Report to them your income you earned doing these odd-jobs and Ebay. Legally, these do have to be declared on your 1040. Also, report it on your 2011 taxes if you haven't done so already and that way you can carryover that income on your CC apps and have the proof to back it up. Ultimately it boils downs to affordability of your housing, car, everyday expenses, etc. If using assets to pay for these items (e.g. using IRAs, 401(k), savings, etc.) and your Ebay and other income was virtually non-existant, then put down retired. Don't lie though. Illegal and unethical.

Another alternative is to start your own business first. Pay yourself a salary of $x and that way you have proof of payment and you can legitimately claim what you earn. I did that. I started my own business. I used my accounting software to print my own checks of a salary of my choosing and filed the taxes to make it legit. It made it much easier to apply for credit.

It's not all about the score. Take my folks. They are about 70, have excellent credit with very high FICOs, but income is probably less than $1000/mo after odd and end jobs and interest income. Moreover, their DTI is probably 300% plus when you factor in their mortgage and other payments. FICO means nothing in the eyes of their lenders. It's all about income in relation to their expenses and my parents gave up after trying for a refi.