In short
Key takeaways
- The clean path is 12 months of host statements from Airbnb or Vrbo, averaged over the trailing twelve to smooth seasonality.
- No history? Some desks accept a market projection, haircut commonly around 20 to 25%, and cap the LTV lower for the privilege.
- STR files typically see LTV ceilings 5 to 10 points below the same lender’s long-term DSCR caps.
- Condotels are not part of this conversation: they route to a separate, smaller lender pool with their own terms.
Written and reviewed by the Intel Loans, Inc. lending team · NMLS #2858705Updated July 2026
The rulebook
How DSCR desks treat short-term rental income, mid-2026
There is no agency standard for STR underwriting; every non-QM lender writes its own matrix. These are the patterns we see across our wholesale lending partners as of mid-2026. For the baseline DSCR program these rules sit on top of, start from the DSCR loan requirements page.
| Underwriting question | How most desks handle it, mid-2026 | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Income with 12+ months of history | Trailing-twelve average of actual gross receipts from Airbnb or Vrbo host statements | Statements must tie to your bank deposits; a spreadsheet you built is not documentation |
| Income on a purchase with no history | Market-data projection (AirDNA-style report or the appraiser's STR analysis), with a haircut commonly around 20 to 25% | A smaller pool of desks accepts projections at all, and the LTV cap drops with them |
| Seasonality | The trailing-12 average smooths it; nobody underwrites your best month | A property bought mid-slow-season with only 6 months of receipts usually cannot annualize them |
| Minimum DSCR vs long-term | Expectations run tighter; where a long-term file clears at 1.0, STR programs commonly want a cushion above it | Sub-1.0 flexibility that exists for long-term rentals largely disappears on STR files |
| LTV ceiling | Typically 5 to 10 points below the same lender's long-term DSCR cap | Projection-based files sit at the lower end of that range |
| Property types | Single family, townhomes, and warrantable condos are the clean lane | Condotels and buildings with rental desks route to a separate, smaller pool; see our non-warrantable condo guide |
| Local licensing | Lenders ask whether short-term rental is legal at the address and whether required licenses are in place | A city that prohibits STRs can kill the income analysis regardless of the receipts |
| Reserves | Often at the higher end of the DSCR norm, 6 months of PITIA and up | Volatile income is the stated reason; plan for it in your cash-to-close math |
The number that decides your file: 1007 rent vs actual receipts
Every DSCR file on a single-family property gets an appraiser’s long-term market rent opinion (Form 1007), and on an Airbnb that number is almost always far below what the property actually grosses. Which number the lender uses is the single biggest fork in STR underwriting. History-based STR programs qualify you on the trailing-twelve host receipts. Long-term DSCR programs, and STR-unfriendly desks, qualify you on the 1007. A few programs compare the two and use the lower. Using the higher of the two is rare; most desks pick a lane and stay in it.
Practically, this means the same property can be a 1.25 file at one lender and a sub-1.0 decline at another, with identical documents. Before you write an offer, run both versions of the ratio in our DSCR calculator: once with the realistic short-term gross, once with your best guess at long-term market rent. If the deal only survives on the STR number, the list of lenders that can do it just got a lot shorter, and the file needs to be routed accordingly.
The Florida layer
Licensing and insurance: the two Florida questions every STR lender asks
Can you legally run it?
In Florida, renting out a whole unit more than three times a year for stays under 30 days generally makes it a vacation rental that needs a DBPR license, plus state sales tax and county tourist development tax registration. Then the local layer: cities and counties add their own registration ordinances, and some, Miami Beach being the famous example, restrict short-term rentals to specific zones and enforce with heavy fines. Lenders on STR files ask the licensing question directly: is short-term rental legal at this address, and are the required registrations in place or obtainable?
A no on that question does not just complicate the loan. It means the income model the whole purchase rests on is not legally available, which is worth knowing during the inspection period rather than after closing.
Can you insure it, and what does that do to the ratio?
A landlord policy written for a long-term tenant typically does not cover short-term rental activity. STR properties need commercial or short-term-rental endorsement policies, and those cost meaningfully more, especially on the Florida coast where wind coverage is already the budget-killer. That premium is not a side note: insurance sits inside PITIA, so every extra dollar of premium drags the DSCR down before the lender ever looks at your receipts.
Price the actual STR policy before you price the loan. Our Florida insurance guide covers what lenders require and how the premium flows through the ratio math.
Worked example
One Orlando house, two very different ratios.
Hypothetical example for illustration only, not a quote or an offer. A 4-bedroom near the Orlando attractions, bought as an established short-term rental with a full year of host statements. Purchase price $520,000 with 25% down ($130,000), loan amount $390,000.
On an STR-friendly desk, the income is the trailing-twelve average of actual receipts: $5,100 per month gross. Against a PITIA of $4,080, which includes the pricier STR insurance policy, the ratio is 1.25 and the file sits comfortably in the program.
Now run the identical file at a desk that only uses the appraiser’s long-term rent. The 1007 comes back at $3,300, which is what the house would fetch on an annual lease. Same PITIA, and the ratio is 0.81. On that desk this is a sub-1.0 file: at best a lower LTV tier with tougher pricing, at worst a flat no. Same house, same buyer, same documents.
$520,000 purchase, $390,000 loan
A 1.25 and a 0.81 out of the same paperwork. The spread between those two numbers is why STR files have to be routed, not blasted out to whoever answers first.
Decision guide
Which path fits your file
If the property has 12+ months of host statements and the trailing-twelve gross clears PITIA with room to spare, the STR path is usually the stronger file: real receipts beat any projection, and you get the widest choice of desks.
If the long-term market rent alone covers the payment, consider qualifying on the 1007 as a standard long-term DSCR file even if you plan to run it as an Airbnb. You get more lender choice and often better terms, and the underwrite does not depend on the STR income at all. The property still has to be legally operable as an STR, and your insurance still has to match the actual use; qualifying on long-term rent is not a license to misstate how the property operates.
If there is no history and the deal only works on projected STR income, you are in the narrowest lane: projection-accepting desks, a haircut on the income, and a lower LTV cap. It is financeable, but expect the most conservative terms on this page.
If the projection barely clears even before the haircut, wait. Twelve months of actual receipts converts you from the narrowest lane to the widest one, and a marginal projection file that closes anyway carries all the ownership risk with none of the cushion. Sometimes the right brokerage advice is a date, not a loan.
What the STR version of this loan costs you
More cash in, less leverage out. Between the lower LTV ceilings and the heavier reserve expectations, an STR file simply consumes more cash than the same purchase as a long-term rental. Budget for it before you fall in love with the revenue projection.
The ratio bar is higher and the cushion is yours to maintain. STR income is volatile by nature: a slow season, a platform algorithm change, or a new competitor two doors down all hit your gross. The lender underwrote a cushion precisely because the volatility is your problem, not theirs. The payment is due in the slow months too.
Licensing risk survives the closing. If your city tightens its ordinance mid-loan, the debt does not care. Underwrite your own downside on the long-term rent number: if the house can at least approach break-even on an annual lease, a rule change is painful; if it cannot, a rule change is a forced sale.
Why route it through us
We know which desks take projections and which want receipts.
STR underwriting is the least standardized corner of the DSCR world. One wholesale desk averages your host statements, the next haircuts an AirDNA report, the third only sees the 1007. As a brokerage we keep the matrices, so your file goes to the desks built for it the first time, instead of dying twice at lenders that were never going to count the income. Send the address, the receipts or projection, and your credit range; we come back with the realistic options in writing.
Questions we actually get
Do lenders actually accept AirDNA projections?
Some do, as of mid-2026, and that is the honest answer: some. The desks that accept market-data projections apply a haircut, commonly in the 20 to 25% range, cap the LTV lower than a history-based file, and want the projection to reconcile with the appraiser's own short-term rent analysis. Other desks refuse projections entirely and want 12 months of receipts, full stop. Knowing which is which before submission is the whole game.
What happens if my city bans short-term rentals after I close?
The loan does not automatically default, but the risk lands on you, not the lender. Your payment does not change while your income model does. If the property cannot cover PITIA as a long-term rental, you carry the gap or sell. This is why we underwrite the file's downside on the appraiser's long-term rent before anyone commits: if the deal only works as an STR, you should know that going in.
Can I use Airbnb income to qualify for a conventional loan instead?
Generally not on a purchase. Conventional guidelines qualify rental income from leases and the appraiser's long-term rent schedule, and documented short-term rental income on a property you already own can sometimes be used through tax returns. For a purchase with no landlord history, projected Airbnb income is not a conventional qualifying tool. Rules have edges and overlays vary, so ask us about your specific file, but plan on DSCR being the practical path.
Can I get a DSCR loan on a condotel I run as an Airbnb?
Sometimes, through a smaller and more expensive pool of lenders. Condotels fail agency warrantability by design (rental desk, hotel-style amenities, high investor concentration), and most mainstream DSCR desks exclude them too. The programs that remain want bigger down payments and price for the resale risk. Start from our non-warrantable condo guide before you write the offer.
Do I need my short-term rental license before closing?
Requirements vary by lender and by city. In Florida, a whole-unit vacation rental generally needs a DBPR license to operate, and cities layer their own registration on top. Some lenders want proof of legal operation or eligibility before closing; others confirm the property type is permitted and leave licensing to you. Either way, get the licensing question answered before your inspection period ends, because it is a business problem even when it is not a loan condition.
Price the Airbnb the way a lender will.
Send the address, the host statements or projection, and your credit range. We run the ratio both ways and tell you which desks the file actually fits.
This is not a commitment to lend or an offer of credit. All loan approvals are subject to credit review, underwriting, and property evaluation. Programs, terms, and conditions are subject to change without notice.
Intel Loans, Inc., NMLS #2858705. Licensed in Florida. Verify our licensing at nmlsconsumeraccess.org. Equal Housing Opportunity.
DSCR loans discussed on this page are business-purpose loans secured by investment property. They are not for homes you or your family will occupy.
Worked examples on this page are hypothetical illustrations for education, not quotes or offers. Your figures, including receipts, taxes, insurance, and payment amounts, will differ.