The Quick Read: It depends on the path, but private startup equity on paper does not count until it is liquid and documented. On the asset qualifier path, eligible assets must cover the entire loan. On the asset depletion path, usable assets are divided by 60 months to create qualifying income.
- No single dollar minimum exists. The number depends on the loan amount, the path, and which accounts hold the money.
- Asset qualifier path: eligible assets, after credit percentages, must equal or exceed the whole loan, with no employment or income documented. Loans go up to $4,000,000.
- Asset depletion path: the minimum is the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan, and never below $250,000 liquid when assets are your only income.
- Buying a rental? A DSCR loan is reviewed primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. The asset-based home loans below apply mainly to a principal residence or second home.
- Assets are always documented. Skipping income paperwork never means skipping statements.
Why Doesn’t Startup Equity Count?
A cap table is a promise of future money, not money. Lenders count what you can document today, in your own name, in an account they can verify.
Compound’s founder guide makes the same point: most banks do not count private stock as an asset. It adds that some tech-friendly banks bend that rule to win the startup’s banking relationship. That is a relationship exception, not a loan program you can plan around.
Across the wholesale network Lendmire places files with, the picture is consistent. Equity turns into a countable asset after a secondary sale, a tender offer, an acquisition, or the end of a post-IPO lock-up. Until then it is a story you tell the lender, and the lender does not underwrite stories.
One wrinkle. The depletion path lists private stock at 75% of its balance. That does not mean your cap-table value goes in at three-quarters. The lender decides what valuation and documentation supports the figure, and a paper valuation rarely carries it. Plan as if it won’t count, and treat any credit as a bonus.
Some things are off the table on the depletion path entirely: stock options, non-vested restricted stock units, deferred compensation, escrow accounts, custodial accounts, foreign funds, and cash on hand. The qualifier path does not list private stock at all.
Two Paths: Assets Cover the Loan, or Assets Become Income
A borrower is reviewed on one path at a time. The two paths use different math, different percentages, and different leverage, so keep them apart in your head.
The asset qualifier path is the simpler idea. Your eligible assets, after the credit percentages below, must equal or exceed the entire loan amount. No employment or income is documented. It covers principal residences and second homes, up to 80% loan-to-value on a purchase and 75% on a refinance, subject to underwriting. Whether cash-out proceeds are allowed is the lender’s call and is not published.
The asset depletion path turns assets into monthly income. Usable assets divided by 60 months become qualifying income, and that income carries the full housing payment and other debts through the debt-to-income test. Leverage on a principal residence or second home runs up to 80% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out refinance. Cash-out proceeds never count as qualifying assets. This is also the only asset-based path that reaches investment property, at up to 65% on a purchase or rate-and-term refinance and 60% on a cash-out.
What counts on the asset qualifier path
| Asset | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Brokerage accounts | 100% |
| CDs, money market, savings | 100% |
| 401(k) or IRA, under age 59½ | 90% |
| 401(k) or IRA, 59½ or older | 100% |
Accounts combine. Loan amounts on this path run up to $4,000,000, and the credit score floor is 600.
What counts on the asset depletion path
| Asset | Share that counts |
|---|---|
| Cash accounts and CDs | 100% |
| Securities | 80% |
| Private stock | 75% |
| Retirement accounts (any age) | 70% |
| Real-estate equity | 60% |
Loan amounts run $125,000 to $3,500,000. Credit follows the lender’s matrix, and a first-time investor needs a 700 score. Housing history is expected to be 0x30x12, and one 30-day late in the last twelve months is considered case by case.
Crypto, precious metals, collectibles, pledged or borrowed funds, and business account balances beyond your ownership share are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is to convert them into a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account. The lender then reviews where the money came from.
What Does the Math Look Like?
Both examples below are illustrative. The lender’s own calculation governs, and every file is underwritten individually.
Qualifier path. Say a founder wants an $800,000 loan. She holds $330,000 in brokerage accounts (100% counts, so $330,000), $300,000 in a 401(k) at age 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. The assets alone match the loan, so she is reviewed on assets with no income documented, subject to underwriting.
Depletion path. Say another founder holds $1,500,000 in securities (80% counts, so $1,200,000) and $300,000 in cash (100% counts). That is $1,500,000 usable. Divide by 60 months and you get $25,000 of monthly qualifying income. That figure then has to carry the housing payment and other debts through the debt-to-income test.
Notice the difference in what each path demands. The qualifier path needs a big pile relative to the loan but asks nothing about income. The depletion path can work with a smaller pile, but the income it creates must clear the debt-to-income test.
How Much Do You Actually Need?
Work it as a short worksheet, in this order.
1. Pick the path and the property. A home you will live in or a second home can use either path. An investment property can use the depletion path only, at lower leverage.
2. Apply the percentages. Run each account through the table for your path. Strip out anything ineligible, including options and unvested shares.
3. Test the pool. On the qualifier path, the result must equal or exceed the entire loan. On the depletion path, it must meet the minimum: the lesser of $1,000,000 or 1.25 times the loan, and never below $250,000 liquid when assets are your only income. On a smaller loan, the 1.25x test is the one that binds. On a large loan, the $1,000,000 figure takes over.
4. Run the income test (depletion only). Divide the usable pool by 60 months. Check that the result carries the payment and your other debts.
5. Set aside cash for the transaction itself. The down payment and closing costs come out of liquid funds too. A lender will not let one dollar do two jobs without review, so ask how your file counts the pool before assuming it covers everything.
Reserves differ by path. The qualifier path requires none at or below 75% loan-to-value, and above that the lender sets them. The depletion path has no published reserve months.
One more option helps hybrid founders. Asset income may supplement documented income, up to a 45% debt-to-income ratio. When it does, the minimum-assets rule is waived. A founder with a modest salary and a solid savings balance can sit in that lane.
Where Do You Sit: Pre-Exit, Post-Exit, or In Between?
| Your situation | Likely fit | Role of assets |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-exit, small salary, big paper equity | DSCR if buying a rental | Reserves and down payment |
| Post-exit, cash in your own account | Qualifier or depletion path | Cover the loan or become income |
| Post-IPO, shares under lock-up | Wait until shares are sold | Counts once liquid and documented |
| Salary plus real savings | Depletion path, supplementing income | Fills the debt-to-income gap |
| Pass-through distributions | Bank statement program | Secondary |
The bank statement program is for borrowers who document income through deposits. It is a different product from either asset path.
The post-exit founder has the strongest hand. Sale proceeds count only after they settle in your personal account. On the depletion path, sale-of-business funds are excused from the statement-age rule, which helps when the money is new. On the qualifier path, expect 60 days of seasoning and two months of statements for each qualifying account. Tax treatment varies; consult a qualified professional before relying on how sale proceeds are treated.
In-between founders should resist forcing one story. Many founders have some salary, some savings, and some equity waiting to convert. Lenders review that mix honestly, and the hybrid path above exists for it.
What About Buying a Rental Instead?
If the property will be a rental, the question changes. You are no longer asking how big your asset pool is. You are asking whether the rent covers the payment and how many months of reserves you can document.
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 treats credit to acquire rental property as business purpose when the property has more than two housing units, and it says a smaller property is not automatically consumer credit. Compliance Alliance adds that the test looks at the loan’s purpose, not the property type. The takeaway is simple: purpose and occupancy matter, so the file has to be structured honestly.
By contrast, a home loan for a place you live in must show repayment ability. Under the CFPB’s general qualified mortgage rule, that means a lender considers and verifies income or assets, along with debts and debt-to-income or residual income. That is why the two asset paths above exist for consumer-purpose loans.
For a rental, the practical picture looks like this:
- Qualification rests primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines.
- Credit and liquid reserves still matter. Reserves are usually stated in months of the full monthly obligation, and lower coverage can raise them.
- Select lenders in the network offer programs below 1.00 coverage, but leverage and terms adjust when coverage is thin.
- Borrowing through an LLC is common, depending on program guidelines, so entity documents are part of the file.
Founders often like this route because it needs no founder income story. The trade-off is that your rent, not your net worth, drives the answer. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide walks through the mechanics.
What Slows or Sinks an Asset-Based File?
Most problems are paperwork, not wealth. Here are the common ones, each with its fix.
- A large, unexplained deposit. Lenders review the source of funds. Keep the wire confirmation or sale paperwork that shows where it came from.
- Money that landed too recently. On the qualifier path, funds need 60 days of seasoning. Move proceeds into your personal account early and leave them alone.
- Commingled business and personal money. Company balances beyond your ownership share are not published as eligible. Move your own distributions into a personal account and let them season.
- Counting ineligible assets. Options, unvested shares, and crypto sitting on an exchange do not carry a percentage. Convert what you can into a seasoned cash balance in a regulated account.
- Using one pile twice. If the same funds must cover the loan test, the down payment, and closing costs, the file can come up short.
- Ignoring credit. Assets do not replace credit. The qualifier path has a 600 floor, the depletion path follows the lender’s matrix, and a first-time investor on that path needs 700. Multiple bankruptcies are not eligible, and a housing event needs four years of seasoning on the depletion path.
Another rule runs through all of this. On the depletion path, statements must be at least 120 days old at application, plus the most recent statement within 45 days. Check your statement dates before you apply.
Key Terms Defined
Liquid assets: money you can document and access without selling a business, such as cash, savings, CDs, and brokerage balances.
Asset qualifier path: qualifying a loan on eligible assets alone, with no employment or income documented.
Asset depletion path: dividing usable assets by 60 months to create monthly qualifying income that runs through the debt-to-income test.
Seasoning: the time funds must sit in your account before a lender will count them.
Reserves: liquid assets left over after the transaction, often counted in months of the monthly housing obligation.
DSCR (debt service coverage ratio): monthly rent divided by the monthly principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and association dues on an investment property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do unvested RSUs or stock options count as assets?
No. Stock options and non-vested restricted stock units are not eligible on the depletion path, and the qualifier path does not list them. Once the shares vest and you sell them, the proceeds become cash. At that point they can count, subject to seasoning and underwriting.
Can money in my company’s bank account count?
Generally not. Business account balances beyond your ownership share are not published as eligible on either path. The documented route is moving your own distributions into a personal account in a regulated bank, letting them season, and having the lender review the source.
Do I have to sell my investments to use them?
No. The assets are not sold or pledged. They are documented and counted. That is how depletion math works: the lender converts usable balances into a monthly figure and leaves the portfolio where it is.
Does cryptocurrency work as a qualifying asset?
Not directly. It is not published as eligible on either path. The practical route is converting it to cash in a regulated account and letting that balance season, with the lender reviewing the source of the funds.
Does a DSCR loan need a minimum asset balance?
There is no fixed dollar minimum. Qualification rests on the property’s rent covering the payment, plus credit and documented reserves, subject to lender guidelines. Coverage below 1.00 is available through select lenders in the network, with adjusted leverage and terms.
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. Lendmire’s consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states, so confirm your state first. Programs change, every file is underwritten individually, and nothing here is a commitment to lend.
Founders who plan the liquidity event first and the application second tend to find the asset question is already answered.
About Lendmire
Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a mortgage brokerage serving self-employed and high-net-worth borrowers in 16 states. Bank statement, P&L-only, 1099-only and asset-based mortgages are arranged through wholesale lending channels; Lendmire brokers the financing and the lender underwrites each application. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. Compound Planning: Founder’s Guide to Buying a House
2. CFPB Regulation Z, Section 1026.3 (exemptions)
3. Compliance Alliance: Regulation Z and Investment Properties
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 Qualify for a Mortgage on Assets While on Parental Leave? · How Much Does an Heir Need in Assets to Qualify for a Mortgage? · How Much Does a Retired Landlord Need in Assets to Qualify for a Mortgage?
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Required disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) operates as a licensed mortgage broker, not a direct lender or depository. The discussion in this article is general in nature and should not be relied upon as financial, legal, or tax advice — every investment scenario is unique and should be reviewed by a qualified professional. Any loan inquiry is subject to lender underwriting, and this article is not a commitment to lend or a guarantee of approval. Mortgage rates, loan terms, and program guidelines vary by borrower, property, and state, and may change without notice. Equal Housing Opportunity. Verify licensure at NMLS Consumer Access.