Super Jumbo Bank Statement Loan Funds Draws On New Construction — The Quick Read: A super jumbo bank statement loan does not fund draws on new construction directly. It is a permanent take-out loan that pays off a separate construction loan once the build is done and rent-ready. The construction lender controls the draws through inspections and title-company escrow; the bank statement loan only shows up at the end, sized off the borrower’s deposit history instead of traditional personal-income documentation.
That distinction trips up a lot of high-net-worth borrowers shopping for financing on a spec build or a custom home. They hear “bank statement loan” and assume one facility carries them from dirt to finished house. It doesn’t work that way, and understanding why saves a borrower from a mid-project financing gap that can stall a project for months.
Key Terms Defined
Draw — a disbursement of construction loan funds released after a specific phase of work is inspected and verified, not handed over as a lump sum.
Draw schedule — the milestone plan (foundation, framing, mechanical/electrical/plumbing, finish) that determines when each draw gets released.
Expense ratio — the percentage of deposits an underwriter subtracts to estimate business overhead before calculating qualifying income on a bank statement file.
Bank statement loan — a mortgage that qualifies a borrower using deposit history from 12 or 24 months of statements instead of traditional personal-income documentation or W-2s.
Two-time close — a construction loan and a separate permanent loan, closed on different dates, with two separate underwriting reviews.
Fund control / escrow disbursement — the arrangement where a title company or escrow agent, not the borrower, holds construction funds and releases them directly to contractors and suppliers.
Two Different Loans, Two Different Jobs
The construction loan funds the build. The super jumbo bank statement loan pays it off. They almost never overlap.
Most bank statement and non-QM programs are built to finance a completed, rent-ready or owner-ready property. This includes the portfolio and bank-statement programs in Lendmire’s wholesale network. These programs aren’t built to release progress payments to a general contractor. Say a borrower is building a $2.5 million custom home. They line up a construction facility first, then break ground. They only bring in the bank statement loan once the certificate of occupancy is in hand and the appraisal reflects a finished structure.
This is worth stating plainly because the title of this piece invites the wrong assumption. The bank statement loan isn’t “funding draws” in the sense of releasing money to a framer or an electrician. It’s funding the payoff of whoever did.
How Draws Actually Get Released During the Build
The construction lender — a separate facility from the eventual permanent loan — controls this process from start to finish, and it runs on inspections, not on the borrower’s say-so.
At closing, the builder submits a full construction budget, and the lender sets spending limits against each line item. Every draw request afterward gets measured against that budget using standard forms — most often the AIA G702/G703 pay application, which breaks the contract sum into a schedule of values so each request shows exactly what percentage of each trade is complete, per PropertyMetrics — Understanding the Construction Draw Schedule.
Here’s the actual sequence on a typical single-family build:
1. Milestone completes. Foundation gets poured, framing goes up, or mechanical/electrical/plumbing rough-in finishes.
2. Builder submits a draw request tied to that milestone, showing what work is done and what it cost.
3. An independent inspector visits the site to confirm the paperwork matches reality. If it doesn’t, the lender can trim or deny the request, per Sekady — What is a Construction Draw?.
4. The title company or escrow agent reviews lien waivers from the prior draw before releasing the new one — unconditional waivers from draw one show up with the request for draw two, and so on down the line.
5. Funds move directly to the contractor and subcontractors, not into the borrower’s checking account, which is the detail most first-time builders don’t expect coming from a standard purchase mortgage.
A title company or escrow agent typically administers this whole chain because it protects everyone against mechanic’s liens landing on the property later. The general contractor submits a sworn statement listing every subcontractor entitled to payment from that draw, each of those parties supplies a lien waiver, and the escrow agent confirms there’s enough money left in the budget before releasing anything, per Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Fund — Construction Escrow Services. Interest during this phase only accrues on funds actually disbursed — not on the full committed amount — which keeps carrying costs low early in the build and rising as more capital goes out the door.
None of this involves the bank statement loan. It’s a completely separate system, run by a completely separate lender, on a completely separate timeline.
Where the Bank Statement Loan Enters the Picture
The bank statement loan comes in once the structure is finished, insured, and appraised. For an investment property, it also needs to be rent-ready enough for an appraiser to give a market-rent opinion. At that point, the loan pays off the construction balance. Qualification runs on deposits instead of traditional personal-income documents.
For a self-employed borrower, a founder, or an investor whose tax returns understate real cash flow, this is where the math actually matters. Across the programs Lendmire places files with, qualifying income is calculated from 12 or 24 consecutive months of personal or business bank statements, after applying an expense ratio against the deposits. That ratio tends to scale with staffing and business type. It’s typically lower for a service business with no employees, and rises for operations with several employees. It’s higher still for larger operations or any product-based business — though an accountant-provided ratio or a profit-and-loss method can apply on select files. Transfers a borrower moves from their own business into a personal account count in full toward qualifying income. This matters for anyone running construction-adjacent businesses, where deposits often land irregularly.
Loan sizing on this side of the transaction runs through two separate wholesale ladders. A portfolio non-QM program carries files to $6,000,000. A bank portfolio program, using 12 months of statements, carries larger balances up to $30,000,000 on its own leverage ladder — roughly 65% loan-to-value to $5,000,000, 60% to $10,000,000, and 55% up to $30,000,000, with interest-only capped at 60% or the band’s ceiling, whichever is lower. These two programs overlap between $4,000,000 and $6,000,000; above $6,000,000, the bank program stands alone.
Leverage on a primary residence steps down as the balance grows: 90% up to $1,000,000, 85% up to $2,000,000, 80% up to $3,000,000, and 75% at the strongest credit tier up to $4,000,000. Past $4,000,000, every file moves to case-by-case review before it’s even submitted — there’s no flat “up to” figure at that size, and credit and reserve requirements tighten with it. Second homes and investment properties generally run about five points lower at every size tier than a comparable primary residence.
The Appraisal Problem on a New Build
A brand-new rental has no lease history, which creates a real gap at the exact moment the take-out loan needs to size itself off rental income.
For a conventional one-unit investment property, appraisers typically use Fannie Mae’s Single-Family Comparable Rent Schedule (Form 1007) to support market rent. DSCR and bank statement programs can use different forms and adjustment rules, depending on the lender. New construction doesn’t automatically earn a rent premium over comparable existing homes. Instead, location, unit count, square footage, bedroom and bathroom count, parking, and local supply all drive the number the appraiser lands on. If that supported rent comes in lower than what the borrower projected while budgeting the build, it can shrink the funds available under whatever program is financing the take-out.
This is also where documentation type matters most. A borrower going the DSCR route qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide walks through how that coverage math works for an investor who’d rather lean on the property’s income than personal deposits once the build is finished and leased.
The Timing Risk Nobody Budgets For
The single biggest structural risk in this whole sequence: there’s no guarantee the take-out lender approves the permanent loan on the terms the borrower expected when they broke ground.
Working with a lender early and getting DSCR or bank statement terms mapped out before construction starts is the practical way to reduce that exposure. Investors typically start the permanent-financing conversation roughly 90 days before completion, bringing rental comps, floor plans, and projected rent details to the table so the take-out lender can pre-underwrite the file while the last draws are still going out. A completed appraisal can still land below the construction budget or an earlier as-completed estimate — cost doesn’t establish market value, and comparable sales, condition, and local demand all move the number independently.
Reserve requirements at this size aren’t trivial either. On files running through Lendmire’s network, reserves typically run 3 months of payments up to $500,000 in loan amount, 6 months up to $1,500,000, and 9 months above that, plus roughly 2 additional months for each other financed property the borrower carries, up to a 12-month maximum. A borrower who’s poured most of their liquidity into the construction budget can find those reserve requirements harder to clear than they expected at the permanent-loan stage — which is exactly why lining up the take-out early, rather than after the certificate of occupancy is issued, matters.
Builder’s risk insurance is a related trap. It’s rarely required by law for a private project, but nearly every construction lender requires it in place before the first draw moves, and it typically only covers physical damage to the structure — not the extra interest, taxes, and insurance costs that pile up if a covered loss pushes completion back. Investors budgeting a build should ask specifically whether their policy includes a delay endorsement, because the standard version usually doesn’t.
For the Self-Employed Builder or Investor
An investor whose income comes from an S-corp, a construction-adjacent business, or a portfolio of rental properties often has the hardest time on a standard purchase mortgage precisely because traditional income documentation understate real cash flow. That’s the borrower profile this whole structure was built for.
Say an investor runs a specialty contracting business and draws irregular owner distributions. They want to build a spec rental to hold long-term. Their conventional personal-income paperwork shows modest net income after depreciation and business write-offs. But their business account shows healthy, consistent deposits. A bank statement program looks past the tax return. Instead, it calculates qualifying income from those deposits, after applying the applicable expense ratio. That’s a materially different number than what a conventional lender would use. Once the build finishes and the appraiser supports market rent, that same borrower can pivot to a DSCR permanent loan. This loan qualifies off the property’s own rental coverage, not personal income at all. DSCR loans are designed for non-owner-occupied investment properties. Because they’re reviewed as business-purpose loans, the underwriting process looks different from a standard owner-occupied mortgage.
Business funds generally can’t count as reserves on these programs. Reserves need to come from the borrower’s own liquid assets, not the operating business. Are you weighing whether business capital can help satisfy a reserve requirement? Look at how Lendmire structures reserve documentation on a super jumbo file before assuming it will count.
Conventional financing also caps an investor at ten financed properties. This limit doesn’t apply to DSCR or bank statement lending. That’s part of why investors scaling a portfolio past that ceiling often turn to this structure, regardless of the construction question.
Common Mistakes Investors Make
Assuming one loan does both jobs. The construction lender and the permanent take-out lender are almost always different entities with different underwriting standards. Treating the bank statement loan as a source of construction draws is the single most common misunderstanding on these deals.
Waiting too long to start the permanent-loan conversation.申请ing for take-out financing after the certificate of occupancy is issued, rather than roughly 90 days before completion, leaves no room to fix an appraisal or reserve shortfall before the construction loan needs to be paid off.
Underestimating reserve requirements. A borrower who commits nearly all liquidity to the build can come up short on the reserve math the permanent lender needs to see, especially once other financed properties are factored in. Exact terms depend on the lender’s guidelines, property type, leverage, and a full review of the borrower’s file.
Assuming builder’s risk covers delay costs. It typically doesn’t, without a separate endorsement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a bank statement loan ever fund construction directly?
Generally, no. The programs in Lendmire’s wholesale network — the portfolio non-QM program to $6,000,000 and the bank portfolio program to $30,000,000 — are built as permanent or take-out financing on a completed, appraised property. Ground-up construction draws run through a separate construction facility controlled by a different lender.
What size loan can a bank statement borrower get on a completed new-construction property?
Loan amounts through Lendmire’s network run from $300,000 to $30,000,000, split across two programs with different leverage ladders. Leverage steps down as the loan size grows, and every file above roughly $4,000,000 goes through individual underwriter review before submission rather than a published grid.
How does the expense ratio affect qualifying income for a builder or contractor?
The expense ratio is a fixed percentage subtracted from gross deposits to estimate business overhead before calculating income — generally lower for a lean service business with minimal staff, and higher for larger or product-based operations with more overhead. A contractor with irregular monthly deposits still gets averaged across the full 12- or 24-month statement window, not judged on any single low month.
Can the construction lender and the permanent lender be the same company?
Sometimes, through a one-time-close structure, but most super jumbo and bank statement scenarios use a two-time-close approach — a separate construction loan followed by a separate permanent loan. That split creates the requalification risk discussed above, which is why early coordination with the take-out lender matters.
What happens if the appraised value comes in below the construction budget?
Lower proceeds, potentially. The permanent loan sizes off the appraiser’s completed-value opinion, not the construction cost basis, so a gap between what was spent and what the property appraises for can reduce available loan proceeds under whatever program is financing the take-out.
Is your build almost done? Are you ready to line up permanent financing on the finished property? Lendmire can help. We compare bank statement and DSCR options based on the appraisal, your deposit history, leverage, and program fit. These loans are arranged through select lenders in our wholesale network.
Self-employed borrowers can compare both super jumbo programs on Lendmire’s self-employed mortgages page.
About Lendmire
Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a DSCR-focused mortgage broker that helps arrange investor financing across 40 markets, including Washington, D.C., through wholesale and investor-lending channels. DSCR eligibility is generally reviewed by the lender around the property’s rental income rather than personal income documentation, subject to lender guidelines — which works for self-employed investors, LLC operators, and portfolios above four financed properties. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
1. PropertyMetrics — Understanding the Construction Draw Schedule
2. Sekady — What is a Construction Draw?
3. Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Fund — Construction Escrow Services
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.
