Let's Make Your Next Move Your Best One Yet

Conventional financing on a non-owner-occupied property generally requires 15% to 25% down depending on unit count and credit. DSCR loans typically want 20% to 25%. If you're willing to live in one unit of a two-to-four unit property, FHA lets you buy it with 3.5% down — which is how a lot of Iowa investors get their first door.

A DSCR loan qualifies on the property's rental income rather than your personal income, so there's no tax return or debt-to-income review. Lenders compare the property's rent to its total payment; a ratio of 1.0 or higher means it covers itself. It's the standard tool for Iowa investors whose tax returns understate their real cash flow, or who have hit conventional financing limits.

Yes, though how much counts depends on the loan. Conventional lending generally uses documented rents from your tax returns, often with a vacancy factor applied. For a property you're buying, a market rent appraisal can be used. On a DSCR loan the rental income is essentially the entire qualification. Which path is better depends on how your returns look.

Conventional guidelines generally cap you at ten financed properties, and the requirements tighten after the fourth. Past that, DSCR and portfolio loans have no such limit because they qualify property by property. Most Iowa investors I work with hit the conventional ceiling and transition — planning that shift before you hit it saves real money.

I'm licensed to originate mortgages in six states, with my home base at the Key Mortgage Group Des Moines office in Urbandale, Iowa. Reach out and I'll confirm licensing for your specific state.

Call or text me directly, or start an application online any time. I'm at the Des Moines office at 2370 NW 128th Street, Urbandale, Iowa 50322.

A conventional investment loan qualifies you — your income, your tax returns, your debt-to-income ratio. A DSCR loan qualifies the property, based on whether the rent covers the payment. Conventional usually prices better; DSCR doesn't care what your Schedule E looks like after depreciation. Most investors eventually use both.

Yes, if you live in one of the units. FHA allows two-to-four unit properties with 3.5% down when it's your primary residence, and conventional has low-down-payment options too. Living in one unit while tenants cover most of the payment is how a large share of Iowa investors get their first property.

On conventional financing, documented rental income from your tax returns generally helps, though lenders apply a vacancy factor and count the full mortgage payments as debt. If your properties are depreciated to break-even on paper, they can look like liabilities even when they cash flow. That's usually the moment to look at DSCR.

Yes, though requirements are tighter than on a primary residence — expect to leave more equity in place and to see slightly higher pricing. It's the standard way investors recycle capital from one property into the down payment on the next. Worth modeling the new payment against the rent before you pull the trigger.

Lenders typically want several months of the full payment held in reserve, and the requirement grows with the number of financed properties you own. This catches people off guard more than the down payment does — you need the down payment plus a documented cushion, not just enough to close.

A loan a lender keeps on its own books instead of selling to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, which means the guidelines are the lender's own. That flexibility is useful for unusual properties, borrowers past conventional financing limits, or files that make sense but don't fit an automated box. Pricing reflects the flexibility.