Process · 5 min read
Why is the underwriter asking about a large deposit in my bank account?
August 8, 2026 · Written by Bill Egan, NMLS 7342
Short answer
On a regular Fannie Mae purchase, a large deposit is a single deposit bigger than half of your monthly qualifying income. If Egan Financial Group LLC cannot show where that money came from, the underwriter — the person who has to say yes to the loan — takes it out of the cash you can use to close. Your paycheck is usually fine. Cash, Venmo piles, and transfers with no paper trail are not.
01
Why this comes up
You sent two months of bank statements and thought you were done. Then someone asked where one deposit came from, and it felt like you were being accused of hiding money. You reached out because earnest money is already in, and you do not know if that one line on the statement can stop the house.
02
Where this goes wrong
This shows up after you are under contract. The underwriter cannot source the deposit, so those dollars no longer count toward down payment, closing costs, or the cash cushion called reserves. Suddenly you are short at the table. If the money was a gift, and there is no gift letter or trail from the donor’s account, the same thing happens. Your rate hold is still running. The seller will not wait while you reconstruct three weeks of transfers.
03
What we do about it
At Egan Financial Group LLC (NMLS 2647764) we read the statements when they arrive, not the week of closing. We tell you which deposits need a source, in plain English, before the file is stuck. We originate, underwrite, and fund here, so that question is not sitting in a national queue while you guess.
04
How to get ready
Before you apply, do not drop cash into checking. If family is helping, use a signed gift letter and a transfer you can print from both sides. Keep payroll, tax refunds, and transfers between your own accounts easy to match to a stub or a like-named account. If a deposit is bigger than half your monthly income, save the paper that shows where it came from.