Current asset-based guidelines, updated from one source.
Treat these as the program’s limits rather than an offer: the largest loan on each path, the credit floor, the maximum leverage, and the retirement-account credit on either side of the age line. The tables beneath the cards are the working rules a loan officer applies to the statements, and they change here when the sheets change.
Up to $4,000,000 on assets alone; $3,500,000 when assets become income
The largest loan on the asset qualifier path is $4,000,000, provided the usable assets equal or exceed it; the asset depletion path tops out at $3,500,000. Neither figure is a quote, and the lender’s own calculation of the usable assets governs the amount.
The asset qualifier path’s published floor; the depletion path follows the suite’s score and amount matrix
The published floor is 600 for the asset qualifier path. The asset depletion path prices by score tier inside the documentation suite’s matrix, and the leverage available at a given score falls as the loan grows. Either way the score is one input among several, settled in underwriting.
That ceiling on a purchase and 75% on a refinance when assets cover the loan; 60% on a depletion cash-out
The leverage ceilings are 80% for a purchase and 75% for a refinance on the asset qualifier path, and 80% for a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% for a cash-out on the asset depletion path, both on a principal residence or second home. The leverage table shows the investment-property row.
Credited under 59½, and at 59½ or older, when assets cover the loan; 70% at any age when assets become income
A 401(k) or IRA is credited at 90% of its balance for an owner under 59½ and 100% for an owner at 59½ or older on the asset qualifier path; the asset depletion path counts a flat 70% of the balance. Brokerage, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit count in full when the assets cover the loan.
| Account type | Credit toward the loan |
|---|---|
| Brokerage accounts (stocks, bonds, funds) | 100% of the balance |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% of the balance |
| Money market accounts | 100% of the balance |
| Savings and checking | 100% of the balance |
| Retirement accounts (401(k), IRA) — owner under 59½ | 90% of the balance |
| Retirement accounts (401(k), IRA) — owner 59½ or older | 100% of the balance |
| Account type | Share counted |
|---|---|
| Cash accounts | 100% of the balance |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% of the balance |
| Securities (stocks, bonds, funds) | 80% of the balance |
| Private stock | 75% of the balance |
| Retirement accounts (any age) | 70% of the balance |
| Real-estate equity | 60% of the balance |
| Path and occupancy | Purchase | Rate-and-term | Cash-out |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asset qualifier — primary residence or second home | 80% | 75% | set by the lender |
| Asset depletion — primary residence | 80% | 80% | 60% |
| Asset depletion — second home | 80% | 80% | 60% |
| Asset depletion — investment property | 65% | 65% | 60% |
Two paths behind these pages: on the asset qualifier path the usable assets must equal or exceed the whole loan and no employment or income is documented; on the asset depletion path the usable assets are divided across the published number of months (the table above) into a qualifying income that carries the housing payment and other debts through the debt-to-income test. Reserves are not required on the qualifier path at or below the refinance leverage; the depletion path asks for statements at least one hundred twenty days old plus a current one. Minimum assets on the depletion path: the lesser of one million dollars or one and a quarter times the loan, never below a quarter million liquid when assets are the only income. Lendmire is a broker, not the lender, and the lender is not named.
Current asset-based snapshot · updated October 21, 2026 · a Lendmire loan officer confirms the path, the asset credit, and the leverage for the file before an offer.
Program guidelines only, not an offer of credit. The loan amounts, credit floors, leverage limits, asset credit percentages, haircuts, divisor, and seasoning rules on this page are wholesale program parameters subject to change without notice and to full underwriting of the borrower and the property. Which accounts count and how the age rule applies are settled by the lender. Lendmire is a mortgage broker, not a lender, licensed for consumer mortgages in sixteen states. NMLS #2371349.
What an asset-based mortgage is — and how the two paths qualify a file.
The program’s distinguishing rule is how much of an account it counts, and that it will count retirement money on the path that documents no income at all. For an Aurora household living on a portfolio, the practical questions are which path fits, how each account type is credited, and how long the money needs to have been in place. The four cards answer them in order.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage program, or the statewide guide at Asset-Based Mortgage in Colorado; for the age rule on retirement withdrawals, see the IRS.
Two paths, one program
The asset qualifier path and the asset depletion path share a premise and differ in arithmetic. Both qualify an Aurora buyer on eligible accounts rather than earnings. The first requires the usable assets to equal or exceed the entire loan and documents no employment or income; the second does not require the assets to cover the loan: it converts them into a monthly income and runs that income through the debt-to-income test with the new payment included.
The asset qualifier path
On the asset qualifier path the lender adds up the eligible accounts, credits each at its share, and compares the total with the loan. Brokerage accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, and savings count in full; a 401(k) or IRA counts at a reduced share while the owner is under 59½ and in full from 59½ on. Accounts combine across types, so an Aurora buyer with a mixed balance sheet is read on the sum.
The asset depletion path
On this path the eligible balances are reduced by account type, the total is spread over the divisor, and the monthly figure is read as income against the housing payment and other debts. Seasoning is longer here than on the asset qualifier path: statements at least four months old at application plus a current one, unless the money came from the sale of a business, an inheritance, or a legal settlement. An Aurora loan officer sorts the eligible accounts from the ineligible ones at the start.
Seasoning, statements, and what counts
The statements are read twice on an Aurora file: first for seasoning, two months on the asset qualifier path and a statement at least four months old plus the latest one on the asset depletion path, then for how much of each eligible account counts. Covering the loan credits most accounts in full and retirement accounts by the owner’s age; converting assets into income applies haircuts by account type and ignores age. The same balance sheet produces two usable totals, and the loan officer shows both before underwriting settles the path.
Every input below is yours: the Aurora price, the loan, the balances by account type, the owner’s age against the age line, the benchmark, and the carrying costs. The calculator credits the accounts the way the asset qualifier path does, converts them the way the asset depletion path does, and shows the loan against each, with a thirty-year payment at the benchmark for context.
Aurora’s market in figures — and how asset-based lending fits.
The local median home value is the floor of the conversation for a buyer who qualifies on assets, not the ceiling: the program’s loan amounts run well past it. The Census figures below give Aurora’s population, typical home value, and ownership, the ground an asset-based file sits above.
These are context figures, not underwriting inputs. A high median value means a larger loan for the assets to cover and a larger monthly income for the depletion path to produce; a lower one means the same balance sheet goes further. The owner share says how established the market is, and the owner count how deep the comparable sales run.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Aurora neighborhoods, distinct asset files.
Each card below is an Aurora submarket seen through the program: who buys there on assets, which path usually fits, and what the loan officer checks first. The figures in the snapshot apply everywhere; the emphasis changes from one card to the next.
Two-to-four-unit homes
Small multi-unit buildings in Aurora attract the asset-rich buyer who wants rental income beside the portfolio. Financed as an investment, the file is a depletion file: haircut assets divided into income, the investment leverage row, and a stronger score for a first-time investor. About 38% of Aurora’s households rent — roughly 54,627 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Second homes and pied-à-terre purchases
For a second home in Aurora, both paths are open and the purchase leverage matches the principal-residence figure. The loan officer reads the statements once, shows the usable total on each path, and places the file on the one with the cleaner margin. Roughly 90,683 Aurora households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 62% of all households, the pool an asset-based purchase joins.
Newer luxury infill and new construction
Builder inventory and new infill in Aurora are bought on assets by households that have just sold something larger. The proceeds season (two months of statements on the asset qualifier path, longer on the depletion path), the credited total is measured against the new loan, and the file is placed on the path the total supports. Median household income in Aurora sits near $88,368 on the latest Census estimate.
Estate properties
An estate purchase on assets is sized against the program ceiling and the usable total at once. An Aurora buyer near the ceiling is read closely on the margin, on which accounts count, and on the age rule for retirement money, because a small change in the credited total moves a large loan. The median owner-occupied home value in Aurora runs near $469,100 on the latest Census estimate.
High-rise and luxury condominiums
The downsizer’s file: the house is sold, the proceeds sit in the accounts, and the Aurora condominium is bought on the statements. Two months of statements season the proceeds on the asset qualifier path; the project review and the appraisal are the building’s questions, not the borrower’s. Aurora is home to about 394K people and sits within the Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO area.
Close-in architect-designed homes
A distinctive Aurora house is a distinctive appraisal. The asset side of the file is unaffected, but the leverage ceiling is applied to the appraised value, so a buyer on the asset qualifier path plans the usable total with room for the value to land under the contract. On a home in Aurora priced at or above the median, the asset qualifier path finances up to 80% of the price on a purchase — the balance of the price is the down payment, and the usable assets must cover the loan itself.
The rules do not change with the street. Every Aurora file is checked the same way: eligible accounts, credit share or haircut, usable total against the loan or divided into income, leverage against the ceiling for the purpose and occupancy, seasoning, and credit. The submarket shapes the price and the appraisal, nothing more.
Four ways Aurora buyers put their assets to work.
What an Aurora buyer does with an asset-based mortgage depends on the balance sheet and the occupancy. The four uses below cover the typical purchases and refinances, with the path, the leverage, and the account rules that apply to each.
Buy a home on assets alone, with no income in the file
When the balance sheet covers the loan, an Aurora household keeps the income question out of the file entirely. The lender credits the accounts, confirms the total against the loan, checks the leverage for a purchase, and reads the credit report; reserves are not required at or below the refinance leverage, and the path reaches well into the jumbo range.
Turn a portfolio into qualifying income
When the balances will not cover the loan, the depletion path turns them into a monthly figure instead. For an Aurora buyer that means a longer seasoning, haircuts by account type, retirement balances counted at a flat share regardless of age, and a file that is read like any income file once the income is derived.
Keep the investments invested
Borrowing against the strength of a balance sheet rather than spending it is the program’s quiet use. The Aurora buyer keeps the brokerage account, the retirement accounts, and the savings in place; the lender reads the statements and writes the loan. Which path fits depends on whether the credited total reaches the loan and on the occupancy, since a rental is a depletion file.
Buy after a liquidity event, before the next venture
After a sale, the question is documentation rather than qualification. The Aurora loan officer traces the proceeds with the sale paperwork, confirms the accounts they landed in, counts the statements, and chooses the path the total supports. Cash-out proceeds from a refinance never count as assets on either path.
Measure an Aurora loan against the assets before requesting a review.
Enter an Aurora price, the loan wanted, and the balances by account type, then choose whether the owner of the retirement accounts is past the age line, and the calculator shows whether the usable assets cover the loan on the asset qualifier path, the largest loan they would cover inside the leverage ceiling, and the monthly income the same accounts would produce on the asset depletion path beside a thirty-year payment at the benchmark.
Aurora asset coverage estimate
A worked Aurora example to start from: price, loan, cash, brokerage, and retirement balances with the owner under the age line. The results show the asset qualifier verdict first and the depletion reading beneath it.
Editable benchmark: 7.40% as of October 15, 2026 · Freddie Mac 30-year average via FRED®. A conventional market reference, not an asset-based mortgage quote.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $650,000 price above the Aurora median, a loan at seventy percent of the price, a balance sheet split among cash, brokerage, and retirement accounts with the owner under 59½, a thirty-year payment at the current Freddie Mac conforming benchmark, property taxes and insurance estimated for Colorado (U.S. Census Bureau). Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a Loan Estimate, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The credit percentages, the haircuts, and the divisor are wholesale program parameters hydrated from Lendmire’s guideline endpoint; the lender’s own calculation governs, and which accounts count, how they season, and what the age rule allows are settled in underwriting. The rate field carries the weekly Freddie Mac thirty-year conforming benchmark, a market reference and not an asset-based mortgage quote; the terms on an asset-based mortgage are set by the lender at lock. Taxes and insurance are estimates. Nothing here is tax or investment advice.
Same buyer, three ways to document the file.
For an Aurora buyer with assets and an unconventional income picture, the comparison is between covering the loan, depleting the assets, and documenting deposits. The rows set out the strengths of each, and the last row says where each one fits.
Assets that cover the loan, assets as income, or deposits as income.
When the credited balances reach the loan, nothing else about income needs to be shown. The trade is the threshold: the assets must cover the loan itself, not a share of it, and investment property is not on this path. Reserves are not required at or below the refinance leverage, and the file is the statements, the credit report, and the appraisal.
The path for the household whose savings are real but smaller than the loan. It can carry a loan the balances would not cover outright, widens the occupancies to include rentals, and adds a cash-out ceiling; in exchange it brings the ratio back and counts retirement money at a flat haircut.
A different question entirely: not what the household owns but what the business brings in. The bank statement loan suits the Aurora owner with strong deposits and modest savings, where the asset-based paths suit the household with strong savings and modest deposits. See Lendmire’s bank statement loan program.
Assets that cover the loan, assets that become income, deposits that become income: three answers to one question, and the right one for an Aurora household is read off its statements. The comparison on this page is run for real on every file before the lender’s terms are put in writing. Loans above the conforming limit on documented income: Lendmire’s jumbo loan program.
What to prepare for an Aurora scenario review.
Because the assets are the whole case on the asset qualifier path and most of it on the depletion path, the lender reads them carefully. An Aurora buyer who assembles complete statements, with the transfers and the deposits explained, is far less likely to meet the questions that stall a file.
This is a general preparation guide, not a universal checklist. The selected lender may request additional information based on the transaction, the property, the path, the accounts, and the credit picture. Nothing here is legal, tax, or investment advice.
Local details that can change the loan.
A handful of details decide whether an Aurora asset-based file closes as planned, closes on a different path, or needs a larger down payment. The lead items below are the age rule on retirement accounts and the seasoning; the others rotate by file.
Use these checks to keep the Aurora file clean and fundable.
Three things to settle before an Aurora review: which side of the age line the owner of each retirement account stands on, whether every account has seasoned for the path, and whether the usable total reaches the loan or the file belongs on the depletion path instead.
- Confirm the age rule: a birthday close to the age line can change the usable total and the path.
- Count the months: a sale of a business, an inheritance, or a settlement is excused from the depletion wait.
- Explain the deposits: unexplained deposits are set aside, reducing the usable total.
Retirement accounts and the age line
Retirement balances are the most age-sensitive figure in the program. On the asset qualifier path they are credited by the owner’s age; on the asset depletion path they are haircut at a flat share whatever the age. An Aurora household with a large retirement account and a modest brokerage account is read carefully on both, because the usable totals can land on opposite sides of the loan.
Seasoning by path
Seasoning is the detail that most often sets the calendar for an Aurora asset-based purchase. The asset qualifier path is the shorter wait; the depletion path is longer except where the funds came from the sale of a business, an inheritance, or a legal settlement. A loan officer reads the statements against the path’s clock before the contract is signed.
Large and recent deposits
The lender’s concern is that the asset is the borrower’s to keep and not a loan in disguise. An Aurora buyer who moves money between accounts before applying creates a paper trail that has to be reconstructed; the cleaner approach is to leave the accounts as they are and document the history that already exists.
Leverage by purpose
Whether cash can be taken out on the asset qualifier path, and at what leverage, is set by the lender and not published; the depletion path’s cash-out ceiling is published, and cash-out proceeds never count as assets. An Aurora loan officer confirms the cash-out treatment with the lender before a refinance is structured.
Credit and housing history
Score and credit history decide whether a path is open, and the assets decide what is behind it. For an Aurora buyer, that order matters: the credit question is answered before the statements are counted, and a weak score is not repaired by a strong portfolio. The report is pulled once and read against the path chosen.
From an Aurora asset review to keys in hand.
The process is short on paperwork about income and long on paperwork about accounts. An Aurora buyer who understands that order, statements first, then contract, then underwriting, then closing, arrives at each step prepared.
Asset review
The first conversation settles the shape of an Aurora file: which path the balances support, what leverage the purpose allows, how long the accounts have seasoned, and whether the usable total clears the loan with a margin. The review names the path, and the loan officer writes the outcome down before any offer is drafted.
Contract and appraisal
With the path settled, the Aurora offer is written to the leverage the path allows, and the appraisal is ordered once the contract is signed. The appraised value, not the price, sets the leverage on a refinance, and the lower of the two on a purchase.
Underwriting
Underwriting on an asset-based file is about the accounts: every page of every statement, every large deposit explained, every retirement owner’s age confirmed, the seasoning counted. On the depletion path the ratio is calculated with the new payment; on the asset qualifier path the total is confirmed against the loan.
Closing
The final figures arrive in the closing disclosure, the funds to close are wired from a documented account, and the Aurora home records in the buyer’s name. Nothing about the portfolio changes unless the buyer chose to draw the down payment from it.
A brokerage that reads both paths.
Asset-based files reward careful reading. Which accounts count, at what share, on which path, with what seasoning, at what leverage for the purpose: each is a place where a file placed carelessly costs the buyer a larger down payment or a longer wait. Lendmire reads them in order, before the offer, for every Aurora buyer.
Both paths, one set of statements
Before any recommendation, the Aurora statements are run through the asset qualifier path and the asset depletion path on the lender’s own rules: the credit shares and the age line on one side, the haircuts and the divisor on the other. The buyer sees the usable total against the loan and the derived income against the payment, and the path is chosen on the result.
The account rules explained before the offer
Reading the statements early is the whole method. An Aurora loan officer sorts the accounts, confirms the owners’ ages against the age line, counts the months, and names the usable total on each path, in writing, before an offer is drafted. The aim is a file with as little as possible left to be discovered in underwriting.
Licensed, consumer-purpose, in writing
Asset-based mortgages on a principal residence or a second home are consumer loans, placed under Lendmire’s consumer licensing in sixteen states with the disclosures that attach to any consumer mortgage. An Aurora buyer gets the terms in writing from a licensed loan officer, and nothing on this page is an offer or a quote.
Trusted by buyers & families alike.
Aurora asset-based mortgage FAQs
Plain answers to the questions Aurora buyers ask most about asset-based mortgages, in the order they usually come up: what the program is, how each path works, how retirement accounts are counted, and what the credit and leverage rules are.
What is an asset-based mortgage?
A mortgage qualified on assets instead of income, in two forms: the asset qualifier path, where the usable assets equal or exceed the loan, and the asset depletion path, where the assets are divided into a monthly income. An Aurora loan officer reads the statements against both before recommending one.
How does the asset qualifier path work?
The path has three tests: the usable assets must cover the loan, the loan must sit inside the leverage for the purpose, and the credit score must be at or above the published floor. Reserves are not required at or below the refinance leverage. Income is never asked for.
How does the asset depletion path work?
The depletion path can carry a loan the balances would not cover outright, but it brings the ratio back. When the asset income stands alone, a minimum pool of qualified assets applies; when it supplements documented earnings, the minimum is waived and the combined ratio may run to forty-five percent. An Aurora loan officer runs both versions where earnings exist.
How are 401(k) and IRA balances counted, and why does 59½ matter?
Retirement money counts on both paths, and it counts most generously on the asset qualifier path for an owner past the age line. For an Aurora file built mostly on retirement balances, the owner’s birthday can decide whether the assets cover the loan, and a loan officer checks the date first.
What credit score does an asset-based mortgage need?
The asset qualifier path publishes a credit floor, shown in the snapshot above. The asset depletion path reads the score against the documentation suite’s matrix, where the floor rises with the leverage and the loan amount. On the depletion path the housing history is reviewed as well, and a prior housing event waits out the program’s seasoning; the qualifier path publishes the floor alone.
Do I need to show any income at all?
No tax returns, no pay stubs, no bank statement income calculation on the asset qualifier path. The file is the statements for the qualifying accounts, the credit report, and the appraisal. The depletion path adds a ratio test using the income the assets produce.
Can I take cash out?
Yes on the depletion path, at its own ceiling; per the lender on the asset qualifier path. In both cases the cash taken out is not an asset the file can count, and the balances are read as they stand before the refinance.
How much can I borrow against the price or the value?
Leverage is capped by path, purpose, and occupancy. The snapshot’s leverage table shows every row. For an Aurora buyer the practical reading is the down payment: at least the balance of the price above the purchase ceiling, and more when the assets would not otherwise cover the loan.
What sets the timeline on an asset-based mortgage?
On any mortgage the appraisal and the title are the long poles, and an asset-based file adds the account review while removing the income review. An Aurora buyer plans the seasoning ahead of the offer; the program promises no timeline.
Can I buy a second home or a rental on assets?
The program reaches both, and the distinction matters: a second home is an owner-occupied occupancy with the full purchase leverage, a rental is an investment occupancy with a lower one and a depletion-only path. The Aurora file is structured around that answer from the start.
An Aurora mortgage sized to the balance sheet, not the pay stub.
Begin with an asset review: the statements, the loan, the occupancy, the purpose. A Lendmire loan officer sorts the accounts, runs both paths, and puts the written terms for the one that fits in front of you.
This guide covers Aurora — for the statewide guidelines, markets, and scenarios, see Asset-Based Mortgage in Colorado, part of Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage program.
Nearby markets in Colorado: Denver · Centennial · Commerce City · Parker · Thornton · Lakewood · Westminster · Castle Rock
Related programs: Bank Statement Loans · Jumbo Loans · Super Jumbo Bank Statement Loans