Strategies
Investor financing strategies
22 guides, grouped by what each approach is actually solving — not every path to a rental property runs through a DSCR lender on day one, and this section covers the ones that don't, alongside the DSCR mechanics that most of them end at.
DSCR strategy 6 guides
The mechanics of DSCR lending itself — how the ratio is calculated, when it beats a conventional investor loan, and how it plugs into a BRRRR, an LLC, a foreign-national purchase, or a cash-out refinance.
How the DSCR Ratio Works
The formula every DSCR loan qualifies on: rent ÷ payment. Most lenders floor at 1.00; some go to 0.75–0.99 for a bigger down payment and a rate premium.
DSCR vs Conventional Investor Financing
Choosing between DSCR and a conventional investor loan. DSCR typically prices 1–2 points above conventional, in exchange for no income docs and no portfolio cap.
BRRRR Strategy with DSCR Exit
Buy-rehab-rent-refinance, financed with hard money into a DSCR refi. Hard money runs 9.5–12.5% and 1–3 points before the DSCR takeout resets the terms.
LLC Vesting for DSCR Loans
Why almost every DSCR lender wants the loan vested in an LLC. No separate price tag — it is a structural requirement, not a rate.
Foreign National DSCR Loans
How a non-US-resident investor finances a US rental. Expect 30–50% down, 10–13% rates, and a 60–70% LTV ceiling.
DSCR Cash-Out Refinance Strategy
Pulling equity out of a stabilized rental to fund the next deal. Caps at 75% LTV, and the property has to clear the lender’s DSCR floor at the new, larger payment.
Seller & creative financing structures 8 guides
Ways to acquire property without a new institutional loan — the seller’s mortgage stays in place, the seller becomes the lender, or the existing loan is assumed outright. Each one carries a due-on-sale or balloon exposure the marketing for these strategies usually leaves out.
The Due-on-Sale Clause Explained
What actually happens when a lender calls a subject-to or wrap loan. No cost of its own — the cost is a 30-day payoff demand on the servicer’s timetable, not yours.
Subject-To Real Estate Purchases
Buying with the seller’s existing mortgage left in place. Usually just the seller’s equity in cash — but the loan can be called at any time.
Assumable Mortgages: What Qualifies and What It Costs
Taking over an FHA, VA or USDA loan’s rate and balance. Assumption fees are capped and modest; the real cost is funding the seller’s equity gap in cash.
How to Assume a Mortgage, Step by Step
The step-by-step process for assuming an existing loan. Same equity-gap cost as assumption itself, plus a servicer timeline that commonly runs 60–90 days.
Wraparound Mortgages for Investors
Seller financing layered over a loan that stays in place. The buyer pays a rate above the underlying note; the seller keeps the spread until the balloon.
Seller Financing for Investment Property
The seller acts as the bank. Down payments commonly run 10–20%, with rate, term and everything else fully negotiated.
Land Contracts and Contracts for Deed
Seller financing where the seller keeps legal title until the final payment. Priced like any seller-financed sale — the difference is what happens on default, not what it costs.
Seller Carryback Financing
A seller-financed second lien that closes a purchase-price gap. Priced above the first-lien rate to compensate for standing behind it.
None of these are lender pages. Where a strategy ends at a DSCR refinance, its guide links to the DSCR calculator and to the lenders in our directory that are tagged for DSCR rental underwriting — never a claim that a specific lender writes the creative-finance step itself.