Current DSCR HELOC guidelines, updated from one source.
Treat these as program parameters, not an offer: the maximum combined loan-to-value, the minimum credit score, the line sizes, and the draw and repayment periods on a rental line qualified by its rent, all drawn from one guideline source this page keeps current.
Of the rental’s value, first mortgage included
Behind a first mortgage the strongest tier reaches 70% of value across all liens combined; a first-lien line on a rental with no mortgage reaches 75% at the top tier and runs to $1,000,000 at the reduced ceiling on the largest lines.
Credit score for a second-lien line
A 720 score opens the second-lien program; the first-lien tiers start at 700 and step up from there. At 700 and above the program’s tradeline-depth rules fall away entirely, on either lien position.
Automated valuation on lines to $400,000
Lines run from $50,000 to $500,000 on a second lien and to $1,000,000 on a first lien; an automated valuation with an inspection covers lines to $400,000 in either position, and every larger line takes a full interior appraisal.
Interest-only, then 25 years of repayment
A 5-year interest-only draw period and a 25-year repayment period make up the 30-year line. The rent must cover the qualifying payment at 1.10 or better, measured on the whole line at a stressed rate.
| Credit profile | Max combined LTV | Max line | Lien position · valuation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 740+ | 70% | $500,000 | Second lien behind the first mortgage · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
| 720+ | 70% | $500,000 | Second lien behind the first mortgage · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
| 740+ | 75% | $500,000 | First lien on a paid-off rental · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
| 720+ | 70% | $500,000 | First lien on a paid-off rental · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
| 720+ | 65% | $750,000 | First lien on a paid-off rental · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
| 720+ | 65% | $1,000,000 | First lien on a paid-off rental · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
| 700+ | 70% | $500,000 | First lien on a paid-off rental · Automated valuation + inspection to $400,000, full interior appraisal above |
The 70% combined loan-to-value ceiling behind a first mortgage requires a 720 credit profile. A first-lien line on a paid-off rental starts at a 700 profile, reaches 75% loan-to-value at the top tier, and runs to $1,000,000 at 65% on lines above $500,000. The rent must cover the qualifying payment at 1.10 or better.
Current DSCR HELOC snapshot · updated October 29, 2026 · seven tier rows across both lien positions · variable rate through the draw and repayment periods · at least 80% of the line (and $50,000) drawn at closing · later draws from $5,000 · first or second lien position · vesting in the owner’s LLC allowed · no reserves required · 6 months of ownership before the line.
The figures on this page describe a wholesale program, not an offer of credit: they can change without notice, and the lender’s underwriting of the rental, its rent, the owner’s credit, the entity, and the title governs every file. The wholesale lender is not named here, no rate or payment is stated here, and a licensed loan officer discloses the terms, the rate, and the costs in writing. Lendmire, LLC, NMLS #2371349, brokers the line and never lends it, under consumer licences in sixteen states. Nothing here is legal or tax advice. Equal Housing Opportunity.
What a DSCR HELOC is — and how the rent sizes the line.
The mechanics are the same on every Union City file: the lender measures the rental’s value, subtracts the balance already secured by it, applies the ceiling for the credit tier and lien position, caps the result at the program maximum, and checks that the rent covers the qualifying payment. Four cards below walk through the parts.
For the program overview, see Lendmire’s DSCR HELOC program, or the statewide guide at DSCR HELOC in California.
A line on the rental, behind the mortgage you keep
Unlike a closed-end loan, the line stays open through the draw period: fund a Union City rehab this year and a down payment next year, pay interest only on the drawn balance, and repay over the years after the draw period ends. The first mortgage, and its rate, never move.
The rent qualifies the line, not your tax returns
The rent is documented, which is why the line is never an undocumented one: the lease, three months of receipts when the lease runs above market, and the appraiser’s rent schedule. On a two-to-four-unit property one vacant unit is allowed; a single-family rental needs a lease in place.
Your credit tier sets the ceiling and the cap
Leverage steps with the tier and with the lien position. The same Union City rental supports one line behind a first mortgage and a larger one when it is paid off, because the first-lien tiers read the property alone; the ladder on this page shows both columns.
Valuation, the lease, the LLC, and closing
Title can stay in the LLC that holds the Union City rental, which is the point for many landlords: no deed back to a personal name before closing, no deed back into the entity after. A title holder who is not a borrower signs an acknowledgment, and the borrowers on the line need not be the borrowers on the first mortgage.
Two things set the line: how much room is under the ceiling for your tier and position, and how large a line the rent will carry. The calculator sizes the first from the value, the balance, and the tier; the lender settles the second from the lease and the qualifying payment.
Union City’s rental equity in figures — and how a line fits it.
A rental line is sized against a value, and Union City’s values are the context: the median says where the typical equity position sits, and the owner share says how deep the pool of long-held properties runs. Census figures below, program figures above.
Citywide figures provide general market context, not an appraisal or an income calculation. A high median value with a large share of owners usually means deep equity and larger lines; a market of recent purchases means thinner equity and smaller lines at the same tier. Neither changes the ceiling or the cap; they change how much of the ceiling a given rental can reach.
Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 5-Year (2024) housing and population estimates, including tenure, home values, gross rents, and household income.
Distinct Union City rental neighborhoods, distinct equity pictures.
Across Union City, the rental stock ranges from condominiums to small multi-unit buildings, and the equity picture ranges with it. The submarkets below show where the ceiling, the cap, and the rent test tend to bind.
High values and the line maximum
High-value Union City rentals are cap files. The line stops at the maximum for the tier and lien position, the full appraisal is ordered on the larger lines, and the rent test is rarely the limit. About 35% of Union City’s households rent — roughly 7,504 renter households on the latest Census estimate.
Newer subdivisions on the bypass
The newer Union City subdivisions hold recent purchases with high leverage and running seasoning clocks; the program reads them later, when the balance has fallen and the seasoning window has closed. The median owner-occupied home value in Union City runs near $1,104,900 on the latest Census estimate.
In-town rentals with long tenures
A Union City rental held for decades in town is usually a first-lien file or a second lien with a wide gap; the scenario review spends its time on the rent schedule and the lease. Roughly 13,736 Union City households own their homes on the latest Census estimate — 65% of all households, the pool a rental equity line is written for.
Multi-unit conversions
Older Union City houses converted to two or more units are eligible as two-to-four-unit rentals when the conversion is permitted and the units are leased; one vacant unit is allowed, and the leases carry the rent test. Union City is home to about 67K people.
Rural-edge and acreage properties
A Union City rental on acreage is eligible inside ten acres on a residential designation and ineligible beyond them; the appraiser’s designation, not the owner’s description, decides. On a one-unit rental at Union City’s median home value, the second-lien ceiling puts total liens near $773,430 — the line is what remains after the first mortgage balance, and the rent must cover the qualifying payment; a paid-off rental on a first-lien line sits above the second-lien ceiling.
Mixed-use and commercial streets
Mixed-use property in Union City is the clearest exclusion on the program: commercial use removes it entirely. A purely residential building on a commercial street is read on its own use and its own zoning. Median household income in Union City sits near $133,715 on the latest Census estimate.
These sketches describe typical Union City rentals, not yours. The program tables do not vary by neighborhood; the value, the balance, the lease, and the credit tier on a specific property decide the line, and the valuation settles the value.
Four ways Union City landlords put a rental equity line to work.
Why a line rather than a refinance? Because most Union City investors need money in pieces and want to keep the mortgage they have. The four uses below are the ones the program sees most, and each one works with a closing draw and a line that stays open.
Fund the next purchase without refinancing
Investors who keep a low first-mortgage rate have no interest in replacing it; a DSCR HELOC lets a Union City owner draw the next down payment from equity instead. The line is qualified on the rent of the property that secures it, not on the new purchase.
Bridge a sale, a tax bill, or a buyout
A line bridges the gaps a portfolio produces: a partner’s buyout, a property-tax bill that lands before a sale closes, a deposit due before another rental refinances. A Union City owner draws, closes the gap, and repays when the money arrives.
Finish a value-add before the permanent loan
Where a hard-money loan would have carried the work, a line on a seasoned rental can carry it instead, drawn as the work bills and repaid when the improved property refinances. The first mortgage on the seasoned rental is untouched.
Rehab and repairs staged over months
Rehab is a classic use of a line: the budget is uncertain until the walls are open, and a revolving line absorbs the uncertainty better than a fixed lump sum. Interest accrues only on what is drawn during the draw period.
Estimate your Union City rental’s available credit line before requesting a quote.
Use the calculator to see what the Union City rental’s equity supports before you request a quote. Every input is editable, the tables update from Lendmire’s guideline source on the live page, and nothing here states a rate or a payment: the line is sized here and priced in writing by a licensed loan officer.
Union City rental available-equity calculator
An equity sizer for a Union City rental: the room under the ceiling for your tier and position, capped at the program maximum. No rate, no payment.
Illustrative starting assumptions: a $1,105,000 rental value near Union City’s median owner-occupied home value and a $495,000 modeled remaining first-mortgage balance (U.S. Census Bureau). Combined loan-to-value ceilings and line caps follow the current program tables for the lien position and credit tier selected and update from Lendmire’s centralized guideline source on the live page. The rent test is the lender’s: the gross rent must cover the qualifying payment on the whole line at the program’s coverage minimum. Every field is editable.
Illustrative estimate only — not a credit decision, approval, quote, or commitment to lend. The actual line amount, combined loan-to-value, and eligibility depend on the automated valuation or appraisal, the lease and the rent, the credit profile, the vesting, documentation, and full underwriting by the selected wholesale lender; the rate, the payment, and any costs are provided in writing by a licensed loan officer. Minimum score, line-size, coverage, and draw requirements follow the current program snapshot shown on this page. Licensed in sixteen states for consumer mortgages.
Same rental equity, four very different ways to reach it.
Four routes to the equity in a Union City rental, compared on the question that matters most to a landlord: what does the lender read, and what happens to the loan already on the property? The cards below answer both for each route.
A rent-qualified line, an income-qualified line, a cash-out refinance, or a bank statement line.
For the Union City investor whose returns understate the business, whose rentals sit in an LLC, or who simply wants the property to qualify itself. The first mortgage and its rate are untouched; the line is sized by equity and carried by the rent. Fewer documents, a tighter ceiling.
For the Union City landlord with clean tax returns, room in the debt ratio, and a rental titled in their own name. The income-qualified line is the higher-leverage route; the DSCR HELOC is the route when the returns, the ratio, or the LLC make that file impossible. For the income-qualified route, see Lendmire’s investment property HELOC.
The refinance is the lump-sum route: one closing, one new first mortgage, the equity out at once. The line is the revolving route: the old mortgage stays, the equity comes out as needed. Which is cheaper depends on the rate you hold and how much you need. For the refinance route, see the investment property cash-out refinance.
For the Union City self-employed owner whose business deposits tell a better story than the returns, on a property held personally. Where the rental’s own rent covers the line, the DSCR HELOC asks for less; where it does not, the bank statement line reads the owner instead. For the deposit-qualified route, see the bank statement HELOC.
What to prepare for a Union City scenario review.
The file reads the property and the credit report. Gather these before the scenario review, and the prequalification has what it needs; nothing on the list is a tax return.
This is a general preparation guide, not a universal checklist. The selected lender may request additional information based on the lease, the entity, the property, the lien position, and the credit profile. Nothing here is legal or tax advice.
Local details that can change the line.
A DSCR HELOC is a property file, and property files turn on details: the tier, the valuation, the lien position, the entity, the lease, the seasoning. The cards below are the ones that change a Union City line most often.
Use these checks to keep the Union City file clean and fundable.
The ceiling and the cap are the start, not the answer. On a Union City rental the valuation can land under the owner’s estimate, the lease can read under the market rent, the tier can land a step lower than an app suggested, and the seasoning clock can still be running. Each is a card below.
- Confirm the vesting: Which title holders and first-mortgage borrowers will sign as non-borrowing owners.
- Confirm the dates: The settlement date the ownership clock started on.
- Confirm the draw plan: The minimum size of a later draw.
Title in your name or your LLC
Vesting in a limited liability company is allowed on the program, which is the reason many Union City landlords with entity-held rentals choose it. The entity’s papers go in the file and the members sign as guarantors on the line.
The seasoning clock on purchases and refinances
Seasoning is one reason a strong Union City file waits. The equity may be there from day one, especially on a discounted purchase or a quick rehab, but the program reads the calendar before it reads the value, and the calendar does not negotiate.
The closing draw and the later draws
Later draws carry a minimum of their own, so the line is drawn in meaningful pieces rather than small ones. Interest-only payments run through the draw period on whatever is outstanding; the repayment period amortizes the balance after.
The property list and the property type
A Union City condominium carries a line at the condominium ceiling, and a non-warrantable project at the reduced one; the association’s dues and any assessment travel with the file. Lots run to ten acres on the program; larger parcels and agricultural features put the property outside it.
How many financed properties the program allows
Exposure is counted per borrower across the program, not per property. The Union City landlord with one rental is nowhere near the limit; the one with a portfolio of lines may be, and the scenario review reads the list first.
From a Union City rental prequalification to a funded line.
From the first call to the funded line the file follows one path. In Union City the differences from an income-qualified line are what is missing: no tax returns, no debt ratio, no deed out of the LLC. What remains is the property’s file and the credit report.
Scenario review
A licensed loan officer reads the Union City rental’s value, the balance on it, the credit profile, the lease, and the vesting, and sizes the line against the current tables: ceiling, cap, lien position, and the rent test. Figures are stated as program parameters, never as an offer.
Prequalification
Prequalification is where the file becomes real: the report replaces the estimate, the lease replaces the owner’s rent figure, and the entity’s papers are read. What comes out is a line amount, a lien position, and a short list of items to verify.
Verification and valuation
This is the step the owner does not control: the valuation lands where the comparables put it, and the title search shows what is recorded. A Union City file whose value or lease comes in under the estimate is re-sized here, not declined, unless a gate fails.
Closing and funding
Closing documents are signed by every borrower and guarantor, non-borrowing owners sign their acknowledgments, and the closing draw funds after any rescission period the law provides. The rest of the Union City line is available through the draw period.
A brokerage that matches the line to the rental.
What Lendmire brings to a Union City rental line is comparison and placement: the rent-qualified line beside its alternatives, the tier read against every column, and the file placed with the wholesale lender whose program writes it.
Four routes, the right one quoted
The rent-qualified line is the answer to a specific problem: an entity on title, returns that understate, a ratio that is full. Lendmire reads whether that is the problem on a Union City file before recommending the line that solves it.
The entity stays on title
Vesting in an entity is the first question a portfolio owner asks. The program answers it with yes, and the file is built around it from the first call: the operating agreement, the good standing, the guarantors, and the non-borrowing acknowledgments, in order.
Licensed, in writing, the lender never named
Lendmire is the broker, not the lender. The program is placed with select lenders in the wholesale network; the figures on this page are program parameters subject to underwriting, and the rate and the payment on a Union City line are quoted in writing, never on a web page.
Trusted by landlords & investors alike.
Union City DSCR HELOC FAQs
Common questions, answered plainly. Where a figure matters, the snapshot carries it; where a judgment matters, a licensed loan officer makes it.
What is a DSCR HELOC?
A home equity line of credit on a rental property that qualifies on the property’s rent instead of the owner’s income. The lender divides the gross rent by the qualifying payment on the line, the quotient must reach the program’s coverage minimum, and the owner’s tax returns and debt ratio never enter the file. The line sits behind the first mortgage or stands first on a paid-off rental, and title may stay in an LLC.
Can the rental stay in my LLC?
The LLC stays. The program was written for exactly this file: a rental held in an entity, a line behind its first mortgage, the rent qualifying the line, the members standing behind it as guarantors. A Union City owner does not deed the property to a personal name to borrow against it.
How is the rent test calculated?
The lender takes the gross monthly rent, the lesser of the lease and the appraiser’s market-rent schedule, and divides it by the qualifying payment: a fully amortizing payment on the entire credit limit at a stressed rate above the start rate. The quotient must reach the program’s coverage minimum, shown in the snapshot. A lease in place is required.
Is an appraisal required?
Yes, in one of two forms: an automated valuation with a property inspection report on lines to the threshold, a full interior appraisal above it. The lender never waives the valuation, and the line is sized on the value it produces, not on the owner’s estimate.
How do the draw period and repayment work?
The line has two lives: an interest-only draw period and an amortizing repayment period, shown in the snapshot. A large share of the line funds at closing by program rule, later draws are at least the program minimum, and the payment rises when the repayment period begins.
Do I need tax returns or W-2s?
No. The rent qualifies the line. The trade for leaving the income file out is a lower ceiling and a higher credit floor than the income-qualified rental line, and a rent that must cover the line’s qualifying payment at the program minimum.
What does the closing look like on an LLC-held rental?
In the LLC’s name, with the members as guarantors and the non-borrowing title holders acknowledging. Hazard insurance covering both liens and flood coverage where required are in place before funding; the closing draw funds after rescission where the law provides one.
Can I open a line if the rental was recently listed for sale?
Not within the program’s window. A property listed for sale in the months before the application is not eligible; the listing has to be old enough before the line is written. The months are in the program, and the scenario review reads the listing history first.
What is the rate on a DSCR HELOC?
A variable rate through both periods, disclosed in writing for the file. Lendmire does not publish rates or indexes on program pages, and this page does not state a payment; the calculator sizes the line and leaves the rate to the written quote.
What credit history does the program expect?
A clean recent mortgage history with no thirty-day lates in the last year, and a set number of years since a bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale, or deed-in-lieu, both in the program. The program’s tradeline-depth rules are waived at the score shown in the snapshot, which every tier the program offers meets, so the credit file is read for its history rather than its depth.
Keep the first mortgage. Reach the equity anyway.
Start with the figures: the rental’s value, the mortgage on it, your credit tier, the lease. The review takes minutes, states program parameters rather than offers, and names anything in the file that needs a check.
This guide covers Union City — for the statewide ceilings, tiers, and state rules, see DSCR HELOC in California, part of Lendmire’s DSCR HELOC program.
Nearby markets in California: Hayward · Fremont · Pleasanton · Dublin · San Leandro · San Ramon · Redwood City · Milpitas
Other loan programs in Union City: DSCR Loans in Union City, CA · Super Jumbo DSCR Loans in Union City, CA · Short-Term Rental Loans in Union City, CA · Investment Property Cash-Out Refinance in Union City, CA · Hard Money Loans in Union City, CA · Bank Statement Loans in Union City, CA · Super Jumbo Bank Statement Loans in Union City, CA · Bank Statement HELOC in Union City, CA · Investment Property HELOC in Union City, CA