The Quick Read: No job does not mean no paperwork. Every asset is documented and credit still counts.
- Asset qualifier path: eligible assets must equal or exceed 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.
- Leverage ceilings: typically up to 80% on a purchase and 75% on a refinance on the qualifier path (principal residence or second home).
- Credit floor: 600 on the qualifier path, and the lender’s matrix on the depletion path.
- Same figures in Ohio: the program parameters do not change by state, and Lendmire’s consumer mortgage lending is licensed in Ohio among 16 states.
What Does Asset-Based Mortgage Actually Mean?
“Asset-based mortgage” is an industry nickname, not a formal loan category. Lenders use asset qualifier, asset depletion, asset utilization and asset-based almost interchangeably, which is how borrowers end up comparing two different products as if they were one.
Across the wholesale network Lendmire works with, the useful split is by method. An asset qualifier loan treats your balances as the repayment source for the whole loan. An asset depletion loan treats your balances as a pool that produces income on paper. You are qualified on one path at a time, never a blend.
Two nearby products get confused with these. A bank statement loan is for people who document income through deposits, usually business owners. A DSCR loan is business-purpose financing for rental property, and the rent is the income test. Neither one asks you to show a pile of assets. Both are covered further down.
Which Path Fits You?
Pick the qualifier path if your eligible balances are at least the size of the loan. Pick the depletion path if your assets are large but you want them to count as income, or if you are buying an investment property. The right fit is a function of loan size, asset mix and property type.
Here are the leverage ceilings, which apply through select programs and are subject to underwriting:
- Asset qualifier path: up to 80% loan-to-value on a purchase and 75% on a refinance, on a principal residence or second home. Loans run up to $4,000,000.
- Asset depletion path, principal residence or second home: up to 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out refinance.
- Asset depletion path, investment property: up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance, and 60% on a cash-out refinance. Loans run from $125,000 to $3,500,000.
Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets on the depletion path. Whether the qualifier path allows cash-out at all is the lender’s call, so do not plan around it.
These are ceilings, not offers. Most files land below them.
How Does the Asset Qualifier Path Work?
The qualifier path is the simplest idea in the product. Add up your eligible balances after the credit percentages below. If the total equals or exceeds the entire loan amount, you qualify on assets alone, and no employment or income is documented.
The credit percentages, on this path only:
| Asset | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Brokerage accounts | 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% |
| Money market | 100% |
| Savings | 100% |
| 401(k) and IRA, under age 59½ | 90% |
| 401(k) and IRA, 59½ or older | 100% |
Accounts combine. Credit score minimum is 600, and housing history is typically 0x30x12, meaning no late payments in the last twelve months. One 30-day late is considered case by case.
Here is an illustrative example. Say the loan is $800,000. You hold $330,000 in brokerage accounts (100% counts, so $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) while under 59½ (90% counts, so $270,000) and $200,000 in savings (100% counts, so $200,000). That adds up to $800,000 of usable assets, which covers the loan on assets alone. The lender’s own calculation governs.
Seasoning is 60 days, with two months of statements for each qualifying account. Reserves are typically none at or below 75% loan-to-value. Above that, the lender sets them.
If you are asset-rich and wondering how this scales up, Lendmire’s explanation of how super jumbo underwriting treats asset-rich borrowers with no current job covers the larger-loan side of the story.
How Does Asset Depletion Work?
Asset depletion converts your balances into monthly income. The lender applies a haircut to each asset type, adds up what remains, and divides by 60 months. The result is your qualifying income, and it has to carry the housing payment and your other debts through the debt-to-income test.
The haircuts, on this path only:
| Asset | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Cash accounts | 100% |
| Certificates of deposit | 100% |
| Securities | 80% |
| Private stock | 75% |
| Retirement accounts, any age | 70% |
| Real-estate equity | 60% |
Run the numbers on a household living off a portfolio. Say you hold $1,500,000 in securities (80% counts, so $1,200,000) and $300,000 in cash (100% counts, so $300,000). That is $1,500,000 usable. Divided by 60 months, it produces $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That income then has to carry the full housing payment and other debts under the program’s debt-to-income test. Again, illustrative, and the lender’s calculation governs.
Notice what that means. Retirement money is treated more harshly here than on the qualifier path. The same 401(k) that counts at 90% to 100% on one path counts at 70% on the other. Which path is better depends on loan size against balances, not on a general rule.
Several requirements apply on this path:
- Minimum assets: the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan balance, and never below $250,000 liquid when depletion is your only income source.
- Statements: at least 120 days old at application, plus the most recent statement within 45 days. Sale-of-business, inheritance and legal-settlement funds are excused from that seasoning.
- Credit: the lender’s score and loan-amount matrix applies. A first-time investor needs 700.
- Credit events: multiple bankruptcies are not eligible, and a housing event needs 4 years of seasoning.
Asset-derived income can also supplement documented income, up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio. When it supplements, the minimum-assets rule is waived. That matters for someone with a small pension or part-time income who wants the portfolio to fill the gap.
What Does No Job Mean to a Lender?
To an underwriter, no job means no employment income to document. It does not mean no income story at all. Retired, laid off, between roles, or living on a business sale all read differently, and the lender wants the source of your assets to make sense.
Retirees are the cleanest fit, since a large balance with no paycheck is exactly what the product was built for. People who just sold a business, received an inheritance or settled a legal claim are common too. The depletion path excuses those funds from its seasoning rule, though the lender still reviews where the money came from.
Early-retired professionals are the trickier group. If you left a job voluntarily and your balances are mostly retirement accounts, the haircuts cut into your usable assets quickly. (That is the arithmetic, not a judgment.) A pending job offer or severance is lender-specific. Whether it helps depends on the program and what can be documented, so ask rather than assume.
One more honest point. This is a consumer mortgage. Standard consumer disclosures apply, and the lender reviews your ability to repay based on the assets. Skipping a paycheck never skips underwriting.
Buying a Rental With No Job: Two Different Routes
If the property is an investment, the asset depletion path allows it, at 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out refinance. The asset qualifier path does not cover investment property. For a pure rental, though, many investors without a job move to a different product altogether.
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 CFPB’s Regulation Z text deems credit for non-owner-occupied rental property to be business-purpose, with an exception if you expect to occupy it more than 14 days in the coming year. The Federal Register rulemaking adds that business-purpose loans fall outside the ability-to-repay provisions. A law firm’s analysis from Hunton is a useful reminder that business purpose does not mean exempt from compliance. Lenders still have to categorize loans correctly.
The practical result is that a DSCR file qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Credit, appraised rent, reserves and entity paperwork still matter. If you want the full mechanics, the complete DSCR loans guide walks through them. Some select lenders in the network also offer programs below 1.00 coverage, but leverage and terms adjust when they do.
Here is the decision in plain terms. If you will live in the home or use it as a second home, asset-based is the tool. If it is a rental and the rent carries itself, DSCR is usually the cleaner fit. If the rent does not carry it but your portfolio is large, depletion at 65% or 60% is the alternative.
Which Route Fits Which Borrower?
| Route | What carries the loan | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Asset qualifier | Eligible assets cover the whole loan | Cash-heavy, income-light buyer |
| Asset depletion | Assets divided by 60 months | Portfolio households, including investment |
| DSCR | Property rent covers the payment | Rental purchase or refinance |
| Bank statement | Income shown through deposits | Self-employed with strong deposits |
| Full-doc conventional | Employment and traditional personal-income documentation | Borrowers with documented paychecks |
The last row describes how conventional and full-doc jumbo programs work, not this program. Pick the route by what you can document most cleanly.
Which Assets Don’t Count?
Some assets are simply not eligible, and the list surprises people. On the depletion path, these are not eligible: 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, business accounts beyond your ownership share, and pledged or borrowed funds are not published as eligible on either path. Do not expect them to count at a percentage. The documented route is converting them to a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, with the source reviewed by the lender.
Retirement money has a wrinkle. Withdrawing it can carry tax consequences, and tax treatment varies, so consult a qualified professional before relying on any plan.
Seasoning, Statements and Big Deposits
Both paths document the assets. The qualifier path wants seasoning and recent statements for each account. The depletion path wants older statements plus a current one, with the exact requirements varying by file and lender.
That seasoning is why timing your moves matters. Shifting money between accounts right before applying can leave a balance that has not aged long enough. A large unexplained deposit raises questions the lender will want answered with paperwork. Gifts and borrowed funds are another trap, since pledged or borrowed funds do not count.
A practical tip: leave the accounts alone. Do not consolidate, convert or move money until a loan officer has told you what the lender will count.
Where Files Go Wrong
Most declines trace back to a short list. The short version:
- Wrong path. Qualifying on assets that fall short of the whole loan, when depletion would have worked, or the reverse.
- Ineligible balances. Counting crypto, stock options or cash on hand that the program does not accept.
- Stale statements. Statements that are not recent enough for the depletion path, or missing the most recent statement the lender requires.
- Credit surprises. A recent late payment, a housing event inside its seasoning window, or a first-time investor under 700 on the depletion path.
- Unexplained deposits. Money that moved recently without a paper trail.
- Minimum-assets miss. Falling under the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan, or under $250,000 liquid.
What Changes for an Ohio Borrower?
Not the program figures. Leverage, haircuts and seasoning are the same in Ohio as anywhere in the licensed footprint, and the loan is placed through select lenders in Lendmire’s network.
What does vary is context. Taxes and insurance, which vary by county, still count in the housing payment, and on the depletion path that payment runs through the debt-to-income test. A smaller or less expensive Ohio property means a smaller loan, which makes the minimum-assets rule and the qualifier path easier to satisfy. That is a point about arithmetic, not a market claim.
Key Terms Defined
- Asset qualifier: a path where eligible assets, after credit percentages, equal or exceed the whole loan.
- Asset depletion: a path that divides usable assets by 60 months to create qualifying income.
- Seasoning: the time funds must sit in an account before the lender counts them.
- Debt-to-income (DTI): monthly debts, including the new housing payment, compared to monthly qualifying income.
- Haircut: the share of an asset’s balance the lender does not count.
- Non-QM: a mortgage that falls outside standard agency rules and is underwritten to its own guidelines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a retirement account if I am under 59½?
Yes, with limits. On the asset qualifier path, 401(k) and IRA balances count at 90% under age 59½ and 100% at 59½ or older. On the depletion path they count at 70% at any age. Both are subject to underwriting.
Can I refinance with no job using this approach?
Yes. The qualifier path allows up to 75% on a refinance of a principal residence or second home. The depletion path allows up to 80% on a rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out on those properties. Whether the qualifier path allows cash-out is set by the lender.
Does it work for an investment property?
Only on the depletion path, at up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out. A first-time investor needs a 700 score. For a rental that earns its keep, a DSCR loan is often the cleaner route.
Can I mix assets and a small pension?
Yes, on the depletion path. Asset-derived income can supplement documented income up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio, and the minimum-assets rule is waived when it does.
Is this a no-documentation loan?
No. Both paths document your assets with statements. What goes undocumented on the qualifier path is employment and income, and the lender’s review rests on the assets.
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. Call 828-256-2183 or request a quote.
For current guidelines and terms, see Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage programs page.
Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage in Ohio page presents the program for Ohio borrowers.
About Lendmire
Lendmire, NMLS# 2371349, is a mortgage brokerage with consumer lending licenses in 16 states. Bank statement, P&L-only, 1099-only and asset-based mortgages are arranged through wholesale lending partners for borrowers whose tax returns understate their income, and each application is reviewed individually by the lender. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. CFPB, Regulation Z § 1026.3
2. Federal Register, Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgage Standards
3. Hunton, 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: What Counts as an Asset Statement for a Mortgage? · How a Margin Balance Is Treated on an Asset Depletion Mortgage · Savings Account vs Brokerage Account: Which Counts More on an Asset-Based Mortgage?
Guides: Asset-Based Mortgage in Ohio
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Compliance and disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a licensed mortgage broker and is not a direct lender, depository institution, financial advisor, or tax professional. Content in this article is general market analysis and educational information — not financial, legal, or tax advice for any specific situation. Lendmire does not guarantee loan approval; every transaction is subject to underwriting by the funding lender. Mortgage pricing and loan program guidelines are subject to change at any time without notice and vary by borrower characteristics, property type, and state regulations. Lendmire complies with Equal Housing Opportunity. Licensure verification: NMLS Consumer Access.