🏠 Conventional Investment Property Loans
When your W-2 is strong, the conventional investor loan can be the cheaper door.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac both buy loans on non-owner-occupied 1–4 unit properties. You qualify the old-fashioned way — tax returns, pay stubs, debt-to-income — and in exchange you typically get a lower rate than a DSCR loan. Tiaira runs both side by side so you can see which one actually costs less for your deal.
Is this you?
Conventional investor loans tend to fit…
- W-2 or salaried investors with room in their debt-to-income ratio
- Buyers of their first or second rental who want the lowest available rate
- Investors with fewer than ten financed properties
- Deals where the rent is thin and a DSCR ratio would come in under 1.00
- Anyone who files clean tax returns and doesn’t mind documenting income
Questions investors actually ask
Conventional investor loans: straight answers
Does rental income count toward qualifying on a conventional investor loan?
Usually yes. Lenders typically count about 75% of the gross rent (from a lease or the appraiser’s rent schedule) to offset the new payment, with the rest treated as a vacancy and maintenance cushion. If the subject property’s rent covers its payment, it may not hurt your DTI at all.
Can I close a conventional investment loan in my LLC?
Agency loans close in your personal name. Many investors transfer title to an LLC after closing; talk to Tiaira and your attorney first, because servicers and insurance carriers have their own rules. If LLC vesting at closing matters to you, a DSCR loan is the cleaner fit.
How many financed properties can I have?
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac generally cap you at ten financed 1–4 unit properties, and reserve requirements climb as you add more. Past that point, DSCR and portfolio loans take over — which is a good problem to have.
Why is the down payment higher than on my primary home?
Investment property is higher risk to the lender, so the agencies require more skin in the game: typically 15% on a single-family rental and 25% on a 2–4 unit. Larger down payments also improve pricing.
Is the rate higher than an owner-occupied loan?
Typically yes — agency pricing adds loan-level adjustments for investment occupancy. It is still often lower than a DSCR rate for the same borrower, which is why Tiaira prices both.
Keep exploring
House hacking
Live in one unit, rent the rest. Low down payment because it’s your home — and the rent helps you qualify.
Learn more →Cash-out refinance
Pull equity out of a rental you already own — the “refinance” step of BRRRR — to fund the next one.
Learn more →DSCR Loans
Qualify on the property’s rent instead of your tax returns. The investor loan this whole site is built around.
Learn more →Not sure if conventional investor loans fit your deal?
That’s what Tiaira is for. One text, the realistic options priced side by side, zero pressure.