The Quick Read: Usually yes, when the building passes the lender’s project review and you will use the unit as a primary home, a second home, or, on the asset depletion path only, an investment property, because the loan is reviewed on your balances instead of your paycheck. The building and the intended use decide the outcome far more often than your assets do. Every figure below is a typical ceiling or floor through select programs, subject to underwriting.
- Two paths exist. Your assets can cover the whole loan, or your assets can be converted into monthly income.
- The building gets its own review. Resort condos often carry features that narrow the lender pool.
- Use type changes the leverage. Investment use is limited to the depletion path and carries lower leverage.
- Rent is not the qualifier. If the condo must pay for itself through rentals, a DSCR loan is the usual tool.
- Local rental rules sit outside the loan. Confirm them before you count on any rental income.
Why an Asset-Based Mortgage Can Finance a Colorado Ski-Town Condo
An asset-based mortgage can finance a ski-town condo because the program looks at what you own, not at a W-2 or a tax return. The condo is just the collateral. If the building is acceptable to the lender, the unit can be financed like any other eligible condo.
Across our wholesale network, two distinct paths fall under the asset-based label. You qualify on one at a time, never both.
On the asset qualifier path, your eligible assets, after the credit percentages below, must equal or exceed the entire loan amount. No employment or income is documented. The lender’s ability-to-repay review rests on the assets.
On the asset depletion path, your usable assets are divided by 60 months to produce a monthly qualifying income. That income must then carry the housing payment and your other debts through the debt-to-income test.
| Factor | Asset qualifier | Asset depletion |
|---|---|---|
| What carries the loan | Assets cover full loan | Assets become monthly income |
| Purchase leverage | Up to 80% | Up to 80% (home); 65% (investment) |
| Refinance leverage | Up to 75% | 80% rate-and-term; 60% cash-out (home) |
| Loan amounts | Up to $4,000,000 | $125,000 to $3,500,000 |
| Credit | 600 minimum | The lender’s matrix |
| Investment property | Not eligible | Eligible, lower leverage |
On the depletion path, an investment property drops to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out. Principal residences and second homes get the higher figures. These are program ceilings, never offers, and each file is underwritten individually.
Credit matters on both paths. The qualifier path publishes a 600 floor. 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 typically 0x30x12, and one 30-day late in the last twelve months is considered case by case.
What Counts as an Asset
Which accounts count, and at what percentage, depends on the path. Do not blend the two lists.
On the qualifier path, these shares of the balance count:
- Brokerage accounts, certificates of deposit, money market and savings count at 100%.
- A 401(k) or IRA counts at 90% if you are under 59½, and 100% at 59½ or older.
- Accounts combine, so several balances can add up to the loan amount.
On the depletion path, the haircuts are steeper:
- Cash accounts and certificates of deposit count at 100%.
- Securities count at 80%, and private stock at 75%.
- Retirement accounts count at 70% at any age.
- Real-estate equity counts at 60%.
Several things do not count on the depletion path. These include 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 and collectibles are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is to convert them to a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, with the lender reviewing the source. Cash-out proceeds from a refinance never count as qualifying assets.
Seasoning matters too. Seasoning is the time money must sit in your account before the lender will count it. The qualifier path wants 60 days and two months of statements for each qualifying account. The depletion path wants statements at least 120 days old, 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 depletion-path seasoning.
One point deserves emphasis. The income is not documented, but the assets are. Expect to hand over statements.
Why the Building Decides
A strong borrower can still be turned down because of the building. The reverse is also true: a modest portfolio can work if the project is clean.
Ski-town buildings are a special case. Many sit in resort cores with features that conventional project standards dislike. Non-warrantable is the label for a project that falls outside those standards. It describes the project, not the unit and not you. It is a financing label, not a defect.
Common triggers include:
- High investor concentration, meaning many units are owned by landlords rather than occupants.
- One owner holding many units.
- Commercial space inside the building.
- Condotel or hotel-style operations, such as a front desk or a rental pool.
- Litigation involving the homeowners association (HOA).
- Thin HOA reserves or weak master insurance.
Resort buildings often combine several of these at once. That is why a ski-town condo can fail a conventional review and still be reviewable through a narrower set of lenders.
Based on how these files move through our network, project review varies by lender. Most programs run their own condo review. They typically look at the HOA budget and reserve balance, the delinquency report, the master insurance certificate, and any litigation disclosure. Some lenders tolerate high investor concentration. Active structural litigation and hotel-style operations are far more likely to end the file.
Condotels and rental-pool units sit on a narrower, case-by-case track. Some programs exclude them entirely, so do not assume that a lender who accepts one building will accept another.
Dues matter as well. On the depletion path, high resort-building dues add to the housing payment that your derived income must carry. A condo with heavy dues eats into the debt-to-income test faster than a house with the same price.
Second Home, Primary Residence, or Rental?
Use type changes both eligibility and leverage. Say plainly at the start how you plan to use the unit.
Primary residence or second home. Both paths are open. A ski condo you will use a few weeks a year is the classic second-home case. The qualifier path allows up to 80% on a purchase and 75% on a refinance. The depletion path allows up to 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out refinance.
Investment property. Only the depletion path applies, with up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out. That lower leverage means more cash down. Rental income is not what this program reviews the file on, so the condo’s rent does not improve your asset-based file.
A true rental play. If the plan is for the condo to earn its keep, the better tool is usually a DSCR loan. DSCR stands for debt service coverage ratio. A DSCR loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. DSCR loans are designed for non-owner-occupied investment properties. Because they are business-purpose loans, they are reviewed differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage. Select lenders in the network do offer programs below 1.00x coverage, but leverage and terms adjust to compensate. Our complete DSCR loans guide walks through that path.
A hybrid buyer is common. Say you want a ski condo you will use yourself and also rent out. That is a use-type conversation to have with a broker before you write an offer, because the loan has to match the intended use from day one.
Some borrowers also have no steady income and a ski-condo rental plan. In that case a bank statement program, which documents income through deposits, may fit better than forcing either path. This one is a genuine judgment call: assets may carry the loan more cleanly, but deposits may support a better structure. Running both against your actual statements settles it.
Rental Rules to Check Before You Count on Income
Short-term rental rules can vary by city, county, HOA, and property type, so investors should confirm local rules before relying on projected rental income. That caution is sharper in ski country, because the same mailing address can fall under different governments.
Take Breckenridge as one example. The Town of Breckenridge defines a short-term rental as a stay of under 30 consecutive days and requires a license for each property. The license is non-transferable, so you cannot assume the seller’s license comes with the condo. The same page notes that HOAs may layer their own restrictions on top.
Unincorporated Summit County is a different regime. Summit County has a Resort Overlay Zone, which includes Copper Mountain and Tiger Run, where Resort Licenses carry no limit on nights rented. A local brokerage’s guide points out that a Breckenridge, Dillon, Silverthorne or Keystone mailing address does not tell you which jurisdiction applies. A property manager’s guide describes the Breckenridge Resort Zone as having no cap and consisting mostly of condo and hotel complexes. Availability in other zones changes, so check with the town or county directly.
For an asset-based file, this matters less to qualification and more to your plan. Do not underwrite your own household budget on rent that depends on a license you may not be able to get. That is the most common failure mode for ski-condo buyers who count on rentals.
A Worked Example
The numbers below are illustrative. The lender’s own calculation governs, and every file is underwritten individually.
Qualifier path. Picture a retired couple buying a second-home condo with an $800,000 loan. They hold $330,000 in brokerage accounts (100% counts, so $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) while under 59½ (90% counts, so $270,000), and $200,000 in savings (100% counts, so $200,000). Their usable assets total $800,000, which equals the loan. They qualify on assets alone, subject to underwriting. Because the leverage is above 75%, the lender sets any reserve requirement. At or below 75% loan-to-value, none is required on this path. The exact numbers vary by lender and program and follow a full review of property, leverage, and credit.
Depletion path. Now say a founder who sold a business holds $1,500,000 in securities (80% counts, so $1,200,000) and $300,000 in cash (100% counts, so $300,000). That is $1,500,000 of usable assets. Divided by 60 months, it produces $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That income then has to carry the housing payment, including the condo’s dues, and every other debt through the debt-to-income test.
The depletion path also has minimum assets. Qualified assets must be at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. They can never be below $250,000 liquid when asset depletion is the only income source. If assets supplement documented income, the debt-to-income ratio can reach 45%, and the minimum-assets rule is waived.
The Pre-Offer Checklist
Do this before you go under contract, not after. Resort condos can burn a deposit when a file stalls on the building.
1. Choose the path. Decide whether your assets cover the loan outright or become income.
2. Check seasoning. Pull your statements and confirm each qualifying account meets the path’s timing.
3. Settle the use. Decide whether this is a primary home, a second home, or a rental.
4. Request the HOA package. Ask for the budget and reserve balance, delinquency report, master insurance certificate, litigation disclosure, rental rules, and project questionnaire.
5. Flag rental pools and hotel services. Read any operator agreement early.
6. Confirm the local license rules. Identify whether the town or the county governs the unit.
7. Get an insurance quote. Make sure it matches the way you will use the unit.
Why These Files Stall
Most stalled files come down to a short list of reasons:
- The building fails project review. Litigation, thin reserves, or hotel operations are the usual causes.
- The assets do not season in time. A recent transfer between accounts can reset the clock.
- The assets are the wrong type. Crypto or collectibles do not count until converted to a seasoned cash balance.
- The leverage does not fit the use. Buyers plan on 80% and then learn investment use caps at 65% on a purchase.
- Appraisal comps are thin. Resort markets often have few recent sales and seasonal swings.
- The rental plan collapses. The license or HOA rule was not what the buyer assumed.
Most of these are fixable early and expensive late. Resale is worth a thought too. The next buyer faces the same building, so a unit that needs a narrow lender pool may have a narrower buyer pool.
Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified professional.
Key Terms Defined
Asset qualifier path: A program path where eligible assets, after credit percentages, equal or exceed the whole loan, so no income is documented.
Asset depletion path: A program path that divides usable assets by 60 months to create monthly qualifying income.
Non-warrantable condo: A condo project that falls outside conventional project standards, often because of investor concentration, litigation, or hotel-style operations.
Condotel: A condo building run like a hotel, often with a front desk, a rental pool, or an operator agreement.
Seasoning: The time money must sit in an account before a lender counts it.
DSCR: Debt service coverage ratio, which compares a property’s rent to its full monthly obligation.
HOA questionnaire: A form the homeowners association completes about the project’s finances, litigation, and rental mix.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use an asset-based mortgage on a ski condo that is also a rental?
Only on the asset depletion path, and with lower leverage: up to 65% on a purchase and 60% on a cash-out for an investment property. The qualifier path covers primary homes and second homes only. Rent does not count toward qualifying on either path. If the condo has to pay for itself, DSCR is usually the better fit.
Does a non-warrantable building automatically rule me out?
No. Non-warrantable describes the project, not the unit and not you, and it is not one standard category of risk. Some lenders in the network review these buildings case by case. Active structural litigation or hotel-style operations are far more likely to stop a file than high investor concentration. Eligibility depends on the lender, the building, and the file.
Do I need to document income on the qualifier path?
No income or employment is documented on the qualifier path. Your assets are documented, though. Expect two months of statements for each qualifying account and 60 days of seasoning. That is not a no-documentation loan, and your credit is still reviewed against a 600 minimum score.
Will my retirement account count?
Yes, in part. On the qualifier path, a 401(k) or IRA counts at 90% under age 59½ and 100% at 59½ or older. On the depletion path, retirement accounts count at 70% at any age.
Does the seller’s short-term rental license transfer with the condo?
In the Town of Breckenridge, no. The license is non-transferable.
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. Lendmire is a broker arranging financing through select lenders in its wholesale network, and its consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states, Colorado among them. Reach the team at 828-256-2183.
Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage in Colorado page presents the program for Colorado borrowers.
About Lendmire
Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage broker licensed for consumer lending in 16 states. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. Town of Breckenridge – Accommodation Unit (STR) Licenses
2. Summit County – STR License Application
3. High Rockies Homes – Summit County STR rules
4. SkyRun Breckenridge STR guide
This article is part of Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: Can Equity in a Rental Property Help You Qualify for an Asset-Based Mortgage? · Asset Qualifier Mortgage vs Bank Statement Mortgage · Is an Asset Qualifier Mortgage Harder to Get Than an Asset Depletion Loan?
Guides: Asset-Based Mortgage in Colorado
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Disclosure information. Lendmire is a state-licensed mortgage brokerage under NMLS# 2371349. Lendmire is not a depository institution, direct lender, or financial advisor — all loans referenced are placed through wholesale lender partners and are subject to each lender's underwriting standards. This article is provided for general informational purposes and is not a commitment to lend, nor does it constitute financial, legal, or tax advice. Loan programs, terms, rates, and qualification standards change without notice and depend on borrower profile, property type, and the state in which the subject property is located. Equal Housing Opportunity provider. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.