The Quick Read: It depends on the path: the asset qualifier path needs usable assets that equal or exceed the whole loan, while the asset depletion path needs at least the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan, and never less than $250,000 liquid when assets are your only income. Both figures are program floors through select lenders in Lendmire’s network, and every file is underwritten individually. No single number fits every physician, because the total you need depends on the loan size, the path and what kinds of accounts hold your money.
- Asset qualifier path: assets alone cover the loan, and no employment or income is documented.
- Asset depletion path: usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying income that must carry the housing payment and other debts.
- Account type matters: a retirement account counts for 90% or 100% on one path and 70% on the other.
- Buying a rental: a DSCR loan is reviewed primarily on the property’s rental income, so your assets mostly fund the down payment, closing costs and reserves.
A quick note on the search results. Ask this question online and you will mostly find pages about how much a physician needs to retire. That is a different question. This article covers how much you need in verified assets for a lender to say yes to a home loan when your paycheck stops.
Why a Retiring Physician Looks Unqualified on Paper
A retiring physician with a large portfolio can still look like a weak borrower. Standard underwriting asks for recent pay stubs or traditional personal-income documentation showing steady income. Retire, and that paper trail ends. The balance sheet may be excellent, but the income line reads close to zero.
Asset-based programs exist to close that gap. They treat your savings as the repayment source, either directly or by converting them into a monthly figure. Across Lendmire’s wholesale network, this is the usual route for retirees, practice sellers and early-retired professionals whose balances are large and whose documented income is small.
One more point: assets are documented on both paths. Lenders still pull statements, review the source of large deposits and check credit. Skipping income documentation never means skipping documentation.
Which Path Fits You?
Pick the path first, because the dollar answer changes with it. A borrower is qualified on one path at a time, and the figures never blend.
| Factor | Asset Qualifier | Asset Depletion |
|---|---|---|
| What it tests | Assets cover the entire loan | Assets become monthly income |
| Income documented | None | Derived from assets, then DTI test |
| Purchase leverage | Up to 80% LTV | Up to 80% (home), 65% (investment) |
| Refinance leverage | Up to 75% LTV | 80% rate-and-term (home) |
| Cash-out leverage | Set by lender, not published | 60% on home or investment |
| Loan amounts | Up to $4,000,000 | $125,000 to $3,500,000 |
| Credit | 600 minimum score | The lender’s matrix |
The leverage figures above for the qualifier path apply to a principal residence or second home. On the depletion path, 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out refinance apply to a principal residence or second home, while investment property is capped at 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term and 60% on a cash-out. Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets. All of it is subject to underwriting.
Which one suits you? If your liquid assets comfortably exceed the loan you want, the qualifier path is cleaner, because no income math is involved. If your assets are strong but not enough to cover the whole loan, the depletion path lets a smaller pile support a larger purchase, as long as the monthly income it produces carries the payment.
What Counts, and at What Percentage?
Not every dollar in your statements counts at face value. Lenders apply a credit percentage to each account type, and physicians tend to hold more of certain types than other borrowers do. The percentages differ by path.
On the qualifier path, brokerage accounts, certificates of deposit, money market and savings all count at 100%. A 401(k) or IRA counts at 90% under age 59½ and 100% at 59½ or older. Accounts combine.
On the depletion path, cash accounts and CDs count at 100%, securities at 80%, private stock at 75%, retirement accounts at 70% at any age and real-estate equity at 60%.
Here is how common physician holdings usually land:
| Physician Asset | Qualifier Path | Depletion Path |
|---|---|---|
| Brokerage account | 100% | Securities at 80% |
| 401(k), 403(b), IRA | 90% under 59½, then 100% | 70% at any age |
| Savings, money market, CDs | 100% | Cash and CDs at 100% |
| Practice sale proceeds | Count once in a regulated account | Excused from seasoning rules |
| Deferred compensation | Confirm with lender | Not eligible |
| Stock options, unvested RSUs | Confirm with lender | Not eligible |
A few clear cautions. Business accounts count only for your ownership share, and cryptocurrency, precious metals and collectibles are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is to convert them to a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account, with the lender reviewing the source. Pledged or borrowed funds do not count. Nonqualified deferred compensation, cash on hand, foreign funds and escrow accounts are also off the depletion list.
If you hold large retirement balances, Lendmire’s piece How to Use Retirement Assets to Qualify for a Jumbo Mortgage goes deeper on how those accounts are treated. Money held in a trust follows its own rules, covered in Lendmire’s explanation of using trust assets to qualify.
Work Backward From the Home You Want
Start with the loan, not your net worth. Pick a price, pick the leverage you would use, and the loan amount follows. Then test it against the path.
Qualifier path example. Say you want a primary residence on a purchase at 80% LTV. The loan is 80% of the price, so your usable assets, after the credit percentages above, must equal or exceed that share of the price. Here is the shape of it with a modeled $800,000 loan. Suppose you hold $330,000 in brokerage accounts (counted at 100%, so $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) while under 59½ (counted at 90%, so $270,000) and $200,000 in savings (100%, so $200,000). That counts as $800,000 of usable assets, and the file is reviewed on assets alone, subject to underwriting. Notice that the 401(k) shrinks by a tenth because you are under 59½. Wait until 59½ and that same account counts in full. Final terms depend on the lender’s guidelines, the property type, and the borrower’s complete credit picture.
Depletion path example. Now say you hold $1,500,000 in securities and $300,000 in cash. Securities count at 80%, so $1,200,000, and cash counts at 100%, so $300,000. Usable assets total $1,500,000. Divide by 60 months and you get $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That income then carries the housing payment and your other debts through the debt-to-income test. The lender’s own calculation governs the result.
Two things decide the depletion outcome beyond the divisor. One is your loan size, because the minimum-assets rule scales with it at 1.25 times the loan, up to the $1,000,000 cap. The other is your other debts, since they share the same income. If you also have documented income, such as a pension or part-time consulting, asset-derived income can supplement it up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio. When assets supplement income this way, the minimum-assets rule is waived.
Couples. If your spouse is not a physician and holds separate accounts, whether those count, and whose age applies for retirement balances, is a question for the lender’s review. Ask early.
Is There an Official Minimum?
No regulator sets a dollar minimum of assets. The federal ability-to-repay rule lets a lender base repayment on income, on assets other than the home being financed, or on both. The CFPB’s official interpretation of Regulation Z lists examples of assets a lender may consider, including savings, vested retirement amounts, stocks and bonds, CDs and trust funds. The regulation text also requires the lender to verify those assets with reasonably reliable third-party records. That is why statements matter so much. For a plain-language overview, see Nolo’s explanation of ability-to-repay.
So the minimum comes from each program’s own guidelines, and they vary. Across the wholesale network, a few lenders will accept thinner asset totals than the strictest overlays, but the figures here are the network’s published floors, not offers.
Timing Your Retirement and Your Application
Sequencing matters more than most physicians expect. A few practical points from files like these:
- Season the money before you apply. The qualifier path wants 60 days of seasoning and two months of statements for each qualifying account. The depletion path wants statements at least 120 days old at application, plus the most recent one within 45 days. Funds from the sale of a business, an inheritance or a legal settlement are excused from that depletion-path seasoning.
- Do not shuffle accounts mid-file. Moving money between institutions creates large deposits that the lender must source. Each transfer adds paperwork, and it can reset how the account is read.
- Think twice before liquidating a retirement account to buy. Withdrawals can change your balance, your credit percentage and your tax picture. Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified tax professional before relying on any plan.
- Mind the age line. Turning 59½ lifts the qualifier path’s retirement credit from 90% to 100%. If your purchase is flexible, that milestone can move your total.
- Check credit early. The qualifier path publishes a 600 minimum score, and the depletion path follows the lender’s matrix. A first-time investor on the depletion path needs 700. Housing history is reviewed at 0x30x12, with one 30-day late in the last twelve months considered case by case.
Buying a Rental? Assets Matter Differently
If the property is a rental rather than your home, the equation changes. 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.
A DSCR loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Your retirement income does not drive the file, so your portfolio does not have to be converted into income. Your assets still fund the down payment, closing costs and reserves, and they must be documented and seasoned. Some lenders in the network also review loans below 1.00 coverage through select programs, though leverage and terms adjust when they do. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide covers how the ratio works.
The depletion path also allows investment property, but at lower leverage: 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out. Many retirees weigh the two options against each other. DSCR keeps retirement accounts untouched, while the depletion path uses them to build income.
Mistakes That Shrink Your Qualifying Assets
- Counting unsupported accounts. Deferred compensation, stock options and unvested RSUs do not count on the depletion path.
- Forgetting the percentage. A $1,000,000 securities account counts as $800,000 on the depletion path.
- Using cash-out proceeds as assets. On the depletion path, those proceeds never count.
- Mixing the two paths. Figures from one path do not carry to the other.
- Waiting too long on statements. Stale or missing statements are a common reason files stall.
- Assuming the leverage is the offer. Maximum LTV is a ceiling. Credit, property and loan size can all pull it lower.
Document Checklist
Most files ask for the same core items:
- Statements for each qualifying account (two months on the qualifier path, plus one within 45 days and older ones on the depletion path)
- Proof of source for any large deposit
- Sale documents if practice or business proceeds are in play
- A credit authorization and housing history
- A purchase contract or current mortgage statement for the subject property
Key Terms Defined
Asset qualifier path: A program path where eligible assets alone must equal or exceed the whole loan, with no income documented.
Asset depletion path: A program path that divides usable assets by 60 months to create a monthly qualifying income.
Haircut: The share of an account’s balance a lender does not count, which reflects how volatile or hard to access the account is.
Seasoning: The length of time funds must sit in your account before the lender treats them as yours.
DSCR: Debt service coverage ratio. It compares a rental’s income to its monthly debt payment, so the property drives lender review.
LTV: Loan-to-value, which is the loan amount as a percentage of the property’s value or price.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to sell my investments or start withdrawals to qualify?
No. Both asset paths use balances as documented, and neither requires you to liquidate. Depletion is a calculation, not a withdrawal schedule. You still need the funds to be seasoned and sourced, and the lender’s own calculation governs.
Do my retirement accounts count if I am under 59½?
Yes, with a discount on one path. The qualifier path counts 401(k) and IRA balances at 90% under 59½ and 100% after. The depletion path counts retirement accounts at 70% at any age, subject to underwriting.
Does the sale of my practice count as an asset?
Once the proceeds sit in a regulated account, they can count like other cash. On the depletion path, sale-of-business funds are excused from the seasoning requirement. Money still in a business account counts only for your ownership share, and the lender reviews the source.
Can I combine asset income with a pension or consulting income?
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. Your other income is documented in the usual way.
Does cryptocurrency or precious metal count?
Not as published. Neither path lists them as eligible. The documented route is converting them to cash in a regulated account and letting the program review the source.
Your 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. The brokerage’s consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states: Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Programs change, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
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 traditional personal-income documentation understates 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 §1026.43 official interpretation
2. Cornell Legal Information Institute, 12 CFR 1026.43
3. Nolo’s explanation of ability-to-repay
This article is part of Lendmire’s asset-based mortgage program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: How Much Inheritance Do You Need to Qualify for a Mortgage on Assets Alone? · How to Qualify for a Mortgage After a Divorce on the Assets You Received · Can a Widow Qualify for a Mortgage on Life Insurance and Retirement Assets?
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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- Lendmire LLC · Firm NMLS# 2371349 · Verify firm licensure
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.