The Quick Read: On the asset qualifier path, a brokerage account counts at 100% of its statement balance through select programs in Lendmire’s wholesale network, subject to underwriting. The asset depletion path counts securities at 80% instead, because that path turns assets into monthly income. Tennessee does not change either figure.
- Qualifier path: brokerage, CDs, money market and savings count at 100%.
- Qualifier path: 401(k) and IRA balances count at 90% under age 59½ and 100% after.
- Depletion path: securities count at 80%, cash and CDs at 100%, retirement at 70%.
- The two paths are never blended. A borrower is qualified on one at a time.
- Money used for the down payment cannot also count as qualifying assets.
Which Path Fits a Portfolio-Heavy Borrower?
Pick the path first. The percentage follows from it.
The asset qualifier path covers the entire loan with eligible assets. If usable assets equal or exceed the loan amount, the file is reviewed on assets alone. No employment or income is documented. Leverage runs up to 80% on a purchase and 75% on a refinance, with loans up to $4,000,000, subject to underwriting.
The asset depletion path works differently. Usable assets are divided by 60 months to produce a monthly qualifying income. That income must carry the housing payment and other debts through a debt-to-income test. Loans run from $125,000 to $3,500,000.
Retirees, business sellers, inheritance recipients and early-retired professionals tend to fit one of these. Their balances are large and their documented income is small. A Tennessee borrower living on a portfolio is the typical file.
Neither path means “no documentation.” The assets are documented in full. Only income is left out on the qualifier path.
How Much of a Brokerage Account Counts on Each Path?
On the qualifier path, a brokerage account counts at 100%. On the depletion path, securities count at 80%. The gap exists because the depletion path treats the portfolio as an income source and haircuts it for market risk, while the qualifier path asks whether the assets can simply cover the loan.
| Asset | Qualifier path | Depletion path |
|---|---|---|
| Brokerage / securities | 100% | 80% |
| Cash and savings | 100% | 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% | 100% |
| Money market | 100% | Cash-account treatment |
| 401(k) / IRA | 90% under 59½; 100% at 59½+ | 70% at any age |
| Private stock | Not listed | 75% |
| Real-estate equity | Not listed | 60% |
Figures are program ceilings through select programs, subject to underwriting. They are not offers. The lender’s own calculation governs.
Lenders publish different numbers. The network figures above are the ones that apply here. The difference usually comes down to program type: an assets-cover-the-loan structure can credit more than an income-conversion structure.
What Does the Math Look Like on the Qualifier Path?
Count each account at its percentage, add them up, and compare the total to the loan. If usable assets meet or exceed the loan, the file is reviewed on assets alone.
Run the numbers on an illustrative file. A borrower wants an $800,000 loan. She holds $330,000 in brokerage accounts, $300,000 in a 401(k) and $200,000 in savings. She is under 59½.
- Brokerage at 100% counts $330,000.
- The 401(k) at 90% counts $270,000.
- Savings at 100% counts $200,000.
Usable assets total $800,000. That equals the loan, so the file is reviewed on assets alone. Had she been 59½ or older, the 401(k) would count at 100% and leave room to spare.
This is an illustration. Underwriting reviews the actual statements.
What Does the Math Look Like on the Depletion Path?
Apply the haircut, add, divide by 60, then test the result against debts. The output is a monthly qualifying income, not a pass-fail comparison to the loan.
Consider a borrower with $1,500,000 in securities and $300,000 in cash.
- Securities at 80% count $1,200,000.
- Cash at 100% counts $300,000.
- Usable assets total $1,500,000.
- Divided by 60 months, that is $25,000 of monthly qualifying income.
That income then has to carry the housing payment and other debts through the debt-to-income test. Asset-derived income can also supplement documented income, up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio. When it supplements, the minimum-assets rule is waived.
When depletion is the only income source, the file needs qualified assets of at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. Liquid assets never drop below $250,000.
The Double-Counting Trap
Money cannot do two jobs. Funds used for the down payment and closing costs leave the pool before the file is measured.
Say a borrower has $900,000 in a brokerage account and plans to put a large share of it into the purchase. The cash going to the seller is gone. What remains is what counts. Files that count the full balance and then forget the down payment are the ones that get sent back for a recalculation.
Cash-out proceeds from a refinance never count as qualifying assets on the depletion path either.
What Does Not Count
A short list of assets gets people in trouble. Cryptocurrency, precious metals, collectibles, pledged or borrowed funds, and business accounts beyond the borrower’s ownership share are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is converting them to cash in a regulated account and letting the balance season. The lender reviews the source.
On the depletion path, these are also off the table:
- Custodial accounts
- Deferred compensation
- Escrow accounts
- Foreign funds
- Cash on hand
- Stock options
- Non-vested restricted stock units
- Funds from non-regulated financial companies
Margin loans deserve a note. A brokerage balance with a margin loan against it is partly borrowed money. Underwriting looks at the net, not the gross. Pledged securities fall under the same logic.
Seasoning and Statements
Seasoning is where otherwise clean files stall. The rules differ by path.
On the qualifier path, assets need 60 days of seasoning, and each qualifying account needs two months of statements. A large deposit last month will draw questions.
On the depletion path, statements must be at least 120 days old at application, plus the most recent statement within 45 days. Funds from the sale of a business, an inheritance or a legal settlement are excused from that seasoning, though the lender still reviews the source.
Credit also matters. The qualifier path publishes a 600 minimum score. The depletion path follows the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix, and a first-time investor on that path needs 700. Housing history is 0x30x12, with one 30-day late in the last twelve months considered case by case. Subject to underwriting.
Does Tennessee Change Anything?
No. The program figures are the same in every state where the loan is offered. Lendmire’s consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states, and Tennessee is one of them.
There is also no federal percentage. The federal ability-to-repay rule requires a lender to consider the borrower’s income or assets other than the value of the property securing the loan. It also requires the lender to verify those assets with third-party records that give reasonably reliable evidence, which in practice means account statements. The rule sets no haircut. The percentage is a program choice.
Stocks are among the assets the Federal Register notice for the rule lists as ones a creditor may consider. Tennessee state facts, such as local prices and insurance, are context for the purchase. They do not move the program parameters. This is a consumer mortgage, so consumer disclosure rules apply.
Brokerage Edge Cases
A few situations come up repeatedly.
- Joint accounts. Anyone on the account may need to be on the loan, or the file needs a documented explanation of ownership.
- Concentrated positions. A portfolio sitting mostly in one stock gets a harder look. The haircut does not change, but the lender reviews the account’s makeup.
- Recent deposits. Money moved in from elsewhere needs a paper trail and has to meet seasoning.
- Market drops. If the portfolio falls before the file is reviewed, the lender works from the current statement. A balance that cleared the line on paper can fall short.
- Money market funds inside a brokerage account. These are reviewed as the cash-type holding they are, within the account’s statement.
Thinking it through, the safest habit is to leave a cushion above the line rather than build a file that clears by a rounding error.
Documentation Checklist
Gather these before the file goes in:
1. Two months of statements for every qualifying account on the qualifier path. 2. On the depletion path, statements that are at least 120 days old, plus the latest within 45 days. 3. A written source for any large recent deposit. 4. Proof of ownership if an account is joint or titled differently. 5. Retirement account statements that show vested balances and, if relevant, the borrower’s age.
Complete statements, not partial pages, keep the review from stalling. Lendmire’s piece Do You Have to Liquidate Assets to Reserve an Asset Qualifier Mortgage? covers the reserve side. Nothing is sold to qualify on either path. The assets stay invested and in the borrower’s control.
When a Different Loan Fits Better
Asset qualification is not always the right tool. A borrower with a strong stream of deposits might look at a bank statement program, which documents income through deposits. A borrower buying a pure rental should look at a DSCR loan, which qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. The complete DSCR loans guide explains that route.
Investment property is also available on the depletion path at lower leverage: up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out. On the qualifier path, the leverage figures apply to a principal residence or second home. Lendmire’s piece How Much Down Payment Does an Asset Qualifier Mortgage Need? goes further on the cash-to-close side.
Key Terms Defined
Asset qualifier: A path where eligible assets, after credit percentages, equal or exceed the whole loan.
Asset depletion: A path where usable assets are divided by 60 months to create monthly qualifying income.
Haircut: The share of a balance a lender does not count, to account for risk.
Seasoning: The time money has sat in an account before it counts.
Usable assets: The balance left after percentages are applied and purchase funds are subtracted.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the full brokerage balance count?
On the asset qualifier path, yes. Brokerage accounts count at 100% through select programs, subject to underwriting. On the asset depletion path, securities count at 80%.
Do I have to sell my investments?
No. The loan is a calculation against the account, not a liquidation. The holdings stay invested. Only funds you choose to use for the down payment or closing costs leave the account.
Can a 401(k) or IRA be used alongside a brokerage account?
Yes. On the qualifier path, retirement balances count at 90% under age 59½ and 100% at 59½ or older, and accounts combine. On the depletion path, retirement counts at 70% at any age.
Does cryptocurrency count?
Not as published. Crypto is not listed as eligible on either path. The documented route is converting it to cash in a regulated account and letting the balance season, with the lender reviewing the source.
Can I use this for a rental property?
Investment property is available only on the depletion path, at up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out. A pure rental purchase often fits a DSCR loan better, since that program looks primarily at rental income.
Next Step
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. Lendmire is a broker, and qualification is subject to lender guidelines and underwriting. This is not a commitment to lend. Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified professional.
Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage in Tennessee page presents the program for Tennessee borrowers.
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, 12 CFR 1026.43 (Regulation Z, Ability to Repay)
This article is part of Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: Is an Asset Qualifier Mortgage Harder to Get Than an Asset Depletion Loan? · Asset Qualifier vs Asset Depletion for an Heir · How Much of Vested RSUs Counts Toward Asset Depletion Income?
Guides: Asset-Based Mortgage in Tennessee
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Disclosures. The information presented in this article is general market commentary, not financial, legal, or tax advice. Lendmire is a mortgage brokerage (NMLS# 2371349) — not a direct lender or depository institution — and loan placement is subject to lender underwriting. Nothing in this content represents a commitment to lend. Loan terms, pricing, and program availability vary based on borrower qualifications, property characteristics, and state of subject property, and are subject to change at any time. Lendmire complies with Equal Housing Opportunity requirements. Consumer access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.