Many New York City portfolios are built from small buildings: a two-family in Queens, a three-family in the Bronx, a semi-attached house on Staten Island. With five or more, a single loan across boroughs can replace a stack of separate mortgages.
In short: LendingStreet offers blanket portfolio loans that combine five or more New York City investment properties, each 1 to 8 units, into one DSCR loan qualified on combined portfolio cash flow. There are no W-2s or tax returns, LLC borrowers are standard, and release provisions let you sell one building while the rest stay financed. Portfolio pricing applies, and some programs can add properties in other states.
Outside Manhattan, the backbone of small-investor portfolios is the two- and three-family house. Queens has brick two-families in Jamaica, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Woodhaven and Corona, and attached three- and six-family brick buildings in Ridgewood. Brooklyn has frame and brick two-families in East Flatbush, Flatbush, Canarsie and Bensonhurst, plus brownstones and limestones in Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights. The Bronx has two- and three-families in Wakefield, Williamsbridge, Throgs Neck and Pelham Bay, and Staten Island has semi-attached and detached two-families across the North and Mid-Island.
Small walk-ups with five to eight units are also residential for this program and fit inside a blanket. Buildings with nine or more units are commercial.
A blanket loan can cross borough lines, so a portfolio spread across four boroughs can still be one loan.
City rents are high, but prices are higher, so many individual buildings struggle to reach 1.0x at full leverage. That is why NYC blankets are often sized at lower leverage than in other markets. Portfolio DSCR helps by letting stronger buildings, often three-families in the Bronx or Queens, carry weaker ones.
Taxes on one- to three-family homes are relatively modest in tax Class 1, with a 6% assessment ratio and caps on annual increases, while four- to eight-unit buildings fall in Class 2, with a 45% assessment ratio. Insurance and water and sewer charges also vary by building. Use actual bills for each property.
Insurance and repair costs on older city buildings can also differ more than owners expect. A frame two-family on Staten Island, a brick three-family in the Bronx and a brownstone in Brooklyn may carry very different premiums, and roof, boiler and facade work on a 90-year-old building can be expensive. Keeping reserves at the portfolio level, rather than building by building, gives you room to absorb those costs without missing the single monthly payment.
This example is illustrative and not a quote. An investor owns six two- and three-family buildings worth a combined $5,980,000, with $37,100 in monthly rent from 15 units.
At 60% of value, the blanket loan is $3,588,000, with estimated principal and interest of about $25,088. Property taxes total $3,600 a month and insurance $1,800, for a payment of about $30,488. Portfolio DSCR is about 1.22x.
At 70% of value, the loan would be $4,186,000, the payment about $34,669 and DSCR about 1.07x, which clears 1.0x but leaves little room for a vacancy or a tax increase. The investor chooses 60%.
| Property | Value | Monthly rent |
|---|---|---|
| Bronx two-family (Williamsbridge) | $850,000 | $5,200 |
| Queens two-family (Jamaica) | $950,000 | $5,600 |
| Staten Island semi-attached two-family | $780,000 | $4,700 |
| Brooklyn two-family (East Flatbush) | $1,050,000 | $6,000 |
| Bronx three-family (Wakefield) | $1,000,000 | $7,200 |
| Queens three-family (Ridgewood) | $1,350,000 | $8,400 |
| Total | $5,980,000 | $37,100 |
New York City and State charge a mortgage recording tax on new mortgage debt, roughly 2% of the loan amount on one- to three-family homes and higher on other property types. On a multi-million-dollar blanket, that is a significant closing cost.
When you refinance existing mortgages, a consolidation, extension and modification agreement (CEMA) can let the new loan absorb the existing mortgage balances so that tax is only paid on new money. Whether a CEMA is available depends on the existing lenders' cooperation and the program. Ask about it early, since assignments from prior lenders take time.
How the two compare for a typical NYC small-building portfolio.
| Issue | Blanket loan | Separate DSCR loans |
|---|---|---|
| Buildings that miss 1.0x alone | Carried by the portfolio | Need lower leverage or a sub-1.0 program |
| Recording tax on refinance | One CEMA across the group, if available | One CEMA per loan |
| Selling one building | Release price at sale | Pay off that loan |
| Boroughs | All on one loan | Separate files |
| Administration | One payment and escrow | Several servicers |
A release provision lets you sell one building by paying the release price set in the loan documents, usually based on that building's allocated loan amount. The remaining group may need to still meet a minimum ratio afterward. Our release clause guide shows the math.
City investors often sell a building to a buyer who will live in it, since two- and three-families are popular with owner-occupant buyers, and keep the rest as rentals. Plan the likely order of sales before closing. A two-family sold vacant to an owner-occupant often brings a higher price than one sold with tenants, so some investors time a sale around a natural lease expiration. If you expect to sell more than one building over the loan term, tell us up front so the release terms fit the plan.
Rent stabilization generally applies to buildings with six or more units built before 1974, so most two- to four-family homes are not stabilized, while some five- to eight-unit walk-ups may be. State law passed in 2024 added good cause eviction protections in the city, with exemptions that include some small landlords. Have counsel review how each building is covered.
Only legal units count. Basement and cellar apartments without a certificate of occupancy are common in some neighborhoods, and their rent generally cannot be used.
We can move faster with a complete package.
Our investor loans are business-purpose loans on non-owner-occupied property. Send your schedule through the form below or call (877) 298-1001. We will run portfolio DSCR at a few leverage levels, discuss whether a CEMA may apply and model a release. For properties elsewhere in the state, see our New York blanket loan page.
At least five investment properties, each with 1 to 8 units.
Yes. Properties across the five boroughs can be on one loan.
Prices are high relative to rents, so lower leverage is often what lets the portfolio clear 1.0x.
It may, if the existing lenders assign their mortgages. It depends on the program and the lenders.
Generally not. Stabilization usually applies to buildings with six or more units built before 1974. Confirm each building's status.
Only legal units on the certificate of occupancy count toward rent.
You pay the release price set in the loan documents, and that building comes off the lien.
No. The portfolio's rental income qualifies the loan.
2-3 competing quotes from 30+ capital sources. No credit pull. No commitment.
By clicking, you provide express written consent to be contacted by LendingStreet (NMLS #1734316) via SMS, phone, or email, possibly using automated technology, regarding your loan inquiry. Reply STOP to opt out. Consent is not required to obtain services. See our Privacy Policy and Terms.