The Quick Read: Yes, usually, through a non-QM asset-based mortgage on a personal-use second home: the lender reviews your file on documented balances instead of pay stubs or traditional personal-income documentation, either by requiring your eligible assets to cover the whole loan or by converting them into monthly qualifying income, all subject to underwriting. Non-QM simply means a loan that sits outside the standard agency box. The file is still fully underwritten.
- Two paths exist. On the asset qualifier path, your usable assets must equal or exceed the entire loan. On the asset depletion path, usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying income.
- Leverage differs by path. The qualifier path allows up to 80% loan-to-value on a purchase. The depletion path allows up to 80% on a second-home purchase, subject to underwriting.
- You document assets, not income. Expect no traditional personal-income documentation, pay stubs or employment verification, but you will supply account statements.
- It must be a personal-use home. A pure rental belongs on a different loan.
- Indiana changes nothing in the program. The figures are the same in every state where Lendmire is licensed for consumer lending, and Indiana is one of them.
What “Buying on Assets” Actually Means
Buying on assets means your savings and investments, not your paycheck, prove you can repay the loan. You do not sell anything. You do not pledge the accounts. The money stays where it is, and the lender reviews statements to confirm it exists and has been yours long enough.
It does not mean skipping underwriting. Credit, housing payment history, the property and the appraisal are all reviewed. The only thing that changes is how repayment ability gets shown.
The reader who benefits most has big balances and small documented income. Think of a retiree living off a portfolio, someone who just sold a business, an heir, or an early-retired professional. A traditional lender looks at that household and sees almost no income. An asset-based lender sees a deep balance sheet.
Lendmire is a broker, not a lender. It places these files with select lenders in its network through its asset-based mortgage programs. Across that network, the same two structures show up again and again.
The Two Paths, Side by Side
You qualify on one path at a time. Never blend them. The figures below are ceilings and floors through select programs, not offers, and every file is underwritten individually.
| Factor | Asset qualifier path | Asset depletion path |
|---|---|---|
| Core test | Usable assets ≥ whole loan | Assets ÷ 60 months = income |
| Income documented | None | Derived income, run through DTI |
| Purchase leverage, second home | Up to 80% | Up to 80% |
| Refinance leverage, second home | Up to 75% | 80% rate-and-term, 60% cash-out |
| Loan size | Up to $4,000,000 | $125,000 to $3,500,000 |
| Credit | 600 minimum | The lender’s matrix |
| Seasoning | 60 days, two months of statements | Statements 120+ days old, plus one within 45 days |
DTI means debt-to-income: your monthly debts as a share of qualifying income. On the qualifier path no income is documented at all, so the lender’s repayment review rests on the assets themselves. On the depletion path, the converted income has to carry the full housing payment and your other debts.
A third option exists for people who do have some income. On the depletion path, asset-derived income can supplement documented income up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio. When it supplements, the minimum-assets rule is waived.
How the Math Works
These examples are illustrative only. The lender’s own calculation governs.
Qualifier path. Say the loan is $800,000. You hold $330,000 in brokerage accounts, which count at 100%. You hold $300,000 in a 401(k) while under age 59½, which counts at 90%, or $270,000. You hold $200,000 in savings at 100%. Usable assets total $800,000, which equals the loan, so the file can qualify on assets alone, subject to underwriting.
Depletion path. Say you hold $1,500,000 in securities, which count at 80%, or $1,200,000. You also hold $300,000 in cash at 100%. Usable assets are $1,500,000. Divided by 60 months, that is $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That income then has to carry the housing payment and your other debts through the DTI test.
Notice the difference in what “enough” means. The qualifier path asks whether you could pay off the loan from your accounts. The depletion path asks whether your accounts, spread over five years, produce enough income to carry the payment.
Which Path Fits You?
The qualifier path fits when your assets are large relative to the loan. A buyer putting a lot down on a modest second home often lands here. There is no income math to pass, and reserves are not required at or below 75% loan-to-value. Above that, the lender sets them.
The depletion path fits when your assets are big but not big enough to cover the entire loan. It also fits when you want the higher refinance flexibility on a second home. It carries its own minimums: qualified assets of at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance. When depletion is your only income source, you need at least $250,000 liquid.
In the wholesale network, the strictest overlays sit on the depletion path, and the lender’s credit matrix tightens as loan size grows. The honest answer to which path fits is that it depends on your balance sheet, your loan size and how you want to hold the accounts. A broker running both against your statements settles it.
Which Assets Count, and at What Value
Each path counts your accounts differently. This is the part borrowers most often get wrong.
| Asset type | Qualifier path | Depletion path |
|---|---|---|
| Brokerage / securities | 100% | 80% |
| Cash, savings, money market | 100% | 100% (cash accounts) |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% | 100% |
| Retirement (401(k), IRA) | 90% under 59½, 100% after | 70% at any age |
| Private stock | Not published | 75% |
| Real-estate equity | Not published | 60% |
Some things do not count on the depletion path at all: 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, collectibles and borrowed or pledged funds are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is converting them to a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account. The lender then reviews where the money came from. Do not assume any of them count at a percentage.
Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets on the depletion path. Whether a down payment counts depends on the file, because the same balances serve as qualifying assets, down payment and cushion. The usable pool after the deal’s costs is what actually supports the loan.
Second Home, Primary Home or Rental: What Changes
This section is where the Indiana question gets practical. A second home is a personal-use property. You live there part of the year, such as weekends, summers or winters. You do not rent it to a tenant as an investment.
That label drives everything. Asset-based programs are consumer mortgages for a principal residence or second home. Because the loan is a consumer mortgage, TRID disclosures apply. Rental income generally cannot be used to qualify, because the file is underwritten as personal use.
A DSCR loan is the wrong tool here. 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.
The federal line is concrete. Regulation Z’s commentary on business-purpose credit treats credit for a non-owner-occupied rental as business purpose. The same commentary says a property you expect to occupy more than 14 days in the coming year cannot be treated as non-owner-occupied. Its example is a beach house used for a month each summer and rented the rest of the year.
That is the main cliff. A lake cottage you use for a month a year is a second home, not a rental. Calling it an investment to reach a different loan is a misrepresentation.
Two more traps are worth knowing:
- An LLC does not fix occupancy. Occupancy turns on actual use and intent, not on how title is held, according to Compliance Alliance. A personal-use second home is usually held in your own name.
- House-hacking changes the category. If you live in one unit of a multi-unit building, the loan is owner-occupied, and the rules for owner-occupied rentals apply.
What about a pure rental? Most investors use a DSCR or bank-statement loan for that. The depletion path does reach investment property, but at lower leverage: up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out. The qualifier path covers only a principal residence or second home.
Why a Lender Can Do This at All
A fair question is whether skipping income documents is even allowed. It is. Federal ability-to-repay rules require a lender to consider and verify the income or assets it relies on. The CFPB’s General QM final rule says creditors must consider income or assets other than the value of the dwelling, and must consider DTI or residual income.
So the rule does not say “show a paycheck.” It says “verify whatever you rely on.” Assets are a valid thing to rely on. Verification is the reason statements and seasoning are non-negotiable.
Seasoning and Sourcing: Where Files Stall
Seasoning is the period your money must sit in an account before the lender trusts it. On the qualifier path it is 60 days, with two months of statements for each qualifying account. On the depletion path, 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 depletion-path seasoning. The lender still reviews the source.
Practical advice from the network: do not shuffle money in the weeks before you apply. Large transfers between accounts invite questions, and every question needs paper. Keep the accounts quiet and the statements clean.
- Statements for every qualifying account, in full, all pages.
- Documentation of the source for any recent large deposit.
- Government ID and credit authorization.
- The purchase contract and, later, the appraisal.
- A written occupancy declaration for the second home.
Credit and Other Underwriting
Assets do not replace credit. The qualifier path has a 600 minimum score. The depletion path follows the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix. A first-time investor on the depletion path needs a 700.
Housing history is typically 0x30x12, meaning no 30-day lates in the last twelve months. A single late is considered case by case. Multiple bankruptcies are not eligible, and a housing event such as a foreclosure needs four years of seasoning on the depletion path.
Nothing here is a promise of approval. These are typical ranges through select programs, subject to underwriting and lender guidelines.
Compared With the Alternatives
| Option | How you qualify | Tradeoff |
|---|---|---|
| Asset-based mortgage | Documented assets | Statements and seasoning required |
| Bank statement loan | Deposits show income | Needs income history in deposits |
| Income-based agency loan | Pay stubs, returns | Hard when taxable income is low |
| Paying cash | Your balance | Drains liquidity |
| HELOC on first home | Equity and income | Adds a lien to your primary home |
An asset-based loan lets you keep your accounts invested. Paying cash for the second home takes the money out of your portfolio. Selling assets to fund a purchase may create a taxable event; tax treatment varies, so consult a qualified professional.
The bank-statement route is for borrowers who document income with deposits, which suits many self-employed owners. If your deposits are thin because your wealth sits in investments, the asset-based route usually fits better.
Common Mistakes
- Counting rent. On a second home, rental income generally cannot be used to qualify.
- Counting ineligible accounts. Cash on hand and unvested stock units do not count on the depletion path.
- Forgetting the pool does triple duty. The same balances carry the down payment, closing costs and your qualifying figure.
- Confusing “no income documents” with “no documents.” You still document every account.
- Mixing the paths. A file is qualified on one path, never a hybrid of both tables.
- Planning to move in later and rent now. Occupancy is judged by intent and actual use. Misstating it is a serious problem, not a loophole.
What Indiana Changes
Very little in the program itself. The leverage caps, asset credit, seasoning and credit floors are the same for an Indiana borrower as for a borrower elsewhere in the 16 states where Lendmire arranges consumer mortgages.
No Indiana statute or regulator rule changes how assets are counted for this kind of loan. State-level items such as local prices and carrying costs affect your budget, not the program parameters. Check them against your own plan.
Key Terms Defined
Non-QM: a mortgage that does not follow standard agency rules, usually because it documents repayment ability in a different way.
Asset qualifier path: a structure where your eligible assets must equal or exceed the whole loan and no income is documented.
Asset depletion path: a structure that divides usable assets by 60 months to create monthly qualifying income.
Seasoning: the time funds must sit in an account before a lender counts them.
DTI (debt-to-income): your monthly debts divided by your qualifying monthly income.
Second home: a property you use personally for part of the year that is not rented out as an investment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to sell my investments to buy a second home on assets?
No. Nothing is sold or pledged. The accounts stay yours, and the lender reviews statements to confirm balances and seasoning.
Can rent from the second home help me qualify?
Generally no. A second home is underwritten as personal use, so rental income is not counted. If the property is a true rental with no personal use, a business-purpose loan fits better.
Do retirement accounts count?
Yes, at a discount. 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.
How large a loan can I get?
Through select programs, up to $4,000,000 on the qualifier path and $125,000 to $3,500,000 on the depletion path. Actual approval depends on underwriting, credit, the property and the lender’s review.
Is this the same as a no-doc loan?
No. You skip traditional personal-income documentation, pay stubs and employment verification, but the assets are documented with statements and every file is fully underwritten.
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. Program details change, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
An Indiana second home is a personal-use purchase first, so the occupancy label you choose at the start decides which loan you can use.
Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage in Indiana page presents the program for Indiana borrowers.
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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References
1. CFPB, Regulation Z §1026.3 and commentary
2. Compliance Alliance, Regulation Z and investment properties
3. CFPB, General QM 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: Can You Relocate to Texas and Buy a Home on Assets Before You Have Local Income? · How Montana Business Owners Buy a Home on Savings Instead of Tax Returns · Can You Buy a Second Home in California on Assets Instead of Income?
Guides: Asset-Based Mortgage in Indiana
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Important disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a licensed mortgage brokerage. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or financial advisor. All loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not constitute a commitment to lend. Rates, terms, and program guidelines are subject to change without notice and vary by borrower profile, property type, and state. Information in this article is general in nature and is not financial, legal, or tax advice. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.