RSU Income and Your Mortgage: Getting Credit for Equity Comp
For technology, biotech, and executive borrowers, stock is a huge share of total pay. Whether a lender counts it can change your price range by half a million dollars.
If a meaningful part of your compensation vests as restricted stock, the single most important question to ask a lender is how they calculate RSU income. The answers vary enormously, and the difference is not marginal.
The baseline rule
Most lenders require a two-year history of vested stock and evidence that vesting continues for at least three more years. The grant letter and vesting schedule establish continuance; brokerage or payroll statements establish history.
Where lenders differ
Share price is the first variable. Some lenders use the 52-week low, some use a 12-month average, some use the current price with a haircut. On a volatile stock that choice alone can swing qualifying income by thousands a month.
The second variable is forward vesting. Conservative lenders count only shares already vested and sold. More flexible lenders count scheduled future vesting at a discounted price, which helps an employee whose grants are growing rather than shrinking.
Documents to gather
Your grant agreements, a current vesting schedule, two years of statements showing shares vested and their value on the vest date, and recent pay records if the vesting flows through payroll. If you have changed employers, bring the prior company's schedule too, since a documented history in the same industry helps.
A note on using shares for down payment
Vested shares in a brokerage account count as reserves, usually at 70% of value while unsold. Selling and sourcing the proceeds well before closing keeps underwriting simple; a last-minute liquidation invites conditions about where the money came from. Plan the sale two months ahead if you can.
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