In Mobile, plenty of good rentals cost less than a typical loan minimum. A $160,000 house in Tillman's Corner rents well, but financing it alone can be awkward. Put seven of them together and the math changes.
In short: LendingStreet offers blanket portfolio loans that combine five or more Mobile-area investment properties, each with 1 to 8 units, under one loan with one closing and one payment. The loan qualifies on the combined cash flow of the portfolio rather than your personal income, and release provisions let you sell individual properties. It is especially useful in Mobile, where many single-family rentals are priced low enough that an individual loan on each would fall below the $150,000 minimum.
Mobile has a large supply of brick ranch homes, small cottages and older duplexes that sell for well under $200,000 and rent to steady working households. At 75% LTV, a $165,000 house supports a loan of about $124,000, which is below our $150,000 minimum for an individual DSCR loan. Combined into a blanket, the same houses easily clear the minimum as a group.
Investors here also tend to buy across the county, from Midtown to West Mobile to Saraland and Theodore. One blanket loan replaces a pile of small notes, private loans and cash purchases with one payment and portfolio pricing, and can free up equity in properties bought with cash.
West Mobile and the areas off Airport Boulevard and Schillinger Road have 1960s to 1990s brick homes that are popular with tenants who work at the hospitals, the University of South Alabama and the Airport Boulevard retail corridor. Tillman's Corner, Theodore and Semmes offer lower prices and larger lots. Saraland, Satsuma and Chickasaw to the north draw families and plant workers.
Closer to downtown, Midtown, Crichton and Leinkauf have older bungalows and duplexes, and the historic districts have Creole cottages and shotgun homes. Some investors add Eastern Shore rentals in Daphne or Spanish Fort for a higher-priced slice of the portfolio.
| Area | Common stock | Typical tenant base |
|---|---|---|
| West Mobile | Brick ranch homes, some fourplexes | Hospital, university and retail workers |
| Tillman's Corner, Theodore, Semmes | Single-family homes on larger lots | Families, industrial and port workers |
| Midtown, Crichton, Leinkauf | Bungalows and older duplexes | Medical staff, students, downtown workers |
| Saraland, Satsuma, Chickasaw | Single-family homes | Families, plant workers |
| Eastern Shore | Newer homes at higher prices | Professionals and families |
This example is illustrative and not a quote. An investor owns four single-family homes, two duplexes and a fourplex across Mobile County, 12 units in all, valued at $1,415,000 with combined rent of $12,550 a month. On their own, 4 of the seven properties would need loans below the $150,000 minimum at 75% LTV.
As a blanket at 75% of combined value, the loan is $1,061,000. Estimated principal and interest is about $7,238. Property taxes across the portfolio are about $1,420 a month and insurance, including wind coverage, is about $1,150. The total payment is about $9,808 and portfolio DSCR is about 1.28x.
| Property | Area | Value | Monthly rent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-family | West Mobile | $165,000 | $1,350 |
| Single-family | Tillman's Corner | $160,000 | $1,325 |
| Single-family | Midtown | $175,000 | $1,400 |
| Single-family | Saraland | $165,000 | $1,325 |
| Duplex | Midtown | $210,000 | $1,900 |
| Duplex | Crichton | $200,000 | $1,850 |
| Fourplex | West Mobile | $340,000 | $3,400 |
| Total | $1,415,000 | $12,550 |
Each property in the blanket carries an allocated share of the loan. When you sell one, you pay its release price, which is set in the loan documents and on many programs is above the allocated amount. In the example above, the Midtown house carries about $131,000 of the loan; at a release price of 115% of that allocation, its sale would pay about $151,000 toward the balance.
The remaining properties must still support the remaining loan. Release terms vary by program, so ask how they are set before you sign. Our blanket release clause guide explains the mechanics.
Wind and hurricane coverage is usually the biggest variable cost for a Mobile portfolio. Properties south of Interstate 10 and near the bay or rivers tend to cost more to insure, and some will be in FEMA flood zones that require flood coverage. Homes farther north, in Saraland or Semmes, often price lower.
Ask your agent to quote the whole portfolio at once, and check named-storm deductibles. Properties with FORTIFIED roofs can earn wind discounts from Alabama insurers, which makes roof replacements on older rentals worth planning.
Alabama assesses rental property at a 20% assessment ratio, compared with 10% for a primary residence, but millage rates are low, so tax bills stay modest by national standards. When you buy from owner-occupants, the bill goes up after the classification changes, so use the rental figure for each property.
Mobile County bills property taxes once a year. Lenders typically escrow taxes and insurance on a blanket loan, so your one payment covers all of it.
A blanket loan suits Mobile investors who plan to hold, want one payment and need to get lower-priced houses over the loan minimum. Separate DSCR loans can be better if you plan to sell properties often, or if some properties are much stronger than others and could qualify for better terms alone.
Send a property schedule with addresses, units, estimated values, current rents and loan balances, plus leases, tax bills, insurance declarations and your LLC documents. A clean schedule speeds up the review.
If some properties are titled in your personal name and others in one or more LLCs, say so up front. Many investors move everything into one entity at closing, and the title company will need time to prepare the deeds. Note any properties with open code issues, recent storm claims or tenants on month-to-month terms, since those can affect how each property is valued and how much rent is counted.
Our investor loans are business-purpose loans on non-owner-occupied property. Call (877) 298-1001 or use the form below, and we will show you how a blanket compares with separate loans for your Mobile portfolio.
Yes. That is one of the main reasons Mobile investors use blanket loans. Five or more properties can be combined even if each would fall below the $150,000 minimum on its own.
Five or more investment properties, each with 1 to 8 units.
Yes. Properties across Mobile and Baldwin counties can sit under one blanket, and some programs allow properties in more than one state.
Yes. Cash-out is available on many blanket programs, subject to the portfolio's combined value and cash flow. Seasoning rules vary by program.
Each property needs coverage, including wind and flood where required. Many investors use one agent to quote the whole portfolio.
You pay its release price from the sale, and the rest of the portfolio stays under the same loan.
No. Blanket loans qualify on the properties' cash flow, with a 620 minimum credit score.
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