The Quick Read: Usually about 25% down on a purchase, because short-term-rental DSCR programs in the wholesale network Lendmire works with top out at 75% loan-to-value on the strongest files. Refinances and cash-outs on short-term-rental property step down to around 70%. The down payment is whatever equity the leverage cap leaves for you to bring, and a thin rent-to-payment ratio can push it higher.
- Purchase: short-term-rental programs typically cap at 75% LTV, which means 25% down at best.
- Refinance and cash-out: around 70% LTV on short-term-rental collateral, so the equity cushion is larger.
- Credit and history: expect a 640+ score and about 12 months of hosting history on most short-term-rental files.
- Coverage: the rent-to-payment test is 1.00 on both purchases and refinances, and a weak ratio can force a smaller loan.
- Not part of the number: reserves, closing costs and furnishing money sit on top of the down payment, subject to lender guidelines.
There is no standalone Airbnb loan product. Investors use that phrase for a DSCR loan on a property rented short-term. The rest of this piece shows how the number gets built and where it moves.
Short-Term Rental Calculator
Run the STR numbers in your market
Rate source: Freddie Mac 30-yr average via FRED® — Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis · effective Oct 15, 2026
Prefilled with starting assumptions — enter your nightly rate, occupancy, taxes, and insurance for a more accurate picture.
Short-term rental income is documented with a 12-month history or a market data report. Program parameters update from Lendmire’s centralized guideline source.
As of Oct 15, 2026 · General Freddie Mac market benchmark, not a Lendmire loan offer. Nightly rate, occupancy, taxes, and insurance are editable estimates. Qualifying income for short-term rentals varies by program — some use appraisal market rent, others use documented STR history or projections — and is confirmed in underwriting. Not a Loan Estimate, approval, or commitment to lend. Program availability and eligibility are subject to lender guidelines, credit approval, property review, and underwriting.
There Is No Product Called an “Airbnb Loan”
An Airbnb loan is a DSCR investor loan on a short-term rental. The platform doesn’t set the down payment, and no agency does. Each program in the wholesale network sets a maximum LTV, and your down payment is 100% minus that cap.
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 loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Personal income documentation is not the centerpiece of the file.
Zero-down doesn’t exist here. Short-term-rental programs reward equity. The lender is lending against a property whose income swings with seasons and bookings, so it wants more of your money in the deal than it would on a long-term lease.
For the full program overview, see Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide.
How the Down Payment Is Built
The down payment is the complement of leverage. A 75% LTV purchase means 25% down. A 70% LTV means 30% down. Every five points of LTV moves your cash requirement by five points of the price. Leverage, reserves, and pricing vary by lender and program; the final terms follow the full file review.
That arithmetic is the whole mechanical story. What changes it is which cap applies to your file:
1. Transaction type. Purchase caps run higher than refinance and cash-out caps.
2. Property use. Short-term-rental collateral sits at a lower ceiling than a standard long-term rental.
3. Credit score. Higher scores open higher leverage tiers. Lower scores pull the cap down or narrow the program list.
4. Coverage ratio. Weak rent coverage can reduce the loan amount the lender will approve, whatever the cap says.
5. Loan size. Standard programs run up to $3,000,000, and larger balances can bring tighter terms and heavier reserves.
Market surveys report short-term-rental financing broadly at 15–25% down across loan types, per Rabbu’s short-term rental financing guide. That range blends second-home loans, conventional products and investor loans. For DSCR files in the wholesale network, the purchase figure on short-term-rental property is up to 75% LTV, so 25% down on the strongest files. Treat the low end of the market range as belonging to other products. Terms vary by lender guidelines, property type, leverage, credit profile, and full file review.
Short-Term vs. Standard Rental Leverage
Short-term-rental collateral gets less leverage than a standard rental on the same price. The table compares typical network ceilings. Figures are guideline ranges from select lenders, not commitments, and every file is underwritten individually.
| Path | Typical LTV ceiling | Credit expectation |
|---|---|---|
| STR purchase | Up to 75% | 640+ |
| STR refinance | Around 70% | 640+ |
| STR cash-out | Up to 70% | 640+ |
| Standard rental purchase | 75%–80% | Around 660 on most programs |
| Standard rental, high leverage | Up to 85% | About 700+ |
| Standard rental cash-out | Around 75% | Around 660 on most programs |
Read the table by row. The 85% tier belongs to standard long-term rentals at roughly a 700+ score. It does not apply to short-term rentals. A 70% cash-out ceiling applies to short-term-rental collateral, while about 75% applies to standard rentals. Exact terms depend on the lender’s guidelines, property type, leverage, and a full review of the borrower’s file.
A 620 floor exists in parts of the network, but most programs want around 660, and the strongest leverage needs 700+. Pricing and available terms vary by lender, borrower profile, property type, and full underwriting review.
Why the Coverage Ratio Can Raise Your Down Payment
DSCR divides rent used for lender review by the full monthly obligation: principal, interest, taxes, insurance and any HOA dues. A bigger loan means a bigger obligation, so a lower ratio. When the ratio comes in thin, the usual fix is a smaller loan. A smaller loan means more cash down.
Here is how that plays out. Say an investor targets a purchase at the 75% cap, and the coverage lands just under 1.00. The lender can sit the loan at the cap and decline, ask for a stronger ratio, or size the loan down until the ratio clears. The third path raises the down payment above 25%. The cap is a ceiling. It is not an entitlement.
On short-term-rental purchases and refinances the floor is 1.00 on each. Many select programs start at 1.00. A separate select-lender path takes coverage below 1.00 with leverage and terms adjusted, which in practice means more cash down. A no-ratio structure is available only through select lenders, generally for borrowers who already own a primary residence.
A larger down payment lowers the monthly obligation and can lift the ratio. It never erases the credit floor, reserve rules or property eligibility. The strongest files clear two tests: enough equity and enough rental coverage.
One more caution. Clearing 1.00 is not the same as positive cash flow. DSCR compares rent to the payment only. Repairs, vacancy, management, utilities and capex sit outside the calculation. Short-term rentals carry more of those costs than most leases do.
Why Short-Term Files Get Extra Scrutiny
Short-term income is variable, so lenders ask for more proof of it. Many DSCR lenders won’t touch short-term rentals at all and restrict to long-term leases. Those that will lend usually fall into one of three camps:
- Lenders that qualify the property as a long-term rental using market rent.
- Lenders that require about 12 months of hosting history and trailing platform statements.
- Lenders that accept a projection or an appraiser’s short-term-rental analysis on a purchase with no history.
The wholesale network expects about 12 months of hosting experience on most short-term-rental files. A first-time host buying a first short-term rental should expect to find the right program, not just the right price.
Appraisal handling is a friction point too. Form 1007 is the single-family rent schedule, and Form 1025 is the small-multifamily income report. One valuation vendor, Class Valuation, argues that Form 1007 is built for long-term market rent and can’t properly support short-term income. Whatever your view, the practical point is that the appraisal product has to match the income method. If the lender wants a short-term-rental analysis and the appraisal shows a long-term rent schedule, the file stalls.
Some programs apply a haircut to projected revenue. That is program-specific, so ask before you build a purchase around a projection.
What Else You Need Besides the Down Payment
Plan for four buckets of cash, not one.
1. Down payment. The complement of the LTV cap, per the table above.
2. Closing costs. Lender, title and appraisal charges. They are separate from the down payment and are not financed into a purchase on most files.
3. Reserves. These vary by lender, leverage, loan size and transaction type. Around 6 months of PITIA is common. Conservative rate-and-term files at modest leverage under $1,500,000 can see reserves waived. Loans above that size typically step up to about 9 months. Reserves are verified with bank statements, and they are not part of the down payment.
4. Startup costs. Furniture, supplies, platform setup and early repairs. A lender doesn’t finance these in the loan, but a half-furnished unit produces a weak first year of statements.
Misses on this list are what derail purchases. Investors budget for the down payment and then discover the reserve requirement or the opening costs after contract. Build the full number first, then back into the price you can afford. Every figure here varies by lender and program — guidelines, property type, leverage, and credit profile all apply.
Tax treatment can depend on how the funds are used and how the property is held; investors should keep clear records and speak with a qualified tax professional before relying on any deduction.
Can You Borrow the Down Payment?
It depends on the program. Whether borrowed funds count toward the down payment is a lender-level decision, and the answer changes by program, leverage and file. Lenders trace the source of funds with bank statements. A transfer from a home-equity line shows up as new debt, and some programs count that debt against you while others restrict borrowed funds altogether.
Two practical steps help. Ask the broker whether the target program allows borrowed down payments before you open the line. And keep the paper trail clean: draw, transfer, deposit, with statements for each leg.
For a deeper look at the home-equity route, see Lendmire’s piece How Much Second-Home Price a HELOC Down Payment Supports After DTI. Investors recycling equity from an existing rental can read Lendmire’s guide How to Pull Equity From a Paid-Off STR to Fund the Next Airbnb Down Payment.
Investment-property HELOC lines cap at $500,000 total. There is no larger tier for investment properties.
Second-Home and House-Hack Routes (Read the Fine Print)
A second-home loan can look cheaper on the down payment line. The catch is the use restrictions. Rabbu describes second-home occupancy limits of roughly 14 days of personal use and a 180-day rental cap, and it warns that misusing the classification can trigger default. Second-home loans are also generally limited to single-family homes and to properties a reasonable distance from your primary residence.
If you plan to run the property as a full-time Airbnb, that is an investment property. Classifying it as a second home to save on down payment is the move that creates risk, not savings.
House-hacking is a separate path. Buying a small multi-unit property and living in one unit can qualify for owner-occupied terms with a smaller down payment. It is not a DSCR scenario, because the occupancy condition drives the loan. Once you move out, a pure rental typically moves to a DSCR structure, and the DSCR leverage rules above apply.
Ways Investors Raise Their Own Cash Requirement
Most added down payment comes from avoidable file problems, not from the cap itself.
- Building on the projection. Underwriting treats projected income conservatively, and the ratio comes in lower than the investor modeled.
- Skipping the program check. The investor finds a property and then learns the lender won’t touch short-term rentals.
- Mismatched appraisal. The appraisal supports long-term rent while the program wants a short-term analysis.
- Ignoring loan size. A low-priced property can fall below a program’s minimum, so even a full down payment doesn’t help. Smaller balances route through select lenders in the network.
- Forgetting ineligible property types. Manufactured homes (single- and double-wide), log homes and barndominiums are not offered in these DSCR programs.
- Assuming a stale quote. Taxes and insurance sit inside the payment, so a new quote that lands during review can lower the ratio and force a smaller loan.
Which Path Fits Your Situation?
| If you are… | Look at | Down payment drivers |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a short-term rental with 12+ months of hosting history | STR DSCR purchase | 75% LTV cap, ratio, 640+ score |
| Buying a first rental with no host history | Program that accepts projections, or a long-term-rent qualification | Tighter ratio, possibly less leverage |
| Owning a paid-off short-term rental and buying another | STR cash-out refinance | 70% LTV cap on STR collateral |
| Buying a standard long-term rental | Standard DSCR purchase | 75%–80%, up to 85% at about 700+ |
| Living in one unit of a 2–4 unit property | Owner-occupied loan, then DSCR later | Occupancy condition |
A question worth asking before you commit: is the property’s best use short-term or long-term? Long-term qualification can carry higher leverage. The investor who can accept a standard lease on a marginal short-term property may bring less cash. The investor who wants the nightly income brings more and takes on the extra documentation.
That is a real trade-off. Higher leverage lowers the cash you put in and raises the monthly obligation. Lower leverage costs more upfront and improves the ratio. Neither is right in the abstract. Run the coverage at both leverage levels before you pick.
Key Terms Defined
- Down payment: the part of the price you pay in cash, equal to 100% minus the loan-to-value ratio.
- LTV (loan-to-value): the loan amount as a percentage of the property’s price or appraised value, whichever the program uses.
- DSCR (debt service coverage ratio): monthly rent used for lender review divided by the full monthly obligation of principal, interest, taxes, insurance and HOA dues.
- PITIA: principal, interest, taxes, insurance and association dues, the full monthly obligation used in the ratio.
- Reserves: liquid funds after closing, shown with bank statements, usually measured in months of PITIA.
- Hosting history: the record of past short-term-rental bookings and income, usually shown through platform statements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get an Airbnb loan with no money down?
No, not on DSCR financing. Short-term-rental programs in the network cap purchase leverage at 75% LTV on the strongest files, so at least 25% comes from you. Other products may advertise lower down payments, but they come with occupancy or use rules that don’t fit a full-time rental. Final terms depend on lender guidelines, property type, leverage, and the borrower’s complete credit picture.
Does short-term rental income lower my down payment?
Not directly. Strong income improves the coverage ratio, which keeps the loan at the leverage cap instead of shrinking it. It does not lift the cap itself. The cap is set by program, credit score and transaction type.
Can I buy an Airbnb through an LLC?
Often yes. Many files close in an LLC, subject to lender program eligibility. Expect to provide entity documents, and know that the leverage cap and credit review still apply to the borrower and guarantor.
Do reserves count toward the down payment?
No. Reserves are verified funds you hold after closing, commonly around 6 months of PITIA, and they vary by lender, leverage, loan size and transaction type. The down payment and reserves are separate tests, and your statements have to show both.
Is the down payment different on a refinance?
Yes. The question becomes how much equity you keep. On short-term-rental collateral, refinance and cash-out run around 70% LTV, so you keep roughly 30% equity. Standard rentals on a cash-out go to about 75%, and cash-out files usually expect seasoning of about 6 months.
Next Step
If you are buying or refinancing a rental property and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire, a DSCR-focused mortgage broker arranging investor loans across 41 markets (40 states plus Washington, D.C.), can help you compare DSCR loan options based on the property income, credit profile, leverage and investor goals. Programs change, every file is underwritten individually, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
About Lendmire
Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage brokerage focused on DSCR investor financing, helping arrange programs through wholesale and investor-lending channels in 41 markets, including Washington, D.C. DSCR loans are evaluated by the lender on property cash flow rather than personal income, subject to lender guidelines, supporting LLC closings and accommodating investors with four or more financed properties. Scotsman Guide Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. Rabbu – Short-Term Rental Financing Guide
2. Class Valuation – Appraisal Form 1007 and Short-Term Rentals
This article is part of Lendmire’s short-term rental loan program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: 30-Year Non-QM DSCR Loan vs. a Bank DSCR With a Balloon · How to Get a DSCR Loan With No Cash Reserves Left After the Down Payment · How to Fix a Low 1007 Rent on a DSCR Loan
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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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.