The Quick Read: The amount of cash you can take out depends on your documented liquid assets and your home equity, not on your privately held startup shares. On the asset depletion path, a cash-out refinance tops out at 60% loan-to-value, subject to underwriting. Your cash is that new loan minus your current payoff and closing costs. Privately held company stock is not an eligible asset on either path, so your paper valuation adds nothing to the number.
- The cash is the smaller of two limits: the leverage ceiling on the home, and what your eligible assets can support.
- On the asset depletion path, the ceiling is 60% of value on a cash-out, whether the home is a principal residence, a second home or an investment property.
- Your private shares, unvested RSUs and stock options count for zero. Cash, CDs, public securities and retirement accounts count at their listed percentages.
- Every file is fully underwritten and the assets are documented with statements. There is no traditional personal-income documentation: no pay stubs or employment verification.
Why a Founder’s Paper Wealth Doesn’t Move the Number
A pre-liquidity founder usually owns a large stake in a company that has never sold a share to the public. The stake may be worth millions on a cap table. A lender cannot sell it, cannot value it and cannot count it.
That is why founders are a good fit for asset-based underwriting, and also why they get surprised by it. The program rewards assets you can document today. It does not reward assets you expect to own later.
Here is the rule, stated plainly. Privately held company stock is not an eligible asset on either path. Stock options and non-vested restricted stock units are also not eligible on the asset depletion path. A founder’s route is documented liquid assets: cash, public securities and retirement accounts at their listed percentages, plus proceeds from a sale or buyout converted to a cash balance. On the depletion path, sale-of-business funds are excused from the usual seasoning.
If you hold options specifically, Lendmire’s piece How Much Cash Comes Out of an Asset-Based Cash-Out Refinance With Stock Options? covers that separate question in detail.
Key Terms Defined
Cash-out refinance: a new, larger mortgage that pays off the old one and hands you the difference in cash.
Loan-to-value (LTV): the loan amount divided by the home’s appraised value, shown as a percentage.
Haircut: the part of an asset’s balance a lender does not count. If securities count at 80%, the haircut is 20%.
Seasoning: the time funds must sit in your account, or statements must age, before a lender trusts them.
Liquidity event: the moment private equity turns into cash or tradable stock, such as a sale, a tender offer or an IPO.
Asset qualifier path: the route where eligible assets must cover the entire loan and no income is documented.
Asset depletion path: the route where eligible assets are divided by 60 months to create a qualifying monthly income.
Two Paths, and Why Cash-Out Lives on One of Them
Across the wholesale network, asset-based mortgage programs come in two forms. A borrower is qualified on one path at a time. The paths never blend.
On the asset qualifier path, your eligible assets, after the credit percentages, must equal or exceed the whole loan. No employment or income is documented. Leverage runs up to 80% on a purchase and 75% on a refinance. Whether cash-out proceeds are allowed on this path, and at what leverage, is set by the lender and is not published. So a founder should not plan around a qualifier-path cash-out figure.
On the asset depletion path, your usable assets are divided by 60 months. The result is a monthly qualifying income. That income then carries the housing payment and your other debts through a debt-to-income test. This path publishes cash-out leverage: 60% on a principal residence, a second home or an investment property.
For a founder asking how much cash comes out, the depletion path is the one with a clear answer. Through select programs, the figures below apply to it.
The Formula for Your Cash
The sequence is the same as on any cash-out refinance:
1. Appraised value times the 60% cash-out ceiling gives the maximum new loan.
2. Maximum new loan minus your current payoff gives the gross cash.
3. Gross cash minus closing costs and any financed items gives your net cash. Leverage, reserves, and pricing vary by lender and program; the final terms follow the full file review.
Run it in percentages. Say your home has no mortgage. The ceiling is then 60% of value, before costs. Say your payoff equals 45% of value. The gross cash is about 15% of value, before costs. Say your payoff already sits at 60% or more of value. Then there is no cash to take out.
Two things shrink the number that founders often miss. A low appraisal lowers the ceiling directly. And the 60% figure is a cap on the total loan, not the share of value you receive. Your payoff comes out first.
The second limit is your assets. The program also requires qualified assets of at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. When asset depletion is your only income source, you also need at least $250,000 in liquid assets. Loans on this path run from $125,000 to $3,500,000. All of this is subject to underwriting.
What Counts, and What Doesn’t
The tables below show the share of each balance that counts. They are ceilings drawn from select programs, not offers.
Asset depletion path
| Asset | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Cash accounts | 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% |
| Securities | 80% |
| Retirement accounts | 70% at any age |
| Real-estate equity | 60% |
Asset qualifier path
| Asset | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Brokerage accounts | 100% |
| CDs, money market, savings | 100% |
| 401(k) and IRA | 90% under 59½, 100% at 59½ or older |
Several assets are not eligible on the depletion path. These include privately held stock, stock options, non-vested restricted stock units, deferred compensation, custodial accounts, escrow accounts, foreign funds and cash on hand. Cryptocurrency, precious metals and collectibles are not published as eligible on either path. Pledged or borrowed funds are not eligible either. The documented route for those is converting them to a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, with the source reviewed by the lender.
A Worked Example: Paper Wealth Versus Documented Assets
The numbers here are illustrative. The lender’s own calculation governs.
Picture a founder whose private shares carry a headline valuation in the tens of millions. Those shares count for zero. Now say the same founder holds $1,500,000 in public securities and $300,000 in cash. The securities count at 80%, which is $1,200,000. The cash counts at 100%, which is $300,000. Usable assets total $1,500,000.
Divide by 60 months. That gives $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That income must carry the new housing payment and the founder’s other debts through the debt-to-income test.
Two things follow. First, the founder’s startup wealth never entered the math. Second, the cash-out proceeds cannot be added back as assets. If the founder takes cash out of the home and parks it in a brokerage account, that cash does not help the file.
Which Limit Binds First?
Two limits run side by side. The leverage ceiling caps the loan against the home. The asset test caps what your documented balances can support.
A founder with large home equity but thin liquid assets will hit the asset test first. The home could support a bigger loan, but the assets cannot carry it. A founder with strong liquid assets but little equity hits the leverage ceiling first. Plenty of liquid assets do not help if the 60% cap on the asset depletion path leaves no room above the payoff.
There is one more limit to remember. Cash you pull out raises the new payment. A larger loan means a larger payment to carry on your derived income. So borrow the cash you need, not the ceiling.
Founder Stage Changes the Plan
| Stage | What counts today | Typical move |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-exit, no sales | Cash and any public holdings only | Work the asset test first; private stock adds nothing |
| Partial liquidity (tender or secondary) | Seasoned sale proceeds, cash | Document the proceeds before applying |
| Post-IPO, locked up | Often nothing yet liquid | Wait until shares are freely sellable |
| Post-IPO, unlocked | Public securities at 80% on the depletion path | Statements must show the holdings |
The seasoning rules decide timing. On the qualifier path, funds need 60 days of seasoning and two months of statements per account. On the depletion path, statements must be 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 on the depletion path. A founder who sells shares in a secondary should confirm with a broker how those proceeds are treated before moving the money around.
A founder does not need an exit to qualify, because enough documented cash and securities can carry a file before one. Credit matters too. The depletion path follows the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix. A first-time investor on the depletion path needs 700. A housing event needs 4 years of seasoning on that path.
Alternatives a Founder Should Weigh
| Option | How it works | Main tradeoff |
|---|---|---|
| Asset-based cash-out | Home is collateral; assets drive qualification | 60% cap on the depletion path |
| HELOC | Credit line against home equity | Lenders usually underwrite income; terms vary by lender |
| Share-backed loan | Company shares pledged as collateral | Concentrates risk in the stock; terms vary by lender |
| Wait | Convert equity to cash first | Delays the project, but builds a cleaner file |
Business Purpose and Tax
When the home is an investment property, the loan is a business-purpose loan. These are reviewed differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage. The CFPB’s Ability-to-Repay final rule in the Federal Register treats investment-purpose loans as business-purpose loans. A principal residence or second home is a consumer mortgage, with consumer disclosures.
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.
Who This Doesn’t Fit
This route is a poor match in four cases.
- You hold only private stock. If nothing is liquid, there is nothing to document. The path needs cash, CDs, public securities or retirement balances.
- You need the maximum cash from the home. A 60% cap on the depletion path leaves less room than a purchase loan would. If your payoff is already high, the cash may be small or zero.
- You plan to put the cash into the startup. Using home equity to fund a company concentrates risk. If the company stalls, the loan still has to be paid.
- You want to count the proceeds as assets. Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets.
The program is also available only where Lendmire arranges consumer mortgages: Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my startup’s valuation raise my cash-out amount?
No. Your valuation does not raise the leverage ceiling, the assets that count or the cash you receive. Only documented liquid balances and your home equity enter the calculation.
Do my stock options or unvested RSUs help me qualify?
No. Stock options and non-vested restricted stock units are not eligible on the asset depletion path. They may matter later, once shares are exercised or vested and sold into a seasoned cash balance. Lendmire’s article How Much Cash Comes Out of an Asset-Based Cash-Out Refinance With Stock Options? covers that route.
Does the cash I take out count toward my qualifying assets?
No. Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets on the depletion path. The assets you need must already be in your accounts and documented with statements before you apply.
Should I refinance before or after a liquidity event?
It depends on what you can document today. Before the event, only cash, public securities and retirement accounts count. After the event, seasoned sale proceeds may count. Sale-of-business funds are excused from the 120-day statement seasoning on the depletion path, subject to underwriting.
Is this a no-documentation loan?
No. Every file is fully underwritten. You provide no traditional personal-income documentation, pay stubs or employment verification. The assets, credit and property are all reviewed, and the assets are documented with statements.
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.
For the mechanics of pulling equity out of a rental property, see Lendmire’s guide to cash-out refinance on an investment property.
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. Federal Register – CFPB Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgage Standards Final Rule
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 Much Cash Comes Out of an Asset-Based Cash-Out Refinance Using a Brokerage Account? · How Much Cash Comes Out of an Asset-Based Cash-Out Refinance to Fund a Business Expansion?
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Legal disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a state-licensed mortgage brokerage that arranges financing through wholesale lender relationships. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or registered financial advisor. The discussion above is general informational content about real estate financing — it is not financial, legal, or tax advice, and readers should consult licensed professionals for guidance on their individual circumstances. Loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not represent a commitment to lend. Loan terms, rates, and qualification standards vary by borrower, property, and state, and are subject to change at any time. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.