Investors without US citizenship or residency buy American real estate constantly, and the financing is more available than most assume. What changes is not whether a loan exists but which kind, because the standard qualification tools, a domestic credit score and US tax returns, are missing. Here is what replaces them.
What is actually missing, and what is not
A foreign national borrower typically lacks three things a conventional lender depends on: a US credit file, US tax returns and a domestic employment history.
What is not missing is everything that matters most in asset based lending. The property exists, it has a value, it can produce income and it can be sold. Equity can be documented. A plan can be evidenced.
That is why property qualified lending is the natural route. It asks the questions a foreign borrower can actually answer.
The programs that fit
Short-term asset based lending. Our bridge program publishes rates from 9.00% to 13.00%, LTV up to 75% on residential and 70% on commercial, loans from $150,000 to $25,000,000 and terms of one or two years, with no borrower experience required, non-owner occupied occupancy, minimal documentation required and no prepayment penalties. Larger or commercial assets, across retail, office, industrial, multifamily, mixed use and land, run on the same program up to $25,000,000.
Property qualified long-term lending. Our rental DSCR program publishes 5, 7, 30 and 40 year fixed terms, LTV up to 80%, rates from 6.50% on the Non-QM tier, non-owner occupied occupancy and first time investors allowed, with published benefits including DTI not calculated, short term rental income permitted and non warrantable condos permitted. The loan is sized on the property’s income rather than the borrower’s employment, which is precisely the point for an overseas investor. Our post on how DSCR is calculated covers the arithmetic.
Renovation and construction. Our fix and flip program publishes up to 85% of the purchase, 100% of the rehab and 75% of ARV, terms of 6 to 18 months and rates from 9.99% to 12.00%, and the construction program publishes LTC up to 80% including the lot, the build and the interest reserve, on terms of 12 to 18 months.
Expect the leverage offered on a foreign national file to sit at the conservative end of a published band. Lower leverage is how a lender gets comfortable when parts of the usual picture are unavailable, and it is a trade rather than a rejection.
What documentation replaces the credit file
Identity. Passport and, where applicable, visa documentation. Requirements vary by lender, so ask early exactly what is acceptable and in what form.
Source and evidence of funds. Bank statements, often from a foreign institution, showing the money for the down payment and reserves. Statements in another language usually need certified translation, and statements from an unfamiliar institution take longer to verify. Start this first.
Credit, in whatever form exists. Some lenders will consider an international credit reference or a letter from a foreign bank. It does not substitute for a domestic score, but it adds to the picture. An ITIN mortgage is a separate route for borrowers who have a US tax identification number.
The property file. Purchase contract, valuation, and for a rental the lease or market rent evidence.
The entity. Formation documents, good standing and signing authority if you are borrowing through a US company.
Structure and vesting
Most foreign investors hold US investment property through a US entity. It is normal, it is well understood by lenders, and it keeps the ownership and the signing authority clean.
It also has tax and legal consequences in both your home country and the United States that only your own advisors can address. Get that advice before you form anything, because restructuring after a loan has funded is slow, expensive and can breach a due on sale clause. Our post on vesting an investment loan in an LLC covers what the lender needs from whatever structure you choose.
Whatever you decide, get the entity formed, registered and in good standing before the application. It is the most common self inflicted delay on these files.
The logistics that actually decide your timeline
Our files close in 5 to 7 days, and as quickly as 3 days on low documentation. On a foreign national file the underwriting rarely sets the pace. These do.
Notarization abroad. Requirements differ by country and by document. Confirm what the title company and lender will accept, and where you can get it done, before closing week.
Funds transfer. International wires take time, banks ask questions and cut-off times are real. Move money earlier than feels necessary.
Time zones. Every question costs a day when the answer arrives overnight. Nominate one person who can respond quickly.
Translation. Anything not in English generally needs certified translation.
Insurance. Placing a policy from abroad can take longer than expected, and it is a condition of funding.
Solve these in week one and the file closes on the lender’s timeline rather than the postal service’s.
Where the property matters most
Some property types add their own questions regardless of who is borrowing. A condominium’s warrantability affects which programs are available, which our post on non-warrantable condo financing covers. Short term rental property carries local regulatory questions, covered in short term rental loans.
Where to start
The foreign national scenario page sets out how we handle these files, and where we lend shows the footprint: we have funded over $1.5B across 46 states from San Diego. Call (619) 617-2797 or open a file on the borrow page. Tell us the property, the structure and where you are, and we will tell you which program fits and what to start gathering today.
