The Quick Read: Yes, you can get an asset-based mortgage with no job, through select programs, because the lender looks at your balances instead of a paycheck: either your eligible assets cover the entire loan outright, or they are divided over 60 months into a monthly qualifying income, and your credit, leverage, and documented statements still get reviewed. No job does not mean no paperwork. Your accounts are documented line by line.
- Path one, asset qualifier: eligible assets must equal or exceed the whole loan, and no employment or income is documented.
- Path two, asset depletion: usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying income, and that income runs through a debt-to-income test.
- You qualify on one path at a time. The two sets of rules never blend.
- Credit still counts. The qualifier path has a 600 minimum score. The depletion path follows the lender’s matrix.
- Pure rental purchases usually belong in a different loan. That loan is a DSCR loan, covered near the end.
Who This Loan Is Built For
An asset-based mortgage fits people whose balances are large and whose documented income is small. Think of a retiree living off a portfolio. Or someone who just sold a business. Or a household that received an inheritance or a legal settlement. Or a professional who retired early and now lives on investments.
A conventional lender wants pay stubs and traditional personal-income documentation. You may have none worth showing. An asset-based program asks a different question: could your money carry this loan?
Across Lendmire’s wholesale network, this is a consumer mortgage. It is for a principal residence or second home. Investment property is allowed only on the depletion path. Lendmire is the broker. It arranges these loans through select lenders, and the lender’s own underwriting decides each file.
Path One: Your Assets Cover the Whole Loan
The asset qualifier path is the simplest idea in this space. Your eligible assets, after the credit percentages below, must equal or exceed the entire loan amount. Nothing about employment or income gets documented.
Here is how much of each balance counts on this path, subject to underwriting:
| Asset type | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Brokerage accounts | 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% |
| Money market | 100% |
| Savings | 100% |
| 401(k) or IRA, under age 59½ | 90% |
| 401(k) or IRA, age 59½ or older | 100% |
Accounts combine. Run the numbers on an $800,000 loan. Say you hold $330,000 in brokerage accounts (100% counts, so $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) while under 59½ (90%, so $270,000), and $200,000 in savings (100%, so $200,000). That totals $800,000 of usable assets. The loan is reviewed on assets alone. The lender’s own calculation governs the real file.
Here are the other terms on this path, all through select programs and subject to underwriting:
- Leverage: up to 80% loan-to-value (LTV) on a purchase and 75% on a refinance. LTV is the loan amount as a share of the property’s value.
- Loan size: up to $4,000,000.
- Credit: a 600 minimum score.
- Seasoning: 60 days, with two months of statements for each qualifying account. Seasoning is how long money has sat in an account before the lender counts it.
- Reserves: none required at or below 75% LTV. Above that, the lender sets them. Leverage, reserves, and pricing vary by lender and program; the final terms follow the full file review.
Cash-out proceeds on this path are set by the lender and are not published. Don’t plan around a number you haven’t seen in writing.
Path Two: Your Assets Become Income
The asset depletion path treats your portfolio like a paycheck. The lender applies a haircut to each asset type. A haircut is the share of a balance the lender will not count. It adds up the usable amount and divides by 60 months. The result is monthly qualifying income. That income must carry the full housing payment plus your other debts through the debt-to-income (DTI) test. DTI compares your monthly debts to your monthly income.
| Asset type | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Cash accounts | 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% |
| Securities | 80% |
| Private stock | 75% |
| Retirement accounts (any age) | 70% |
| Real-estate equity | 60% |
Take $1,500,000 in securities (80% counts, so $1,200,000) plus $300,000 in cash (100%, so $300,000). That is $1,500,000 usable. Divide by 60 months and you get $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That figure then has to cover the housing payment and other debts. Illustrative only.
The depletion path has real minimums:
- Assets: at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. When depletion is your only income source, you also need at least $250,000 liquid.
- Loan size: $125,000 to $3,500,000.
- Leverage on a principal residence or second home: up to 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out refinance.
- Leverage on an investment property: up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out.
- Credit: the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix. A first-time investor needs a 700.
- Statements: at least 120 days old at application, plus the most recent statement within 45 days. Sale-of-business, inheritance, and legal-settlement funds are excused from that seasoning.
Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets. The depletion path can also supplement documented income, up to a 45% DTI. In that case the minimum-assets rule is waived. A retiree with a small pension and a big portfolio sometimes lands there.
What Does Not Count
Most files that stall do so here. Neither path counts these assets, and the depletion path lists them as ineligible: custodial accounts, deferred compensation, escrow accounts, foreign funds, cash on hand, stock options, non-vested restricted stock units, and funds from non-regulated financial companies.
Cryptocurrency, precious metals, collectibles, and business accounts beyond your ownership share are not published as eligible on either path. Pledged or borrowed funds aren’t either. The documented route is to convert them into a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account. The lender then reviews the source of that cash. Plan for the seasoning clock, because converting a week before applying leaves you with nothing countable.
Retirement accounts deserve a pause. On the qualifier path, balances count at 90% under 59½ and 100% after. On the depletion path they count at 70% at any age. Counting a balance is not the same as spending it. Tax treatment can depend on how the funds are used and how the property is held; borrowers should keep clear records and speak with a qualified tax professional before relying on any deduction.
Large, recent, unexplained deposits get questions. So do gifts. Move money early and keep the paper trail.
Key Terms Defined
Seasoning: the time money must sit in your account before it counts toward qualifying.
Haircut: the portion of an asset’s balance the lender leaves out when it totals your usable assets.
Debt-to-income (DTI): your monthly debts divided by your monthly qualifying income.
Loan-to-value (LTV): the loan amount divided by the property’s value.
Non-QM: a mortgage that doesn’t follow standard conforming-loan rules, so lenders set their own documentation and risk standards.
DSCR: debt service coverage ratio, used on rental loans, comparing a property’s rent to its full monthly payment.
What Underwriting Looks At With No Job
Thinking “no job, so nothing to prove” is a common mistake. The file runs on documents about money instead of documents about work. Expect these:
1. Statements for every qualifying account. The qualifier path wants two months per account. The depletion path wants the age and recency rules above.
2. A credit review. This is never a no-credit-check loan. Housing history is generally held to 0x30x12, meaning no 30-day lates in twelve months. One late is considered case by case. Multiple bankruptcies are not eligible. A housing event such as a foreclosure needs four years of seasoning on the depletion path.
3. A property review, including an appraisal.
4. A source for any large deposit.
Credit is where the two paths differ most. The qualifier path publishes a 600 floor. Because the depletion path follows the lender’s matrix, a higher loan amount can mean a higher score. Ask early which matrix applies.
Many investors ask whether the same dollars can count twice. They want one pile to cover the down payment, the closing costs, and the coverage figure. Lenders treat this differently, and a few overlays are strict. Don’t assume. Ask how funds to close are subtracted before your usable total is computed.
Buying a Rental With No Job? That’s Usually a Different Loan
An asset-based mortgage works on the depletion path for investment property, but the leverage drops to 65% on a purchase. For a straightforward rental, there is often a better tool.
DSCR loans are designed for non-owner-occupied investment properties. Because they are business-purpose investor loans, they are reviewed differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage. The CFPB’s exempt-transactions rule lists credit extended for a business purpose among the exemptions. The Bureau also said business-purpose loans were already outside its ability-to-repay rule when it finalized that rule. So a DSCR file asks whether the property carries itself, not whether you hold a job.
The ratio is gross monthly rent divided by the full monthly payment, meaning principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and association dues (PITIA). A property that clears 1.0x covers its own obligation. Select programs in the network go below 1.00 coverage, but leverage and terms adjust when they do. The property still has to pencil. You still need credit, cash for the down payment, and sourced reserves. Qualification runs primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines.
Two traps matter. First, occupancy flips the rules. If you will live in the property, it becomes a consumer loan, and the asset-based paths above apply instead. Second, purpose matters on a refinance. A law firm’s business-purpose guide treats credit to acquire a non-owner-occupied rental as business purpose. It also says a cash-out on a single-family rental used for personal reasons is consumer purpose. Cash-out use changes the classification.
The practical rule: buying a place to live with portfolio assets points to the asset-based paths. Buying a pure rental points to DSCR. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide covers the investor side in full. For the asset-rich borrower with no current job, there is also a walkthrough of how super jumbo DSCR underwriting treats borrowers between jobs.
Which Path Fits You?
Start with one question: do your countable assets reach the loan amount?
- Yes, comfortably. The qualifier path may fit. Leverage is higher, and you document no income. This suits someone whose liquid brokerage, CD, and savings balances are large relative to the loan.
- No, but you hold a big portfolio. The depletion path may fit. Your assets become income, but you carry the minimum-assets rules and the DTI test.
- You want to keep the portfolio invested and borrow against it. That is a different structure. Lendmire’s piece Pledged-Asset Mortgage vs PAL vs Margin Loan With No Current Employment lays out the tradeoffs.
- You deposit business or self-employed income. That is a bank statement loan. It is for borrowers who document income through deposits, and it is not this program.
Honestly, the call is close for some borrowers. The qualifier path wants less proof about income but more raw assets. The depletion path can work with fewer assets but demands a clean DTI. Run both with a broker who sees several lenders’ matrices before you pick.
Where It’s Available
This consumer program is placed through select lenders in Lendmire’s network, and consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states: Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. Outside those states, the asset-based options here are not available through Lendmire. Parameters change and every file is underwritten individually. Nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Next Steps
If you are qualifying on assets rather than income and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare asset-based mortgage options based on your statements, the property, credit profile, leverage, and your goals. Reach the team at 828-256-2183.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a retirement account to qualify with no job?
Yes, through select programs. On the qualifier path, 401(k) and IRA balances count at 90% under age 59½ and 100% at 59½ or older. On the depletion path, retirement accounts count at 70% at any age. You are not required to withdraw the money to qualify, but the account must be documented and seasoned.
Do I need any income at all?
Not on the qualifier path, where no employment or income is documented. On the depletion path, asset-derived income can stand alone or supplement documented income up to a 45% DTI. When it stands alone, you need qualified assets of at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan, and never below $250,000 liquid.
Can I buy an investment property with an asset-based mortgage?
Only on the depletion path. Leverage tops out at 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out. For a rental you plan to hold purely for income, a DSCR loan is usually the better fit, since it is reviewed on the property’s rent instead of your assets.
Does cryptocurrency count?
Not directly. Crypto, precious metals, and collectibles are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is converting them to cash in a regulated account and letting it season. The lender then reviews where the money came from.
Is this a no-credit-check or no-documentation loan?
No on both counts. Credit is reviewed, with a 600 minimum on the qualifier path and the lender’s matrix on the depletion path. Assets are documented on both paths through statements. What you skip is employment and income documentation on the qualifier path.
About Lendmire
Lendmire, NMLS# 2371349, is a mortgage brokerage with consumer lending licenses in 16 states. Bank statement, P&L-only, 1099-only and asset-based mortgages are arranged through wholesale lending partners for borrowers whose tax returns understate their income, and each application is reviewed individually by the lender. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. CFPB, Regulation Z § 1026.3, Exempt transactions
2. Federal Register, Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgage Standards final rule
3. Doss Law, Business Purpose Exemption Simplified
This article is part of Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: How Asset Qualifier Income Is Calculated for a Jumbo Mortgage · How Asset Depletion Mortgage Eligible Assets Work for Rental Investors · How to Document an Asset Qualifier Mortgage
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Important disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a licensed mortgage brokerage. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or financial advisor. All loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not constitute a commitment to lend. Rates, terms, and program guidelines are subject to change without notice and vary by borrower profile, property type, and state. Information in this article is general in nature and is not financial, legal, or tax advice. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.