obtain evidence of regular receipt of payments" (Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.4-15). For what its table calls "Supplemental Social Security Income," Fannie Mae asks for the "SSA Award letter, and Proof of current receipt." It adds: "No minimum history is required."
FHA names SSI in its disability benefits section and in its Social Security income section (HUD Handbook 4000.1, II.A.4.c.xii). Both ask for the last Notice of Award letter or an equivalent document. Both also ask for one of these: tax returns, the most recent bank statement showing the deposit from the SSA, a benefits letter, or the SSA-1099. When the Notice of Award has no defined expiration date, FHA's rule lets the lender treat the income as likely to continue.
Do not text documents or account numbers; I will tell you what to send and how.
Can a lender treat SSI differently from a paycheck?
Not because it comes from a public program. Regulation B says "a creditor shall not take into account" whether "an applicant's income derives from any public assistance program" (12 CFR 1002.6). Its official interpretation lists "social security and supplemental security income" as public assistance (Regulation B, comment 2(z)-3).
What a lender may weigh is the amount and how long it will last. Regulation B lets a creditor "consider the amount and probable continuance of any income in evaluating an applicant's creditworthiness" (12 CFR 1002.6). FHA's disability benefits section, which names SSI, adds: "Under no circumstance may the Mortgagee inquire into or request documentation concerning the nature of the disability or the medical condition of the Borrower" (HUD Handbook 4000.1, II.A.4.c.xii).
What else changes the file?
Benefits that are not taxed can be adjusted upward for qualifying. Fannie Mae and FHA each have a written rule for that adjustment, and the lender applies the one your loan uses.
For other pay that needs a closer look, Do doctors, teachers and nurses get special mortgages? lists the income pages by situation.
Questions people ask next
Can I refinance with SSI income?
Yes. I offer mortgages that count SSI income for refinances as well as purchases. I review your SSA award letter, your proof of current receipt and the property.
Do I have to tell the lender what my disability is?
No. FHA's disability benefits section names SSI, and under it the lender may not ask about the nature of the disability or your medical condition, or ask for documents about it (HUD Handbook 4000.1, II.A.4.c.xii). The file documents the award and the payments.
Is SSI public assistance under fair lending rules?
Yes. Regulation B's official interpretation lists supplemental security income as public assistance (Regulation B, comment 2(z)-3). A creditor may not take into account that your income comes from a public assistance program (12 CFR 1002.6).
What should I text Zach?
Your property state, whether you are buying or refinancing, and any other income in the household. You do not need to tell me anything about your health. Do not text documents or account numbers; I will tell you what to send and how.
What clients say
Zach was so easy to work with. He made a stressful situation into a very positive experience for us and did push us one way or another. He listened to what we hoped we could accomplish and made it happen.
Word for word from Experience.com. Read all reviews.
Sources and checked dates
Sources: Confirmed by Zach, October 2026 (checked 2026-10-19) · 20 CFR 416.110 and 416.202 (Supplemental Security Income), eCFR (checked 2026-10-19) · Fannie Mae Selling Guide, B3-3.4-15, Social Security Income (checked 2026-10-19) · HUD Handbook 4000.1, II.A.4.c.xii(A) and (H), SSI income (checked 2026-10-19) · 12 CFR 1002.2(z), Regulation B, CFPB regulation text (checked 2026-10-19) · 12 CFR 1002.6, Regulation B, CFPB regulation text (checked 2026-10-19) · Regulation B, Supplement I, comment 2(z)-3 (checked 2026-10-19).
Show each claim on this page, what it depends on, and the date it was checked (7)
| What we say, and what it depends on | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| Zach offers mortgages that count SSI income, for purchase and refinance. | Confirmed by Zach, October 2026 | 2026-10-19 |
| 20 CFR 416.110, Purpose of program: the supplemental security income program assures "a minimum level of income" for people who are aged, blind or disabled "and who do not have sufficient income and resources to maintain a standard of living at the established Federal minimum income level." "Payments are financed from the general funds of the United States Treasury." 416.110(a): "payments are to be made to aged, blind, and disabled people who have income and resources below specified amounts." 20 CFR 416.202, Who may get SSI benefits: eligibility requires being aged, blind or disabled; being a resident of the United States and a citizen, national or other person the section lists; "You do not have more income than is permitted"; "You do not have more resources than are permitted"; and filing an application. | 20 CFR 416.110 and 416.202 (Supplemental Security Income), eCFR | 2026-10-19 |
| Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.4-15, Social Security Income (10/07/2026): "The lender must obtain evidence of regular receipt of payments, as verified by the following, depending on the type of benefit." For the benefit the table calls "Supplemental Social Security Income": "SSA Award letter, and Proof of current receipt." "No minimum history is required." | Fannie Mae Selling Guide, B3-3.4-15, Social Security Income | 2026-10-19 |
| HUD Handbook 4000.1 (Update 18, last revised 8/12/2026), II.A.4.c.xii(A) Disability Benefits, with the same text for manual underwriting at II.A.5.b.xii(A): "For Social Security Disability income, including Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the Mortgagee must obtain a copy of the last Notice of Award letter, or an equivalent document that establishes award benefits to the Borrower, and one of the following documents": tax returns, "the most recent bank statement evidencing receipt of income from the SSA," a Proof of Income Letter ("Budget Letter" or "Benefits Letter"), or form SSA-1099/1042S. "If the Notice of Award or equivalent document does not have a defined expiration date, the Mortgagee may consider the income effective and reasonably likely to continue." "Under no circumstance may the Mortgagee inquire into or request documentation concerning the nature of the disability or the medical condition of the Borrower." II.A.4.c.xii(H)(1), Social Security Income: "Social Security Income or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) refers to income received from the SSA other than disability income"; the lender obtains one of the same documents and the last Notice of Award letter or an equivalent document, and when it has no defined expiration date "the Mortgagee must consider the income effective and reasonably likely to continue." The handbook also has a section on grossing up nontaxable income, II.A.4.c.xii(P). | HUD Handbook 4000.1, II.A.4.c.xii(A) and (H), SSI income | 2026-10-19 |
| 12 CFR 1002.2(z): "Prohibited basis means race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, or age (provided that the applicant has the capacity to enter into a binding contract); the fact that all or part of the applicant's income derives from any public assistance program; or the fact that the applicant has in good faith exercised any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act." | 12 CFR 1002.2(z), Regulation B, CFPB regulation text | 2026-10-19 |
| 12 CFR 1002.6(b)(2)(i): "a creditor shall not take into account an applicant's age (provided that the applicant has the capacity to enter into a binding contract) or whether an applicant's income derives from any public assistance program." 1002.6(b)(5): "A creditor shall not discount or exclude from consideration the income of an applicant or the spouse of an applicant because of a prohibited basis"; "a creditor may consider the amount and probable continuance of any income in evaluating an applicant's creditworthiness." 1002.6(b)(7): "A creditor may consider the applicant's immigration status or status as a permanent resident of the United States, and any additional information that may be necessary to ascertain the creditor's rights and remedies regarding repayment." | 12 CFR 1002.6, Regulation B, CFPB regulation text | 2026-10-19 |
| Official interpretation of Regulation B, comment 2(z)-3: a public assistance program "includes (but is not limited to) Temporary Aid to Needy Families, food stamps, rent and mortgage supplement or assistance programs, social security and supplemental security income, and unemployment compensation." | Regulation B, Supplement I, comment 2(z)-3 | 2026-10-19 |
Written for and accountable to: Zach von der Linden, Mortgage broker and Branch Manager, West Capital Lending.
Last updated 2026-10-19.
Verify him: NMLS Consumer Access, ID 1652805 · 66 reviews on Experience.com.
Sources for product claims are listed on this page, with the date each was checked.