Persona 01
Real Estate Investor.
Buying a rental or short-term rental property. Want to qualify on the property’s cash flow rather than your personal income or DTI.
Conventional and government-backed loans don’t fit every file. Investors, self-employed borrowers, gig workers, asset-rich retirees, buyers caught between properties - there’s a real program for each, with real underwriting standards. Six core structures, plus three more when the deal calls for them.
Non-QM and alt-doc loans aren’t fallback options - they’re purpose-built structures for specific borrower profiles. Find the persona that matches your file, then read the deep dive below for the program that fits.
Buying a rental or short-term rental property. Want to qualify on the property’s cash flow rather than your personal income or DTI.
Business owner or freelancer with strong cash flow but heavy tax write-offs making your AGI look smaller than your real income.
1099 contractor, real estate agent, gig-economy professional, or commission-only earner. Income is real, but it isn’t W-2.
Retired, between businesses, or living off investments. Limited current income but significant liquid assets that should count toward qualification.
These four personas cover the most common non-QM use cases, but they’re not exhaustive. Buy-before-you-sell scenarios, foreign nationals, recent credit events, complex income mixes - each has its own path. Ask on the first call.
Debt-Service Coverage Ratio loans qualify investment-property borrowers on the property's cash flow - not on their personal income or DTI. The ratio is simple: monthly rent divided by monthly debt service (PITIA). A DSCR of 1.0 means the property breaks even; 1.25 means it covers 125% of its debt; lenders set minimums based on file strength.
There's no personal income verification, no W-2s, no tax returns. Underwriting looks at the property's rent (actual or market-appraised), the borrower's credit, the down payment, and reserves. That's it. This makes DSCR the workhorse for serious real-estate investors building portfolios.
Best for: 1–4 unit rental properties, short-term rentals (Airbnb / Vrbo), portfolios where personal DTI is already maxed. Most common loan structure is 30-year fixed, with 5/1 and 7/1 ARM options for borrowers who plan to refi or sell within the lock period.
Self-employed borrowers - small business owners, consultants, professional service providers - often have a problem: real income looks great in their bank account but small on their tax return because of deductions and write-offs. Bank statement loans qualify on deposits instead of tax returns.
Underwriting averages 12 or 24 months of personal or business bank statements, applies an industry expense factor (typically 50% for service businesses, less for product/inventory businesses), and uses the resulting figure as qualifying income. The math reflects real cash flow rather than tax-optimized net income.
Best for: business owners 2+ years self-employed with steady deposits, professionals whose Schedule C shows heavy depreciation or expensing, contractors paid into a business account. CPA letter or business license usually required to confirm the self-employed status.
A simpler alternative to bank statement loans. Instead of averaging 12–24 months of bank deposits, underwriting uses a CPA-prepared profit & loss statement for the same period as qualifying income. The CPA's net income figure becomes the borrower's qualifying income directly - no expense factor calculation.
Works well for established self-employed borrowers with strong CPA relationships and clean books. The CPA attests to the figures on a signed statement, which the lender uses as a substitute for tax returns or bank statement averaging. Less paperwork than bank statement, but the CPA letter and signed P&L are required.
Best for: established self-employed borrowers (3+ years), professionals with strong CPA relationships, business owners whose financials are already CPA-reviewed for other purposes. Generally tighter credit and reserve overlays than bank statement programs.
Real estate agents, doctors on contract, IT contractors, sales reps, gig-economy professionals - the 1099 economy is huge, and conventional underwriting's reliance on tax returns doesn't fit it well. 1099 income loans qualify on 1099s directly, avoiding the tax-return mess.
Underwriting takes 12 or 24 months of 1099 income statements, applies an industry expense factor (typically 10–20% - lower than bank statement programs because 1099 income tends to have fewer deductions), and uses the result as qualifying income.
Best for: commission-only earners with multi-year 1099 history, contractors with consistent gigs, gig-economy workers earning primarily through 1099 platforms. Year-end 1099s plus year-to-date earnings statement typically required.
For borrowers with significant liquid assets but limited current income - retirees, FIRE'd professionals, those between businesses, beneficiaries of windfalls. Asset utilization converts liquid assets into qualifying “income” using a simple division: asset balance ÷ a defined number of months = monthly qualifying income.
Lenders typically allow assets to be “amortized” over 60–84 months (5–7 years) for qualification purposes - even though the actual loan term may be 30 years. Eligible assets generally include checking, savings, brokerage, retirement (with a haircut), and CDs. Restricted assets (locked-up business interests, real estate) usually don't count.
Best for: retirees with strong nest eggs, recent business sale recipients, between-jobs professionals with reserves. Asset history (typically 3–6 months of statements) and origin documentation usually required to verify the assets are stable and the borrower's.
Short-term financing - typically 6 to 24 months - designed to bridge a gap between two transactions. Most common use: buy-before-you-sell, where a homeowner needs to close on a new house before their current one sells. Bridge loans also support fast-close investor scenarios and properties requiring rehabilitation before they can be financed conventionally.
Underwriting is equity-based: the lender focuses on the property’s value and the borrower’s exit plan (sale of existing home, refinance into permanent financing, project completion) more than on long-term DTI. Rates and fees are higher than long-term financing because the lender is taking on near-term repayment risk, but the speed and flexibility solve real problems.
Best for: move-up buyers locked into a contingent-sale problem, investors closing on a flip or rental before conventional financing is available, anyone needing to close in days rather than weeks. Closings as fast as 10–14 days are possible on equity-strong files.
Three additional loan structures we handle but don’t deep-dive here. Less common than the six above, but real options when the deal calls for them. Specifics differ widely by file - we’ll walk through your situation on the call.
Financing for commercial real estate: multifamily 5+ units, office, retail, industrial, and mixed-use. Handled through the dedicated commercial division at Rize Mortgage, with its own underwriting standards and pricing.
Visit Rize Commercial →A Home Equity Conversion Mortgage for homeowners aged 62 and up. Tap equity without monthly payments - the loan balance grows over time and becomes due on sale, move-out, or passing. Useful for aging in place and supplementing retirement income.
Ask about HECM →Wraps the cost of substantial home improvements into the mortgage itself. FHA 203(k), HomeStyle Renovation, and construction-to-perm. Lets buyers finance fixer-uppers without separate construction loans.
Ask about renovation loans →A twenty-minute conversation. Your situation, your documentation, your timeline. We match the file to the right structure - or tell you honestly when a conventional path would beat the non-QM option.