The Quick Read: Bank statements qualify the borrower on deposits flowing through personal or business accounts. Asset-based paths qualify the borrower on the balance sheet, meaning liquid assets divided over a set number of months. Through select wholesale programs, subject to full underwriting, the first fits self-employed borrowers with strong cash flow and the second fits borrowers with large liquid holdings and uneven income.
- Bank statements use 12 or 24 months of deposits after an expense ratio.
- The asset allowance divides liquid assets by 36, 60 or 84 months.
- Assets-only needs liquidity equal to the loan plus closing costs.
- The condo’s building review is a separate test that neither path can fix.
- Above $4,000,000, every file is reviewed case by case before submission.
Neither path is a conforming loan, and neither is built around tax returns. Pick the path by what your file documents best. Then check whether the building will get through review.
Side-by-Side
The column for each option shows how the network’s programs treat it. Where noted, the asset-based column reflects published industry norms with qualifiers, since terms differ by program.
| Factor | Bank Statement | Asset-Based |
|---|---|---|
| Reviewed on | Deposits after expense ratio | Liquid assets spread over months |
| Documentation | 12 or 24 months of statements | Account statements, sourced and seasoned |
| Best-fit borrower | Self-employed, strong deposits | Cash-rich, lumpy or low income |
| Occupancy | Primary, second, investment | Allowance: primary and second only |
| Reserves | 3, 6 or 9 months by size | Proceeds generally can’t count |
| Main risk | Expense ratio shrinks income | Assets tied up through closing |
Entity vesting varies by program. Whether a condo can sit in an LLC with a personal guaranty depends on the lender, and most income and asset products are written on an individual.
What Makes a Condo Non-Warrantable (and Why It Matters Here)
A condo is non-warrantable when the project fails the eligibility rules that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac apply to the units they buy. Common triggers include thin master insurance, deferred repairs, litigation, single-entity ownership concentration and hotel-style operation. Those agency rules have been revised in recent cycles, so a building flagged under an older checklist may now pass. Check current project status before assuming you need a non-QM route.
A fail is not a decline. Portfolio and non-QM programs run their own building review. Through select wholesale programs, subject to full underwriting, a non-warrantable condo is generally capped at 80% leverage, and condotels sit lower: 75% on a purchase and 65% on cash-out (50% on the bank portfolio program). Those caps stack on top of the leverage ladder for your loan size.
The building review and the borrower’s documentation are two separate tests. A strong asset statement does not fix a building with litigation. A clean building does not fix a thin deposit history. Both gates have to clear.
When Super Jumbo Bank Statement Is the Better Fit
Bank statements work when the money moves through accounts every month. Think founders, physicians, attorneys, entertainers and business owners whose tax returns understate income after write-offs.
Mechanics on the network’s programs:
- 12 or 24 consecutive months of personal or business statements. The bank portfolio program uses 12.
- Business statements need at least 25% ownership.
- Qualifying income is eligible deposits divided by the statement months, after an expense ratio. Fixed ratios are 20% for a service business with no employees, 40% for 1-5 employees, and 50% for 6+ employees or any product business. An accountant-provided ratio or a profit-and-loss method capped at 80% also exists.
- Transfers from your own business into a personal account count in full.
- Statements must be consecutive. Transaction histories don’t substitute.
Credit floors are 660 on the portfolio program up to the super-jumbo line, and 700 above that line on the same program. The bank portfolio program keeps its own 680 floor at every size. Debt-to-income runs to 50%. Reserves are 3 months to $500,000, 6 months to $1,500,000 and 9 months above, plus 2 months per additional financed property to a 12-month maximum.
Cash-out has room here. Proceeds are unlimited at or below 60% LTV. Above 60%, the portfolio program caps cash in hand at $1,500,000, while the bank program publishes no cap. Cash-out proceeds cannot satisfy reserves on super-jumbo files. Final terms depend on lender guidelines, property type, leverage, and the borrower’s complete credit picture.
Loan size drives leverage. On a primary residence, cash-out tops out at 80% to $1,500,000, 75% from $1,500,000 to $2,000,000, and 70% from $2,000,000 to $3,000,000. It steps to 65% from $3,000,000 to $4,000,000. From $4,000,000 to $5,000,000 it sits at 60%, case by case on review. The bank portfolio program carries it from there: 55% to $10,000,000, then 50% to $30,000,000, each on review. Investment property and second homes have their own ladders, so read each from its own table, never by subtracting from the primary figure.
The catch: the expense ratio can cut qualifying income hard. A product business with a large payroll gives up half of its deposits before the file is counted. If your deposits are strong but you run a heavy-expense business, the asset path may leave you a better margin.
When Asset-Based Cash-Out Is the Better Fit
Asset-based fits the borrower whose wealth sits in accounts rather than in monthly deposits. That includes a founder after a sale, a retiree, someone between engagements, or an investor with large brokerage balances.
Two variants exist, and they are not the same:
- Asset allowance. Liquid assets divided by 36 months is supplemental income when the file’s debt-to-income before the asset income is at or below 60%. It uses 60 months when that pre-asset ratio is above 60%, and 84 months when standalone or on any loan above $3,500,000. The 60% test only picks the divisor. The ratio with asset income counted must still fit the 50% ceiling. It runs on primary and second homes only, at 80% maximum.
- Assets-only. No debt-to-income calculation. U.S. liquid assets must equal the loan amount, plus closing costs, plus sixty months of any net loss on other residential property.
What counts and what doesn’t: retirement accounts count at 70% (80% at age 59.5 and up). Business funds, gifts, trusts other than a revocable living trust, unvested stock and cryptocurrency never count. Cash-out proceeds cannot be used to meet reserves or the asset test.
The catch is the first-order one. On an investment-property condo, the asset allowance isn’t available, because it covers primary and second homes only. An investor holding the unit as a rental may be pushed to bank statements, or to a property-cash-flow path, instead. Assets also have to be sourced and seasoned before they can count toward the loan.
Where the Two Paths Collide With the Condo
Say you own a non-warrantable condo as a second home, with a loan balance in the super-jumbo band and a business with uneven deposits. The asset allowance may carry you, but the 80% non-warrantable cap and the second-home ladder both apply, and above $3,500,000 the 84-month divisor is required. Run the ladder first. Then read the building’s budget, insurance and litigation history before you spend time on either documentation path.
Here’s a genuine toss-up: a borrower with both strong deposits and large liquid assets. Deposits keep the assets untouched. Assets avoid an expense ratio that can shrink income. The stronger play depends on which number is larger after the haircut, and a broker who sees several programs can price the file both ways before it goes in.
Overlays Above $3.5 Million
Past $3,500,000 on a primary residence, and past $3,000,000 on a second home or investment property, the super-jumbo overlays apply. Through select wholesale programs, those include a 700 credit floor, a 0x30x24 housing history, 48-month seasoning on any credit event, U.S. citizens and permanent residents only, no non-occupant co-borrowers, no rural property and ten acres maximum. Cash-out proceeds cannot satisfy reserves.
Every loan above $4,000,000 is reviewed case by case before submission. Any leverage figure at that size is a ceiling on review, not a promise.
Business-Purpose Treatment on Rentals
If the condo is a non-owner-occupied rental, the loan is generally treated as business purpose. Regulation Z § 1026.3 deems credit to acquire, improve or maintain non-owner-occupied rental property business purpose, but not if the owner expects to occupy the unit more than 14 days in the coming year. In finalizing the ability-to-repay rule, the CFPB also said investment-purpose loans fall outside that rule. Each program’s own guidelines then set the review basis. Occupancy statements matter, so the declared use has to match how you’ll actually use the unit.
When Neither Fits
A property whose rent covers its payment may fit a DSCR loan better than either path, since that qualifies primarily on property-level rental income covering the payment, subject to lender guidelines. Select lenders in the network offer sub-1.00 programs, with LTV and terms adjusting. Lendmire’s complete DSCR loans guide lays out that third path.
A Balanced Verdict
Choose bank statements if deposits are your strength, your business expense ratio is modest and the unit is a primary residence, second home or rental. Choose asset-based if your wealth is in liquid accounts, your income is lumpy, and the unit is a primary or second home. Choose DSCR if the rent carries the payment. In all three, the building has to clear review first.
Sort the file in this order:
1. Confirm the building’s current project status, budget, insurance and litigation history.
2. Compute the loan amount and read the leverage band for your occupancy and transaction.
3. Price the file on deposits and on assets, and compare the margin.
4. Assemble statements, source large deposits and gather the condo questionnaire.
If you are financing a high-balance property on your assets rather than income documents and want to see how the numbers work, Lendmire can help you compare super jumbo asset-qualification options based on your liquid assets, the property, credit profile, leverage, and your goals. Reach the team at 828-256-2183 or request a quote. Every figure here reflects select wholesale programs, is subject to full underwriting and is not a commitment to lend. Consumer mortgage lending is licensed in 16 states: AL, CA, CO, FL, GA, IN, MI, MT, NM, NC, OH, PA, TN, TX, VA and WA.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a non-warrantable condo get a super jumbo cash-out refinance?
Yes, through portfolio and bank programs that run their own building review. The condo is generally capped at 80% leverage, and the loan-size ladder applies on top. Above $4,000,000 it is reviewed case by case before submission.
Do either of these paths require tax returns?
Neither uses tax returns as the qualifying basis. Bank statements use deposits after an expense ratio, and asset-based paths use liquid balances. You still document the file in full, just through different records.
Can cash-out proceeds count toward reserves or the asset test?
No. On the network’s programs, cash-out proceeds cannot satisfy reserves on super-jumbo files, and they do not count toward qualifying assets. Reserves and assets have to be in place from existing, sourced funds.
Does the asset allowance work if the condo is a rental?
Not on the allowance variant, which covers primary and second homes only. An investor holding the unit as a rental would look at bank statements or a property-cash-flow path.
Which assets count at what value?
Retirement accounts count at 70%, or 80% at age 59.5 and up. Business funds, gifts, most trusts, unvested stock and cryptocurrency never count. A revocable living trust is the one trust that does.
A deeper walk-through of investment-property equity extraction lives in Lendmire’s guide to cash-out refinance on an investment property.
For current guidelines and terms, see Lendmire’s super jumbo bank statement loan programs page.
Lendmire’s self-employed mortgages page presents both super jumbo programs, bank statement and DSCR, side by side.
About Lendmire
Lendmire is a mortgage brokerage (NMLS# 2371349) licensed for consumer mortgage lending in 16 states, arranging bank statement and other alternative-documentation mortgages — P&L-only, 1099-only and asset-based paths — through a wholesale lending network. Eligibility is determined by the lender on each file. Scotsman Guide named Lendmire a Top Mortgage Workplace in both 2025 and 2026.
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References
2. Federal Register, Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgage Standards
This article is part of Lendmire’s super jumbo bank statement loan program — full qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the program page.
Related reading: How Lenders Underwrite a Super Jumbo Bank Statement Cash-Out Refinance With 1099 Income · Can You Get Approved for a Super Jumbo Bank Statement Cash-Out Refinance Through a Broker? · Best Super Jumbo Bank Statement Cash-Out Refinance Program on a Non-Warrantable Condo
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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- North Carolina Real Estate Broker · License# 343312 · Verify on NCREC
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- Lendmire LLC · Firm NMLS# 2371349 · Verify firm licensure
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.