The Quick Read: It depends on the path. On the asset qualifier path, your eligible assets only need to cover the entire loan, so the ceiling is the loan your assets support and the down payment you can fund, not a flat dollar cap, subject to underwriting. The other route turns assets into monthly income that must carry the payment. Which one fits depends on whether you are buying a home to live in or a rental.
- Qualifier path: eligible assets, after the credit percentages, must equal or exceed the whole loan. No employment or income is documented.
- Depletion path: usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying income, and that income must carry the housing payment and your other debts.
- Rentals: a pure rental purchase usually moves to a DSCR loan, which qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines.
- Documents: your assets are still documented. Skipping traditional personal-income documentation, such as pay stubs and employment verification, is not the same as skipping documentation altogether.
- Reality check: $1 million in net worth is not $1 million in qualifying assets. Home equity, business value, and restricted accounts often do not count.
What Does “$1 Million in Assets and No Income” Mean to a Lender?
A lender hears three different things in that sentence, and they are not interchangeable. A $1 million budget is the price you want to pay. A $1 million home is the property. $1 million in assets is the money you hold. Only the last one matters for qualifying.
“No income” also needs a translation. It means no documented employment income, such as pay stubs or traditional personal-income documentation. It does not mean no credit, no statements, and no review. Across the wholesale network where Lendmire places these files, the lender still looks at your credit, your account statements, the property, and the appraisal.
The programs below are consumer mortgages for principal residences and second homes, placed through select lenders in Lendmire’s network. Lendmire’s consumer mortgage lending covers 16 states, and Pennsylvania is one of them. The program figures do not change by state, and every file is underwritten individually.
Path One: Your Assets Cover the Entire Loan
On the asset qualifier path, your eligible assets, after the credit percentages below, must equal or exceed the whole loan amount. The lender documents no employment and no income. The review rests on your assets.
Here is how much of each balance counts, through select programs and subject to underwriting:
- Brokerage accounts, certificates of deposit, money market, and savings: 100%.
- 401(k) and IRA balances: 90% if you are under age 59½, and 100% at 59½ or older.
- Accounts combine: you can stack several to reach the loan amount.
Leverage on this path runs up to 80% loan-to-value on a purchase and 75% on a refinance, for a principal residence or second home. Loan-to-value, or LTV, is the loan divided by the property value. Loans run up to $4,000,000, with a 600 minimum credit score. Reserves are not required at or below 75% LTV, and above that the lender sets them. Each figure is subject to lender guidelines and a complete review of property type, leverage, and credit.
Seasoning matters here. Seasoning is the time money must sit in your account before the lender counts it. This path wants 60 days of seasoning and two months of statements for each qualifying account.
Here is the illustrative arithmetic. Say you want an $800,000 loan. You hold $330,000 in brokerage accounts (counted at 100%, so $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) while under 59½ (counted at 90%, so $270,000), and $200,000 in savings (counted at 100%, so $200,000). That is $800,000 of usable assets, and the loan is reviewed on assets alone. The lender’s own calculation governs.
Now apply that to your $1 million. If every dollar is in cash and brokerage accounts, a loan of up to about $1 million is supported by assets. At 80% LTV on a purchase, the loan is a share of the price, so the price can run above the loan.
The catch is the down payment. The same dollars you count to cover the loan generally cannot also fund the down payment. Lenders review how the cash to close and the qualifying balance fit together, so plan on the lender’s calculation, not a rule of thumb.
Path Two: Your Assets Become Monthly Income
The depletion path works differently. The lender takes your usable assets, divides them by 60 months, and treats the result as monthly qualifying income. That income then runs through a debt-to-income test, or DTI, which compares your monthly debts to your income. The income must carry the full housing payment and your other debts.
The credit percentages are stricter than on the qualifier path, so a mixed portfolio counts for less:
- Cash accounts and certificates of deposit: 100%.
- Securities: 80%.
- Private stock: 75%.
- Retirement accounts: 70% at any age.
- Real-estate equity: 60%.
Some assets do not count on this path at all. 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.
A worked example, again illustrative: $1,500,000 in securities (80% counted, so $1,200,000) plus $300,000 in cash (100%, so $300,000) is $1,500,000 usable. Divided by 60 months, that is $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That income then carries the housing payment and other debts through the DTI test.
A $1 million portfolio held entirely in securities counts 80%, or $800,000. Move some of it to cash and the number rises.
The guardrails are real. Qualified assets must be at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. They must never fall below $250,000 in liquid assets when depletion is your only income source. Loans run from $125,000 to $3,500,000. 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.
Leverage on this path is capped as follows:
- Principal residence or second home: up to 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out refinance.
- Investment property: up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out refinance.
- Cash-out proceeds: these never count as qualifying assets.
Credit follows the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix. A first-time investor on this path needs a 700 score. Housing history is 0x30x12, with one 30-day late in the past twelve months considered case by case. Multiple bankruptcies are not eligible, and a housing event needs four years of seasoning.
The Two Paths Side by Side
You qualify on one path at a time. Never blend the two tables. This comparison shows the structural differences, through select programs and subject to underwriting.
| Factor | Asset qualifier | Asset depletion |
|---|---|---|
| How assets are used | Cover the whole loan | Divided by 60 into income |
| Income documented | None | Derived income, run through DTI |
| Purchase leverage | Up to 80% | 80% home, 65% investment |
| Loan range | Up to $4,000,000 | $125,000 to $3,500,000 |
| Retirement accounts | 90% under 59½, 100% after | 70% at any age |
| Investment property | Not offered | Offered |
Does Pennsylvania Change the Answer?
Not the program math, but it changes how much house you actually need. Redfin reports a Pennsylvania median sale price of $314,097, up 5.8% year over year. Zillow’s home value index puts the state at $294,099, up 2.4%. The two measures differ, since one tracks sold prices and the other estimates values, but both sit far below $1 million.
So the size of your asset pile is rarely the binding limit here. Down payment, credit, and the monthly obligation usually bind first. Prices differ a lot between the Philadelphia region, Pittsburgh, and rural counties. Taxes and insurance vary by county, so price them for the specific property before you fall in love with it.
Buying a Rental Instead? Switch to DSCR
Here is where many investors with large balances get tripped up. The two asset-based paths above are built for homes you live in. Investment property appears only on the depletion path, at a lower 65% leverage on a purchase. A pure rental purchase usually moves to a DSCR loan.
DSCR stands for debt service coverage ratio. You divide gross monthly rent by the full monthly payment, meaning principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and any HOA dues. A ratio of 1.0 means rent exactly covers the payment. For a rental, that ratio, not your $1 million balance, sets how large a loan the property supports. Your assets fund the down payment, closing costs, and any reserves.
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. Under the federal rule on exempt transactions, the lender must still judge the primary purpose of each loan. Plans to stay in the property more than 14 days a year can change how it is treated, which matters for second homes and short-term rentals.
Some programs in the network review coverage below 1.00. Those scenarios are available through select lenders, but loan-to-value and terms adjust. A property whose rent lands under 1.0 can still be reviewed, but expect lower leverage and more cash down.
What Counts, What Doesn’t, and the Liquidity Trap
Many readers who say “$1 million in assets” are counting things a lender will not. A paid-off house is equity, not cash. A business is value, not a balance. A trust you cannot withdraw from is not liquid.
Cryptocurrency, precious metals, collectibles, and business accounts beyond your ownership share are not published as eligible on either path. Pledged or borrowed funds are not either. The documented route is converting them into a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, with the source reviewed by the lender. Do not assume they count at any percentage.
Retirement money has a trade-off. The qualifier path counts a 401(k) or IRA at 90% before age 59½, and at 100% after. The depletion path counts it at 70% at any age. Counting an account for qualification does not mean you should spend it, so think about withdrawal friction before you plan around it.
Who Actually Uses These Programs?
The fit is clearest for people whose balances are large and whose documented income is small. That includes:
- Retirees living on a portfolio.
- Early-retired professionals.
- Sellers of a business, who can have seasoning excused on the depletion path.
- Recipients of an inheritance or a legal settlement.
- Households between jobs who still hold substantial savings.
A bank statement loan is a different tool. It suits borrowers who document income through deposits, such as self-employed owners. If you have little income and a lot of assets, the asset-based paths fit better.
Maximum Approval Is Not Comfortable Ownership
A lender approving a number does not mean you should borrow it. Depletion income is a formula. Your actual spending comes out of a portfolio that can fall.
Picture a buyer who is reviewed on a $1 million portfolio but lives on that same portfolio. A market drop shrinks the balance, while the payment stays fixed. The safer move is to pick a price where the payment feels easy even if the portfolio dips. Many buyers also consider a larger down payment, which lowers the loan, though it also lowers the liquid cash left behind.
The all-cash alternative is also real. Paying cash removes the payment altogether but locks assets in one property. Financing keeps liquidity but adds an obligation. This is a genuine toss-up that depends on your age, income needs, and comfort with market swings.
Key Terms Defined
Eligible assets: the account balances a lender is willing to count, after applying its credit percentages.
Asset qualifier path: a method where eligible assets must cover the entire loan and no income is documented.
Asset depletion path: a method where usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying monthly income.
Seasoning: how long money must sit in an account, or how old statements must be, before a lender counts it.
Debt-to-income (DTI): your monthly debts divided by your monthly income.
Loan-to-value (LTV): the loan amount divided by the property’s value.
DSCR: gross monthly rent divided by the full monthly payment on a rental property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I buy a $1 million house with $1 million in assets?
Often yes, but the same dollars cannot be counted twice. On the qualifier path, assets must cover the loan, and the down payment also has to come from somewhere. The lender reviews how the two fit together, subject to underwriting and credit.
Do I need any income documented?
Not on the qualifier path, where no employment or income is documented. On the depletion path, your assets are converted into monthly income and run through a debt-to-income test. Either way, your assets, credit, and the property are all reviewed.
Does my 401(k) count?
Yes, through select programs. On the qualifier path it counts at 90% under age 59½ and 100% after. On the depletion path it counts at 70% at any age. Whether you should spend it is a separate question.
Can I use these programs to buy a rental?
Only the depletion path covers investment property, at up to 65% on a purchase, and it carries a 700 score for a first-time investor. Most investors buying a rental choose a DSCR loan instead, which qualifies primarily on property-level rental income, subject to lender guidelines.
Can I count crypto or gold?
Not directly. Neither is published as eligible on either path. The documented route is converting them to a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, with the source reviewed by the lender.
Next Steps
Start with your statements. Sort your balances by account type, and note which ones the lender would count at 100% and which at a haircut. Note how long each balance has been in place.
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. For current guidelines and terms, see Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage programs page. Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified professional before relying on any deduction.
Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage in Pennsylvania page presents the program for Pennsylvania borrowers.
About Lendmire
Lendmire — NMLS# 2371349 — is a mortgage broker that arranges bank statement, P&L-only, 1099-only and asset-based home financing in 16 states through wholesale lenders, on primary residences, second homes and investment properties. Every option is subject to the lender’s guidelines and full underwriting. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. Redfin – Pennsylvania housing market
2. Zillow – Pennsylvania home values
3. CFPB – Reg Z § 1026.3 Exempt transactions
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 to Refinance a Pennsylvania Mortgage After Retiring With No W-2 Income · Can You Refinance a Georgia Home on Assets When Your Income Stops? · Can You Relocate to Georgia and Buy a Home on Assets Before You Have Local Income?
Guides: Asset-Based Mortgage in Pennsylvania
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.