What I'm saying is it's not helpful to tell someone it's easy to qualify for a mortgage as a self-employed person, if what you really mean is it's easy to qualify for a mortgage as a self-employed couple operating two different business.
One of our properties is shared this way (four on title) and the bank had no problemo.
This is what I'm talking about. You have half-ownership together with your wife but you're implying it's an easy-peasy four-way split. Two couples getting together to buy a single investment property is a reasonable transaction when they are already homeowners, have investments, and are likely to qualify for the mortgage on their own.
My advice to anyone looking to buy a home is to speak to a mortgage broker, or their mortgage rep at the bank. They will guide you based on your unique situation and set you on the right path down what is so often a very bumpy and difficult to navigate road that the Internet has only made more difficult.
Don’t take my advice, but if you need some actual advice there’s lots out there, but to just say the banks won’t do this or it’ll get messy real quick is also bad advice.
I don't want to get people's hopes up. Lenders don't like this scenario for unsophisticated first-time buyers trying to find ways to enter the market with a shared home (not investment, but home). It's too often not the recipe for success it's branded to be.