The questions borrowers ask before they apply.

RateLogiq is for borrowers whose income or property does not fit the standard W-2 mortgage template: self-employed business owners, freelancers and 1099 professionals, real-estate investors, and homeowners who want to use their equity without replacing a first mortgage they like. The common thread is that a tax return, a pay stub or a debt-to-income ratio tells an incomplete story about what you can afford. Programs such as bank statement, DSCR, alternative-documentation and home equity lending measure the same borrower in a different way. If your situation is conventional, we say so, because a conventional loan is usually the less expensive path.

A lender funds the loan with its own money or credit lines and underwrites it to its own guidelines; a broker does not fund loans but arranges them, taking your file to one or more lenders and matching your scenario to their programs. Both are regulated, and both must follow the same federal consumer-protection rules, but the trade-offs differ: a lender controls its own process and pricing, while a broker offers a wider menu of programs, which matters most in non-QM lending, where guidelines vary widely from one lender to the next. Broker compensation and the identity of the funding lender are disclosed in your loan documents. RateLogiq's own licensing status is listed on the Licensing & Disclosures page.

Yes. Salaried and hourly borrowers often have a reason to look past a conventional loan: a side business or rental portfolio that complicates the file, a property outside agency rules, or a rental purchase that fits a DSCR loan better. W-2 homeowners also use home equity lines. If your income and property are conventional, a conventional mortgage is usually the less expensive route, and we say so.

It depends on how you earn and how the property will be used. Self-employed owners whose returns understate cash flow usually start with a bank statement loan; investors buying a rental look at DSCR; homeowners keeping a good first mortgage look at a home equity line; 1099, P&L and asset-based earners, alternative documentation. The scenario review form asks for ranges so a licensed professional can name the programs worth pricing.

There is no single number, and we do not publish one, because each lender sets its own minimum for each program and prices across the whole range above it. Non-QM and DSCR programs tend to lean harder on credit than a conventional loan does, since the income side is documented differently, and the same score can fit one lender's program and not another's. The history behind the score matters as much as the score: recent late payments, a bankruptcy or foreclosure and how long ago it was resolved, and open collections. Tell us the range you fall in on the scenario review form and a licensed professional will identify the programs that fit it; nothing is decided from the form, and no report is pulled until you authorize one as part of an application.

Non-QM means a mortgage that sits outside the federal qualified-mortgage definition, the rulebook that limits a loan's features, fees and how income is documented. Outside that definition does not mean outside underwriting. For a home you will live in, the lender still has to verify your ability to repay from records such as bank statements or assets, and a rental you will not occupy is business-purpose credit underwritten to its rent. Pricing is generally less favorable than conventional financing. Read What is a non-QM loan? for the trade-off in full.

No. Subprime describes a borrower's credit profile; non-QM describes how a loan is documented and structured, and the two are independent. A self-employed owner or investor with strong credit whose income a tax return understates is a typical non-QM borrower, not a subprime one. The higher cost reflects the documentation method, not a judgment about the person. What is a non-QM loan? covers the difference in full.

A bank statement loan is a mortgage that calculates your qualifying income from deposits into your bank accounts over a set period, typically 12 or 24 months, instead of from tax returns and W-2s. The lender still verifies your business, credit, assets and the property; only the income method changes.

That is the situation the program exists for. A bank statement loan does not use the income on your returns; it calculates qualifying income from the deposits flowing into your accounts over the statement window, so a return that shows modest income after depreciation, vehicle, home-office and equipment deductions does not cap the loan the way it would with a conventional lender. Underwriting still verifies the business, your credit, your assets and the property, and it reads the deposit trend as well as the total, so a declining pattern or large unexplained credits can lower the figure. Before choosing the program, we run your returns with the standard add-backs first, because a file that qualifies conventionally after add-backs usually costs less.

Read Bank statement vs conventional: run both first for the calculation.

Most programs accept either. Personal-account programs generally count eligible deposits in full because business expenses have already been paid before the money reached you. Business-account programs apply an expense factor to estimate what the business retains; a CPA-prepared expense letter or profit-and-loss can often support a factor that better reflects your business. Which account you use, and how the deposits are treated, varies by lender.

How the factor is set, and what can move it, is explained in Bank statement loan expense factor explained.

It depends on the trend. A shorter window reflects your current run-rate and helps a growing business; a longer window smooths seasonal or lumpy income and is required by some programs or for some borrower profiles. We look at both before recommending a program.

The full comparison is in 12-month vs 24-month bank statement loans.

Underwriters typically exclude transfers between your own accounts, loan proceeds, refunds, gifts, and large or unusual deposits you cannot document as business income. A declining pattern of deposits can also reduce the qualifying figure. Reviewing statements before you apply, and documenting anything unusual, avoids surprises.

The full exclusion list, with examples, is in Which deposits count on a bank statement loan.

Usually not for income qualification; that is the point of the program. Some lenders still ask for limited tax items for other reasons, and you will always need the standard mortgage documents: identification, credit authorization, asset statements and property documents. We confirm the exact list for the program you choose.

Before you skip the returns, read Bank statement vs conventional for the self-employed; a return that qualifies after add-backs usually costs less.

No. Subprime describes the borrower's credit profile; bank statement describes the income documentation method. Bank statement programs are non-QM loans made to borrowers with real, verifiable cash flow that tax returns understate. Credit and the property are still fully evaluated.

Programs set their own history requirements, and some have exceptions for borrowers with prior experience in the same field. Rather than publish a number that may not apply to you, we confirm the requirement for each program we consider for your scenario.

If you are early in the business, Self-employed for less than two years: mortgage options covers the paths lenders accept.

Many bank statement programs allow a primary residence, a second home or an investment property, each with its own rules, and some limit the property types they accept. For a rental you will not live in, compare the DSCR route, which qualifies on the property's rent and leaves your statements out of it. We run both when both fit.

They can. Underwriters read overdrafts and returned items as a sign that deposits are being spent as fast as they arrive, and programs set their own tolerance for how many they will accept over the statement window. If you have some, gather the explanation before you apply; a clear story about a one-time event reads very differently from a pattern.

Programs commonly allow one borrower to qualify on bank statements while a co-borrower documents wages with pay stubs and W-2s, and the two incomes are combined. How each income is documented varies by lender, so tell us about both incomes at the start.

A DSCR loan is business-purpose financing for a non-owner-occupied rental property that qualifies primarily on the property's debt service coverage ratio, meaning its rental income divided by its full monthly housing payment, along with the borrower's credit and the property itself. Personal income, employment and debt-to-income ratio are generally not part of the calculation.

Monthly rental income divided by the full monthly payment: principal, interest, taxes, insurance and any association dues (PITIA). A ratio at break-even means the rent exactly covers the payment; higher means more cushion. The DSCR calculator walks through the arithmetic with your own numbers.

For the rent the lender uses and the appraisal rent schedule, read How DSCR is calculated.

For a leased property, the lease; for a vacant purchase, the appraiser's market-rent analysis. Many programs use the lower of the two. Short-term rental income is documented differently, through platform history or a specialized appraisal analysis, where a program allows it at all, and is often treated conservatively.

The lease-versus-market question is worked through in How DSCR is calculated.

Most DSCR programs allow title to be held in an LLC or similar entity, with the investor signing a personal guarantee. The lender will ask for entity documents such as the articles of organization, operating agreement and EIN letter. Rules vary by lender and state.

The document list and the guarantee are covered in DSCR loans in an LLC.

Generally no; the property's rental income qualifies the loan. You will still provide credit authorization, asset statements for funds to close and reserves, leases or a rent analysis, entity documents if applicable, and property documents. Some lenders ask for limited additional items; we confirm per program.

Some programs accept first-time investors, sometimes with different requirements than experienced landlords; others require prior rental-property experience. We match your scenario to programs that fit rather than assuming one rule applies everywhere.

What lenders look for on a first file is in DSCR loans for first-time investors.

No. DSCR loans are business-purpose financing for non-owner-occupied investment property. Misstating occupancy to obtain one is mortgage fraud. If you plan to live in the property, bank statement or alternative-documentation programs are the starting point.

Many do, and the structures vary: step-down schedules that decline each year, yield-maintenance formulas tied to market rates, and buydowns that shorten or remove the penalty in exchange for different pricing. State law also limits them in some places. Because a penalty affects your exit strategy, we cover it before you choose a program, not at closing. The three structures, and how to choose among them, are explained in DSCR loan prepayment penalties: step-down, yield maintenance and buydowns.

There is no single number. Each lender sets its own coverage requirement by program, and most price in tiers: a ratio at or above break-even is the common reference point, a higher ratio generally earns more favorable terms, and some programs accept a ratio below break-even with different terms or a smaller loan while others decline it. The result also depends on which rent and which payment the lender uses, so two lenders can read the same property differently. Run your figures in the DSCR calculator, then let the actual threshold come from the program we price for your scenario.

Some DSCR programs finance short-term rentals; others use long-term market rent only or exclude the use entirely. Where it is allowed, the income is documented from platform payout history, third-party market data or an appraiser's short-term rental analysis rather than a lease, and lenders treat the result conservatively, often capping it at long-term market rent or asking for a stronger ratio. Underwrite your purchase on the conservative figure, and check local permits and HOA rules first, because a restriction on short-term use is an underwriting risk as well as an operating one. Our guide to DSCR loans for Airbnb and short-term rentals covers the evidence lenders accept.

It depends on the program's seasoning rules, and there is more than one clock: title seasoning runs from the date you took ownership, loan seasoning from the date the current financing closed, and lease seasoning from when a tenant began paying. Until the required period has passed, many lenders value the property at your documented cost rather than the appraisal, which limits how much cash comes out. Keep renovation invoices and proof of payment, and ask which clock a program measures before you schedule the refinance. Our guide to DSCR cash-out refinancing and seasoning walks through the three limits.

The arithmetic is accurate; the inputs are yours, and the result is only as good as they are. Each calculator applies standard formulas to the numbers you enter and states its assumptions, but it does not know your actual rate, the lender's guideline, the appraised value, or the taxes and insurance a lender will use. Treat the output as a way to see how the pieces interact and to test scenarios, not as a quote or an approval. Real figures come on a Loan Estimate after a licensed professional has reviewed your file.

Because a rate on a calculator would be a quote, and no rate that applies to you can be known before a lender has seen your credit, the property and the program you choose. The calculators treat the rate as an input you enter, so you can watch a payment or a coverage ratio move as the rate changes, which is more useful than a single published number that would be wrong for most visitors. Non-QM pricing also varies widely between lenders and changes often. When you are ready for an actual figure, it arrives on a Loan Estimate, alongside the fees and assumptions that make it meaningful.

No. The DSCR calculator divides the rent you enter by the full monthly payment you enter to show the coverage ratio and explains what that ratio means, but it does not set a threshold, and it cannot tell you whether any lender would accept the result. Lenders set their own coverage requirements, decide for themselves what rent counts, and adjust pricing or loan size when a ratio falls below their target, all of which varies by program. A result at or above break-even is a useful signal, not an answer. Use the calculator to understand how rent, price, rate, taxes and insurance interact before you talk to a professional, and let the actual guideline come from the lender.