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Colorado · Rental property loans

DSCR loans in Colorado

A DSCR (debt service coverage ratio) loan is a business-purpose mortgage on a rental property, based on the property’s own rent instead of your personal income.

Run the numbers first: DSCR calculator

Read what borrowers say

We make DSCR loans on rental properties in Colorado, as a direct mortgage lender based in New Jersey. For business purposes only.

  • Direct mortgage lender
  • NMLS #103098
  • Equal Housing Lender

Start with the rent

See what the rent supports, then talk the property through.

Fidelity Residential · NMLS #103098 · Equal Housing Lender

Census figures

Colorado rental market in figures

Rents and prices well above the median

Colorado’s median gross rent, $1,761 a month, is above the national median of $1,413, and its median home value, $539,400, is also above the national $332,700. About 33.8 percent of Colorado’s occupied homes are rented, close to the national 34.8 percent, and its median real estate taxes paid, $2,602 a year, are below the national median of $3,119.

Colorado’s median real estate taxes paid are below the national median, but with home values well above it, principal and interest are a large part of the payment. Enter the property’s own tax bill, the insurance quote and any association dues in the calculator before you make an offer.

For a DSCR loan, what matters is how the rent of the property you have in mind compares with its own full monthly payment: principal, interest, property taxes, insurance and any association dues. State medians are a starting point, not a substitute for the lease, the appraiser’s market rent, the tax bill and the insurance quote on that property.

Colorado at a glance

  • Median gross rent: $1,761 a month, rent plus utilities (national: $1,413)
  • Median home value: $539,400, owner-occupied homes (national: $332,700)
  • Renter households: about 0.8 million, 33.8 percent of occupied homes (national: 34.8 percent)
  • Median real estate taxes paid: $2,602 a year, owner-occupied homes (national: $3,119)
  • Largest cities: Denver, Colorado Springs, Aurora, Fort Collins and Lakewood

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020-2024 (tables B25064, B25077, B25003, B25103 and B01003). Estimates, not counts.

How we lend

DSCR loans on Colorado rentals, from a New Jersey lender

Fidelity Residential is a direct mortgage lender based in New Jersey. We make DSCR loans on rental properties in Colorado: business-purpose loans for landlords and investors, based on the property’s rent instead of your personal income.

You work with us by phone, email and online. A loan officer can look at the lease, the tax bill, the insurance quote and the costs of the property you have in mind and tell you early how the rent compares with the payment, before you spend money on an appraisal.

How it works

How a DSCR loan works

DSCR stands for debt service coverage ratio. The lender compares the property’s monthly rent with its full monthly payment: principal, interest, property taxes, insurance and any association dues. That comparison, the ratio, takes the place of your personal income.

No tax returns, pay stubs or debt-to-income ratio are used. Your credit, your record of housing payments, the money for the down payment and reserves, and the appraisal are still checked. The rent used is generally the lower of the lease and the appraiser’s market rent.

It is a business-purpose loan for landlords and investors buying or refinancing a property nobody on the loan lives in. You can hold title in your own name or in a company, such as a limited liability company, with the owners signing as personal guarantors.

How the ratio reads

  • Above one: the rent covers the payment with room to spare
  • At one: the rent just covers the payment
  • Below one: the rent falls short of the payment; fewer programs fit

A worked example, in words. Say you are buying a townhouse in Colorado Springs to rent out.

  1. The rent. The rent used is generally the lower of the lease and the appraiser’s market rent; some programs count a higher lease when you can show it has been paid. On a property with more than one unit, the rent of every unit counts.
  2. The payment. Add up principal and interest, the property’s own tax bill, the insurance, flood insurance if the property needs it, and any association dues, all by the month.
  3. The ratio. Divide the rent by the payment. If the rent is larger than the payment, the ratio is above one; if it is smaller, the ratio is below one and fewer programs fit.
  4. What moves it. A higher tax bill or insurance premium raises the payment without raising the rent, so the ratio goes down. A smaller loan lowers the principal and interest, so the ratio goes up.

The DSCR calculator does this arithmetic with your own figures and shows the loan size the rent would support. It is an estimate, not a decision.

Colorado

DSCR loans for Colorado rentals

Two things to get right early on a Colorado rental.

Taxes, insurance and dues

Use the property’s own figures

Property taxes, insurance and any association dues are part of the monthly payment the rent has to cover. When you run the DSCR calculator for a Colorado rental, enter the property’s own tax bill, a real insurance quote and the dues, because each feeds straight into the ratio.

Mountain and resort rentals

By the year or by the night

A home let to a tenant on a lease is a DSCR loan like any other rental. A home let by the night or week through a booking platform is financed through our short-term rental loans, where local rules allow the property to be let short-term, so check the local rules, and any association’s rules, before you buy. Both are for business purposes only.

Before you sign a contract on a Colorado rental

  • The current tax bill for the property itself, from the seller, the listing agent or the local tax office
  • An insurance quote, with flood insurance if the property needs it, because both are part of the payment
  • Any association dues, and for a condominium, the association’s rules on renting; some condominiums can lower how much you can borrow
  • The local rules on renting, and on short-term letting if you plan to let by the night or week
  • Renovation plans: work that adds value can raise the assessment, and with it the tax bill, so ask the local assessor
Properties

Colorado rentals a DSCR loan can finance

Each program sets its own rules for the property. These are the main kinds we finance.

Long-term rentals

Houses, townhouses and condos

A single home let to a tenant on a lease, or one you are buying to rent out. The rent is taken from the lease and the appraiser’s rent schedule.

Small multifamily

Two to four units

The rent of every unit counts toward the ratio. Nobody on the loan may live in any of the units.

Larger buildings

Five to ten units and mixed use

Small apartment buildings, and buildings with homes and a shop or office, based on the building’s rent. The appraisal and the reserves ask for more, and the programs want an experienced landlord.

Loans for five to ten units and mixed use
Nightly or weekly

Short-term rentals

A house, condo or two to four units let through a booking platform. Programs count this income differently from a lease, and the property must be allowed to be let short-term where local rules require it.

Short-term rental loans
Purchase or refinance

Buy, refinance or take cash out

Buy a rental, refinance to change the loan, or take cash out of a rental you own.

How a cash-out refinance works
After a flip

From a short-term loan to a rental loan

If you bought and renovated with a fix and flip loan and decide to keep the property, a DSCR loan can replace the short-term loan once the property is rented.

Fix and flip loans
Be ready

What you need for a DSCR loan

No tax returns or pay stubs. Most investors can start with these.

  • Bank or investment statements for the down payment, closing costs and reserves
  • The current lease on a refinance, or the booking history for a short-term rental
  • Your purchase contract, when you are buying
  • Company documents if a company will hold title
  • A list of the rentals you own, where the program asks about experience
  • Photo identification for each borrower or guarantor

The steps. Tell us about the property; we check credit and you send statements; the appraiser values the property and reports market rent, and we work out the ratio; you sign a statement that the loan is for business purposes and that nobody on the loan will live in the property; then underwriting, title, insurance and closing. Our DSCR loan guide has the detail, and the DSCR calculator works out the ratio from the rent and costs you enter.

Not sure a DSCR loan is the right fit? A conventional investment loan is underwritten on your own income; a DSCR loan on the property’s rent. See DSCR or conventional investment loan, or test a deal first with the rental deal analyzer.

Questions

Questions from Colorado investors

Do you make DSCR loans in Colorado?

Yes. We make DSCR loans on rental properties in Colorado, for business purposes only. Fidelity Residential is a dba of PFN Lending Group, Inc. (NMLS #103098), a direct mortgage lender based in New Jersey. You can look the company up on NMLS Consumer Access (opens in a new tab).

How do I work with you on a Colorado rental?

By phone, email and online. Tell us about the property through the quote form or call 732-686-9999. The appraiser inspects the property and reports its market rent, and a loan officer works through the rest of the file with you.

How is DSCR calculated on a Colorado rental?

Divide the monthly qualifying rent by the full monthly payment: principal, interest, property taxes, insurance and any association dues. The qualifying rent is generally the lower of the lease and the appraiser’s market rent. On a Colorado rental, use the property’s own tax bill and insurance quote, and add flood insurance if the property needs it. The DSCR calculator does the arithmetic for you.

Can I finance a Colorado mountain vacation rental?

Yes, as an investment property. A home let by the night or week is financed through a short-term rental loan, where local rules allow short-term letting; check the local rules and any association’s rules before you buy. Nobody on the loan may use the property as a home, even part of the year.

Can I finance a Colorado condo or townhouse?

Yes, as a rental. Condos and townhouses are among the rentals a DSCR loan can finance. The association dues are part of the payment the rent has to cover, each program sets its own rules for the condominium, and some condominiums can lower how much you can borrow.

What DSCR do I need?

It differs by program. Some programs consider a property whose ratio is below one; others need the rent to cover the payment in full, at one or above, so fewer programs fit. The ratio, together with your credit, the loan size and the property, also sets how much you can borrow against the value. Ask a loan officer about the property you have in mind.

Can a company hold title?

Yes. Title can be in your own name or in a company such as a limited liability company, and the owners sign as personal guarantors. We tell you which company documents to send.

Do you lend in other states?

Yes. Business purpose loans such as DSCR loans follow their own list of states, which is not the same as the list for home loans; a loan officer can confirm it for your property. Fidelity Residential is licensed in many states. The full, current list is on NMLS Consumer Access (opens in a new tab), or call us at 732-686-9999.

Have a Colorado rental in mind?

Get a quote online, or call and talk the property through with a loan officer.

What happens next

  1. Tell us about your loan. A few quick questions about the property and the loan you want. No credit check to start and no obligation.
  2. A licensed loan officer reviews your answers and follows up with you, usually within one business day.
  3. This is a request for a quote, not a loan application and not a commitment to lend.

Business purpose investor loans are for investment property only.

This page is general information, not a commitment to lend. Programs, terms and eligibility depend on credit, property, rent and underwriting review and are subject to change without notice.

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