The Quick Read: Lenders in Lendmire’s wholesale network do write asset-based refinances where the borrower documents statements instead of tax returns, pay stubs or employment verification, but the cash-out version is the tightest corner of the program and runs only through the asset depletion path at lower leverage. Every file is still fully underwritten. The assets are documented, and a borrower is qualified on one path at a time.
- Asset qualifier path: eligible assets must cover the entire loan, and no employment or income is documented.
- Asset depletion path: usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying income, which then runs through the debt-to-income test.
- Cash-out leverage on the depletion path: up to 60% on a principal residence, second home or investment property, subject to underwriting.
- Cash-out proceeds: they never count as qualifying assets.
- Footprint: the consumer program covers 16 states, so check that first.
What “Without Full Income Documentation” Actually Means
It means the file leaves out tax returns, pay stubs and employment verification. It does not mean the file leaves out documentation. Lendmire is a mortgage broker, not a lender. Across the wholesale network it works with, the borrower still provides credit, a property appraisal, title work, and account statements that prove the assets exist and have been in place long enough to count.
Borrowers who search for this usually share a profile. They hold a lot of cash and investments and show little documented income. Think of a retiree living on a portfolio, someone who sold a business, an heir who received an inheritance, or an early-retired professional. A conventional lender looks at their tax return, sees low income, and declines. An asset-based program asks a different question: do the assets support this loan?
Older “stated income” products are gone. What exists now is a fully underwritten program that swaps one kind of proof (income) for another (assets). Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage programs are placed through select lenders, and the figures below are ceilings and floors, never offers.
How the Two Asset Paths Differ
Start by picking a path, because the numbers change completely between them.
| Factor | Asset Qualifier | Asset Depletion |
|---|---|---|
| Core test | Eligible assets cover the whole loan | Assets ÷ 60 months = monthly income |
| Income documented | None | Derived income, run through DTI |
| Loan amounts | Up to $4,000,000 | $125,000 to $3,500,000 |
| Purchase leverage | Up to 80% | Up to 80% (65% investment) |
| Refinance leverage | Up to 75% | 80% rate-and-term (65% investment) |
| Cash-out leverage | Set by lender, not published | 60% on all occupancy types |
| Credit | 600 minimum | Lender’s matrix |
All leverage figures are subject to underwriting and apply through select programs. The qualifier path covers principal residences and second homes. Investment property is available only on the depletion path.
A cash-out refinance sits awkwardly on the qualifier path. The lender decides whether cash-out proceeds are allowed and at what leverage, and that figure is not published. No one should plan around a qualifier-path cash-out number. For a cash-out, the depletion path is the one with published leverage.
Which Path Fits Your Balance Sheet?
Choose the qualifier path when your liquid assets are larger than the loan itself. A borrower with a modest mortgage balance and a big brokerage account often fits here. No income is documented, and the lender’s review rests on the assets.
Choose the depletion path when the loan is bigger than your liquid assets but your assets are still substantial. The lender converts them to monthly income. That income has to carry the housing payment and your other debts. The path can also supplement documented income, such as a pension or Social Security, up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio. When it supplements, the minimum-assets rule is waived.
Neither path suits a borrower who is asset-light and equity-heavy. If your wealth is mostly home equity, the qualifier path will not work, and the depletion path counts real-estate equity at only 60%.
How Assets Become Qualifying Income
The depletion math is simple. Each account is reduced by its haircut. The usable total is divided by 60 months. The result is your monthly qualifying income.
Run the numbers on an illustrative case. Say a borrower holds $1,500,000 in securities and $300,000 in cash. Securities count at 80%, which is $1,200,000. Cash counts at 100%, which is $300,000. Usable assets total $1,500,000. Divided by 60 months, that is $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That figure then carries the housing payment and other debts through the debt-to-income test.
The qualifier math is a coverage test instead. Consider an $800,000 loan. The borrower has $330,000 in brokerage accounts (100% = $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) while under age 59½ (90% = $270,000), and $200,000 in savings (100% = $200,000). Usable assets total $800,000, which equals the loan, so the file is reviewed on assets alone. Accounts combine.
These examples are illustrative. The lender’s own calculation governs.
Which Assets Count, and at What Percentage
| Asset type | Qualifier path | Depletion path |
|---|---|---|
| Brokerage accounts | 100% | Securities at 80% |
| Cash, savings, money market | 100% | Cash accounts at 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% | 100% |
| Retirement (401(k), IRA) | 90% under 59½; 100% at 59½+ | 70% at any age |
| Real-estate equity | Not listed | 60% |
Privately held company stock is not an eligible asset on either path. A founder or shareholder qualifies through documented liquid assets instead: seasoned proceeds from a sale or conversion, cash, public securities and retirement accounts at their percentages.
Some assets are not published as eligible on either path. These include cryptocurrency, precious metals, collectibles, business accounts beyond your ownership share, and pledged or borrowed funds. The route here is conversion. Move the value into a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, and the lender reviews where it came from.
The depletion path also excludes 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.
What Changes When You Take Cash Out
Cash-out is where the program tightens. Three things change.
Leverage drops. On the depletion path, a principal residence or second home goes up to 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance. On a cash-out refinance, that falls to 60%. For an investment property, the ceiling is 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out.
Proceeds don’t help you qualify. Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets. This catches borrowers who plan to pull equity and then park it in a savings account to bolster the file. The money coming out of the house does not count toward the house.
Double counting is a trap. On the depletion path, the same assets generate your income and sit in your account. The lender will not count them twice. Plan your usable balance with this in mind, and expect the lender to subtract funds you need for closing.
A practical consequence: a cash-out refinance on this program often makes sense only if you need a moderate amount of equity and your assets are well above the minimums. If you want to pull equity out of a house with a large remaining balance, the 60% ceiling may leave little to take.
Seasoning, Statements and Minimums
Assets have to sit long enough to count. The rules differ by path.
- Qualifier path: 60 days of seasoning, with two months of statements for each qualifying account.
- Depletion path: statements 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.
The depletion path also has minimums. Qualified assets must reach the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. When asset depletion is the only income source, the floor is never below $250,000 in liquid assets.
On the qualifier path, no reserves are required at or below 75% loan-to-value. Above that, the lender sets them. The depletion path has no published reserve months.
Credit and Housing History
The qualifier path has a published floor of 600. The depletion path follows the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix, so the number depends on how big the loan is. A first-time investor on the depletion path needs 700.
Housing history is expected to be clean. The program looks for 0x30x12, meaning no 30-day lates in the last twelve months. A single 30-day late is considered case by case. Multiple bankruptcies are not eligible. A housing event needs four years of seasoning on the depletion path.
Strong assets do not offset a weak credit file, and nothing here is a promise of approval.
Investment Property: The Depletion Path Only
If the property is a rental, the picture changes. Investment property is eligible only on the depletion path, and the loan is business-purpose. That matters because federal rules treat credit for non-owner-occupied rental property as business purpose under Regulation Z. A lender can underwrite it differently from a standard owner-occupied mortgage.
A consumer loan on a principal residence or second home carries TRID disclosures. The business-purpose investment loan does not.
Leverage is lower: 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on cash-out. State licensing can still apply. A law-firm memo on business-purpose lending notes that some states license residential-secured loans regardless of purpose. The program footprint is the 16 states listed below, and nothing outside them.
For investors whose rental income is the real story, a different program may fit better. DSCR financing for rentals qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. It may allow more leverage on a cash-out than the asset path does. The tradeoff is that it ignores your portfolio, so a borrower with big assets and a thin rental does better on the asset path.
Where the General Rule Breaks
A few edge cases deserve attention before you apply.
Founder or shareholder with closely held stock. The stock itself does not count on either path. Only the cash after a sale, buyout or conversion counts, once it has seasoned.
Crypto holder. Converting to cash and moving it to a regulated account starts the seasoning clock. The lender will want to see the source.
Retiree under 59½. The qualifier path gives 90% credit on retirement balances under 59½ and 100% after. The depletion path counts retirement at 70% regardless of age.
Borrower with recent sale proceeds. Sale-of-business, inheritance and settlement funds are excused from depletion-path seasoning, but the lender will still review the source.
Borrower with a recent housing event. A foreclosure or short sale needs four years of seasoning on the depletion path.
First-time investor. The 700 credit requirement on the depletion path is the bar.
Alternatives Compared
| Option | It is reviewed on | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Asset-based mortgage | Documented assets | Big balances, thin documented income |
| Bank statement loan | Deposits as income | Self-employed with steady deposits |
| DSCR loan | Property rental income | The asset is an investment property |
| HELOC | Lender’s own review | Existing home equity, smaller draw |
| Selling assets | Nothing to qualify | Tax cost is acceptable |
Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified professional before choosing between selling assets and borrowing against them.
How to Find the Right Lenders Through a Broker
The lenders that write asset-based cash-out refinances differ in their guidelines, and the best program depends entirely on your situation. A single lender gives you one set of rules. A broker that shops multiple wholesale lenders can match your statements, property, credit profile and leverage need to the program that actually fits.
Ask any broker these questions:
1. Which path does my file fit, and why?
2. Is cash-out allowed on that path, and at what leverage?
3. How are my retirement accounts credited?
4. Does the lender subtract closing funds from my usable assets?
5. Is my state covered?
Consumer mortgage lending for this program is licensed in 16 states: Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington. If your property is elsewhere, this program is not available.
What Gets Documented
Plan to gather the following before you apply.
- Two months of statements for each qualifying account (qualifier path), or statements 120 days old plus a recent one within 45 days (depletion path)
- Credit authorization and housing history
- The property appraisal and title work
- Source records for any large recent deposits
- Entity documents, if an investment property is held in an LLC, depending on program guidelines
Risks and Tradeoffs
The depletion method assumes you spend your assets over 60 months. In reality you won’t, but the lender still tests the loan against that assumption. A market drop can shrink your usable balance between application and closing. The 60% cash-out ceiling means you pull out less than you might expect. Haircuts on securities and retirement accounts cut your usable total further. Leverage, reserves, and pricing vary by lender and program; the final terms follow the full file review.
If your goal is more cash out, a different program may do better. If your income is genuinely low and your assets are modest, none of these paths will fit.
Key Terms Defined
Asset qualifier: the path where eligible assets, after credit percentages, equal or exceed the entire loan amount.
Asset depletion: the path where usable assets divided by 60 months become monthly qualifying income.
Seasoning: the length of time funds must sit in an account before they count.
Haircut: the percentage reduction applied to an asset’s balance before it counts.
Debt-to-income ratio: monthly debts, including the new housing payment, divided by monthly qualifying income.
Business-purpose loan: credit extended mainly for investment or commercial use rather than personal or household use.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can privately held company stock count as an asset?
No. The documented route is a sale or buyout converted into a seasoned cash balance. Cash, public securities and retirement accounts then count at their stated percentages, subject to underwriting.
Is this a no-doc loan?
No. Every file is fully underwritten. You skip traditional personal-income documentation, pay stubs and employment verification, but you document your assets with statements, plus credit, appraisal and title. The lender reviews all of it before any approval.
Can I take cash out on the asset qualifier path?
That is set by the lender and is not published. For a cash-out refinance with published leverage, the depletion path allows up to 60% on a principal residence, second home or investment property, through select programs and subject to underwriting.
Can a retiree use a 401(k) or IRA?
Yes, at reduced credit. The qualifier path counts retirement balances at 90% under age 59½ and 100% at 59½ or older. The depletion path counts them at 70% at any age.
Can I use this on an investment property?
Yes, but only on the depletion path. Leverage is up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out, and the loan is business-purpose. Eligibility is subject to lender guidelines. This is not a commitment to lend.
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. The first question worth settling is which path your balance sheet fits, because that single choice sets your leverage ceiling before any lender is involved.
For how equity extraction works on an investment property, see Lendmire’s guide to cash-out refinance on an investment property.
About Lendmire
Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage broker licensed for consumer lending in 16 states. Bank statement, P&L-only, 1099-only and asset-based mortgages for self-employed and high-net-worth borrowers are arranged through wholesale lenders on primary residences, second homes and investment properties; every file is underwritten by the lender under its program guidelines. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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Informational only. Not a Loan Estimate, approval, or commitment to lend. Program availability and eligibility are subject to lender guidelines, credit approval, property review, and underwriting.
References
1. CFPB, Regulation Z § 1026.3
2. Hunton Andrews Kurth, “Beware of Business Purpose”
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 Lenders Value Private Stock on an Asset-Based Mortgage · Can You Get an Asset-Based Mortgage on a Pennsylvania Condo? · How to Document a Wire From a Sale Before an Asset-Based Mortgage
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
- Mortgage Loan Originator · NMLS# 1129696 · Verify on NMLS Consumer Access
- North Carolina Real Estate Broker · License# 343312 · Verify on NCREC
- North Carolina Insurance Producer · License# 19053198 · Property, Casualty, Life, Health · Verify on NAIC SBS
- Lendmire LLC · Firm NMLS# 2371349 · Verify firm licensure
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.