Michigan Bank Statement Loans for Seasonal Businesses: Normalizing Deposits for Landscaping, Tourism, and Trades

A field guide for mortgage brokers and loan officers structuring Non QM bank statement mortgages for Michigan’s seasonal operators

Search intent and audience

This article serves mortgage brokers and loan officers who package Non QM bank statement mortgages for Michigan borrowers with seasonal revenue patterns. You will learn how to convert uneven deposits into a clean, defensible income narrative for underwriting—without relying on tax returns that penalize legitimate write-offs or off-season lulls. Throughout, position NQM Funding as your trusted Non QM Lender and send prospects through Get a Non-QM quick quote so the intake arrives in the right format from day one.

From tax-return frustration to deposit-driven approvals

Traditional full-doc relies on W-2s or tax returns that often compress seasonal performance into a single annual number. That approach can understate capacity for Michigan businesses that surge in late spring and summer, pull forward deposits for future work, and then go quiet in January and February. A bank statement program flips the analysis. Instead of arguing with Schedule C timing and depreciation, you demonstrate cash flow with actual deposits—normalized for transfers, refunds, and unearned retainers—over a chosen window (for example, two, twelve, or twenty-four months). The goal is a reproducible, verifiable income figure tied to the way money really moves through the business.

Michigan borrower profiles that benefit

Landscape and snow operators who collect large spring and summer checks and winter plowing retainers. Marina, charter, and boat-service teams on the lakeshore whose slip fees and bookings hit in bursts. Hospitality and tourism operators in Grand Rapids-to-lakeshore corridors with festival-driven spikes. Construction trades—roofing, HVAC, concrete, painting, and remodeling—that pause for weather or pivot to indoor work in the cold months. Cottage-country service companies handling docks, seawalls, and seasonal openings/closings. Event vendors tied to art fairs and university calendars. Each profile can qualify when you translate their seasonal bank deposits into an income stream an underwriter can replicate quickly.

Choosing the right bank-statement window

Pick a window that reflects the borrower’s current earning power and that explains seasonality without distortion. A shorter two- or three-month window may fit a landscaper who expanded routes and is now operating at a new run rate. Twelve months smooths quarter-end spikes, prepaid bookings, and weather delays. Twenty-four months can showcase consistency across two full peak seasons, especially when a prior winter was unusually mild or harsh. Tie the chosen window to the business cadence in your cover memo: “We used trailing twelve to include spring deposits through leaf season; winter’s low is visible but reserves cover PITIA during off-season.” Direct clients to the Bank statement mortgage page so they understand how deposit windows and expense factors work before they upload statements.

Normalizing deposits for seasonality

Underwriting respects deposits it can understand. Start by removing intra-account transfers, owner contributions, credit-line advances, PPP/ERC remnants, and insurance claim proceeds. Exclude refunds, chargebacks, and merchant reversals that are not revenue. Label prepaid retainers and gift-card sales as unearned until the work is performed; if recognition is allowed, apply a reasonable allocation across the project months and explain the math. For tourism and marina businesses, separate slip fees, charter deposits, fuel pass-throughs, and retail sales. For trades, note material pre-buys and job-start retainers so the underwriter sees how deposits tie to jobs-in-progress rather than double-counting the same dollars. Clear labels convert a complex statement stack into a believable income story.

Personal and business accounts: mapping the flow

Seasonal owners often commingle activity across operating, payroll, tax, merchant, and personal sweep accounts. Build a simple “money map” that lists each account, the institution, last four digits, and its role. Show where revenue first lands (merchant or operating), where payroll and vendor payments leave, and when funds sweep to personal accounts. This map prevents double-counting and allows the reviewer to trace counted deposits back to their origin. If personal accounts receive client payments (common for small trades), highlight those deposits and strike out internal transfers. When in doubt, favor transparency over volume; a smaller, cleaner counted-deposit total beats an inflated number that will be questioned later.

Pairing a P&L and a CPA letter to explain cycles

A bank statement path does not eliminate the value of accountant support. A one-page profit and loss statement can align deposits with seasonality and identify non-cash items, unusual spikes (storm cleanups, marina dredging), and new equipment that created temporary downtime. A brief CPA letter describing the business model, the busiest months, ownership percentage, and whether the P&L was prepared from underlying records strengthens your expense assumptions. Used together, statements plus P&L let an underwriter apply the right expense factor for the industry rather than defaulting to a conservative haircut that penalizes the file.

Expense factors that fit trades versus tourism

Expense assumptions should follow how the business really spends. Landscaping firms carry fuel, equipment leases, maintenance, and seasonal labor that spike with mowing and hardscape volume. Tourism and hospitality operators face insurance surges, seasonal staff, and franchise/booking platform fees. Marinas juggle wholesale fuel, slip maintenance, boat storage, and liability coverage. Trades have material pre-buys that settle as jobs complete. If you can document efficient expense control—through payroll summaries, vendor invoices, or lease schedules—justify a lower expense factor in your memo. If overhead is heavy (for example, a marina with high slip upkeep and insurance), present a more conservative factor and let compensating strengths like reserves shoulder the approval.

Managing draws, retainers, and deferred revenue

Draw schedules are common in trades (mobilization, progress, final). Treat these deposits as part of revenue recognition only for the portion of work performed in the statement window. Job-start retainers and winter prepayments should be mapped to the months when services will be delivered. For tourism, allocate prepaid packages across stay dates. For marinas, split season passes and storage fees across the storage period. This prevents the appearance of a high summer spike unsupported by winter reality and shows that the borrower can still carry the note when deposits slow.

Reserves strategy that carries the off-season

Non QM programs reward liquidity and planning. Present reserves in months of PITIA after separating funds to close. Seasonal businesses should maintain a cushion that spans the quietest months—often January through early March—so the file shows staying power. If the borrower keeps cash in business accounts, include an accountant note that confirms owner access without impairing operations. For co-borrowers, provide a combined reserve view and a per-borrower source list so the underwriter knows exactly which accounts support the mortgage. A clear reserve map is the fastest way to lower pricing and reduce back-and-forth during conditions.

Rates and structures that match uneven cash flow

Payment shape matters more than the billboard rate when deposits arrive in waves. Fixed terms provide certainty for borrowers with steady year-round service contracts (for example, plowing + salting + winter pruning). Hybrid ARMs can reduce early payments during a growth or equipment-refresh cycle. Interest-only periods, where eligible, can bridge the off-season and allow targeted principal curtailments after peak months like June through September. Whatever the structure, present a plan: month-one payment, the next refinance or curtailment checkpoint, and reserve depth in months of PITIA. Planning turns a seasonal file into a confident approval.

Risk layering and compensating factors

Avoid stacking aggressive leverage with thin reserves and a short statement window. If leverage is high, widen the window or thicken reserves. If credit depth is limited due to a recent start-up or a prior life event, reduce LTV or choose a payment structure that buys runway through the slow season. When equipment notes or merchant cash advances exist, show payoff plans or demonstrate that cash flow remains solid after those obligations. Underwriting rewards realistic narratives: “We chose a twelve-month window to capture both peak and slow months; reserves equal nine months of PITIA; payment is interest-only for twenty-four months while the business replaces two mowers and adds a plow route.”

Documentation checklist that clears conditions quickly

Keep the intake simple and uniform across clients. Full PDF bank statements for the selected months, including all pages. Merchant processor summaries that decode descriptor strings for deposits. Payroll reports for seasonal staff and proofs of workers’ comp and liability insurance. Entity documents (articles, operating agreement, EIN letter) if an LLC is involved. Equipment lease schedules or business notes if they materially affect cash flow. For condos and townhomes, HOA budgets and master insurance certificates when the subject property requires them. A one-page income math summary that lists counted deposits, exclusions, the expense factor or P&L tie-out, and the resulting monthly qualifying income. Start every file at Get a Non-QM quick quote so borrowers upload the correct items in the right order.

Compliance and Ability-to-Repay without tax returns

A bank statement path still sits firmly inside Ability-to-Repay logic. Funds must be sourced and seasoned. Names should match across applications, business records, and bank statements. If you count business reserves, include a preparer note confirming that those funds are accessible without harming operations. For large transfers between owned accounts, retain both sides of the statements and keep only the original revenue deposit in your income math. Clean identity, clean money trail, and a believable reserve plan will carry the approval even when tax returns are not used for income.

Michigan location notes for local SEO

Detroit Metro (Wayne, Oakland, Macomb). Service trades thrive on municipal contracts and HOA routes. Highlight winter plowing retainers and show how these deposits appear on statements. Urban infill condos can carry higher association dues—include HOA budgets in the PITIA model so DSCR and payment narratives are accurate for investment properties.
West Michigan Lakeshore (Grand Haven, Holland, Saugatuck, South Haven). Marina and hospitality revenue spikes from May through September. Flood and wind riders affect insurance premiums; include declarations with deductibles in your payment plan. Seasonal staff and short shoulder seasons make reserves important—show a cushion that spans October through April.
Grand Traverse, Leelanau, and Traverse City. Tourism peaks around summer events and fall color tours. For charter boats, document slip fees, fuel pass-throughs, and the split between deposits and final payments. STR ordinances vary by township; if the borrower also buys rentals, anchor DSCR assumptions to local rules and use the Investor DSCR loanpage to frame coverage and seasonality.

Northern Michigan and the U.P. (Petoskey, Harbor Springs, Marquette, Munising). Short, intense seasons require longer statement windows to show two peaks. Verify winter access, private road maintenance, and insurance deductibles suited to lake-effect snow. Trades that pivot to indoor work should include invoices that show continuity when exterior jobs pause.

Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti and Washtenaw County. University calendars drive event vendors and off-campus services. Condo budgets and assessments in in-town properties matter for payment models; include them early. For tech-adjacent side businesses, show pipeline reports if deposits are about to step up due to new contracts.

Lansing and Greater Mid-Michigan. Government and university anchors steady demand for HVAC, electrical, and maintenance trades. Taxes and utilities vary by township—include those differences in your PITIA and expense assumptions so coverage isn’t overstated. Treat pre-bids and retainers conservatively until work begins.

When investment purchases qualify on property cash flow

Some seasonal owners also acquire rentals or short-term rentals to diversify income. When the property can carry itself, a coverage approach may beat personal income. The DSCR lane qualifies the asset on its rent support, including HOA dues, property taxes, insurance, and realistic expenses. This removes seasonal personal cash flow from the decision and allows acquisitions during the busy season without waiting for tax filings. Use the Investor DSCR loan resource to set expectations, especially around seasonality and local STR rules.

Foreign national or ITIN scenarios in lake markets

Lakefront towns attract Canadian and other international buyers. Identity, funds path, and reserve depth drive approvals more than U.S. credit history. Provide passport/visa or ITIN, translated bank statements when necessary, and a simple “money map” that shows FX conversion receipts and wire paths into a U.S. account. Pair conservative leverage with thicker reserves to offset documentation friction. For product expectations, share Foreign National mortgage options.

Underwriting walk-through: landscaper and marina examples

Landscaper in Oakland County. Deposits over the last twelve months average forty-two thousand dollars per month after removing transfers, owner contributions, and equipment-loan proceeds. Winter shows a dip to twelve to fifteen thousand per month from plowing retainers and limited pruning. A reasonable expense factor acknowledges seasonal labor, fuel, and maintenance. Reserves equal eight months of PITIA after closing, partly in business savings with a preparer note confirming access. The payment plan includes an interest-only period for twenty-four months while the company expands routes; targeted curtailments hit after June and August receipts. The narrative reads as reproducible and seasonally aware.

Marina near Saugatuck. Slip fees and storage deposits arrive in February–May, with retail and fuel deposits peaking June–August. After removing pass-through fuel revenue and separating storage retainers into the storage period, counted deposits average sufficient monthly income. Insurance and dock maintenance drive a higher expense factor, which the file offsets with twelve months of PITIA reserves. The payment plan is fixed to stabilize during off-season, and the appraisal packet includes marina-specific comps and association budgets where applicable. The file closes cleanly because the deposit math is transparent.

Broker talk tracks that replace “no doc” with confident alternatives

Clients may ask for “no doc” because they fear delays. Reframe the conversation: “We’re using a deposit-driven Non QM path designed for businesses like yours that earn in waves. We will pick a bank statement window that reflects your current run rate, build a one-page money map so underwriting can follow deposits, and present reserves in months of PITIA that carry the winter.” Promise specificity—full PDFs of the selected months, a list of counted deposits and exclusions, and a payment plan that matches the business cycle. That talk track turns anxiety into action and keeps the file compliant.

FAQ to preempt conditions

Do personal bank statements work if clients pay me there? Yes, if the deposits are clearly business revenue; exclude transfers and label the revenue source.

How do I avoid double-counting deposits across accounts? Keep only the original revenue deposit and strike out intra-account transfers in your summary.

What if last winter was unusually slow or strong? Use a longer window or add P&L context from your accountant to normalize the story.

Can I combine bank statements and asset utilization? Yes; adding a light asset-based component can stabilize qualifying income when deposits are highly seasonal.

Will interest-only hurt equity? Not if you plan curtailments after peak months. Equity can also grow through appreciation and targeted principal payments.

Do I need tax returns? Not for the bank statement lane, but you still need sourced funds, identity consistency, and a believable reserve plan.

Internal links and calls to action

Move prospects from interest to action with a clear path. Start intake via Get a Non-QM quick quote to capture the preferred statement window and account list. Teach deposit mechanics on the Bank statement mortgage page so clients understand counted deposits and expense factors. If an investment purchase is on the table, align expectations with the Investor DSCR loan resource. For cross-border buyers, set identity and funds-path expectations using Foreign National mortgage options. Reinforce brand authority by positioning NQM Funding as a Non QM Loans partner that excels with Michigan’s seasonal businesses and uneven cash flow.