New York City owners of two-family homes, brownstones and small walk-ups often have large equity balances. A DSCR cash-out refinance can unlock it based on rent, but in the five boroughs the rent, not the value, usually limits the loan.
In short: Yes. LendingStreet refinances New York City investment properties with cash out up to 75% LTV, qualifying on rent instead of tax returns, with loans from $150,000 and a 620 minimum credit score. The rent must cover principal, interest, taxes, insurance and HOA dues at the program minimum. In New York City the costs to plan for are the mortgage recording tax, where a CEMA may limit the tax to new money, and rent rules that cap in-place rents on many buildings.
The idea is simple: the appraiser sets today's value, the lender lends up to 75% of it on a cash-out, your old loan is paid off and the rest is yours, before closing costs. Credit needs to be 620 or higher, and the property must be a non-owner-occupied rental with one to eight units.
What decides the amount is the debt service coverage ratio. The rent, from a lease or the appraiser's market rent estimate, is divided by the full new payment including taxes, insurance and any HOA. Because the cash-out raises the payment, run the ratio on the new loan, not the old one.
Two- and three-family homes are the core of small-investor NYC rental stock: brick and frame houses in Queens neighborhoods like Astoria, Ridgewood, Jackson Heights and Jamaica, brownstones and limestones in Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights and Flatbush, and attached homes across the Bronx and Staten Island. Small 5-8 unit walk-ups stay in residential DSCR programs.
Co-ops are generally not financed with DSCR loans because they are share loans. Condos can work with project review. Balances above about $1.5 million are common, which puts many NYC files in jumbo DSCR territory where larger balances get more review and max LTV can be lower.
New York City puts one- to three-family homes in Class 1, with caps on annual assessment increases, while buildings with four or more units are generally Class 2, with different rules. A fourplex can therefore have a very different tax bill than a three-family house of the same value.
Use your actual Department of Finance bill. Water and sewer charges are billed separately and are not part of the DSCR payment on most programs.
New York City's mortgage recording tax is among the highest in the country, combining city and state rates. On a refinance, a consolidation, extension and modification agreement, or CEMA, can limit the tax to the new money by assigning the existing mortgage to the new lender. Ask whether your program allows a CEMA, since it can save a large amount.
Expect title insurance, recording, appraisal, attorney and lender fees. New York's transfer taxes apply to sales, not a refinance where title stays with you.
Buildings with six or more units built before 1974 are generally rent stabilized, and the 2019 Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act limited how rents can rise. The 2024 Good Cause Eviction law also limits rent increases on many market-rate units. Underwriting uses in-place rents, so regulated units limit the loan.
Local Law 18 requires short-term rental hosts to register and be present, and whole-unit rentals under 30 days are generally not allowed. If you want STR income, look at markets elsewhere in New York State where local rules permit it.
This example is illustrative and not a quote. An investor owns a two-family brick house in Queens with total rent of $6,800 a month. The property appraises at $1,300,000, the existing loan balance is $500,000, and taxes and insurance run about $1,250 a month against total rent of $6,800.
At the full 75% LTV, the $975,000 loan would carry estimated principal and interest of about $6,817, a total payment near $8,067 and a DSCR of only 0.84x. The rent instead supports a loan of about $790,000, roughly 61% of value, with a payment near $6,774 and a DSCR of about 1.00x. After paying off $500,000, that still leaves about $290,000 before closing costs. If taxes and insurance rose, adding $200 a month, the ratio would slip to about 0.98x, so the rent, not the appraisal, is what caps this cash-out. A sub-1.0x program could size closer to the LTV limit, with terms that vary by program.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Appraised value | $1,300,000 |
| Maximum loan at 75% LTV | $975,000 |
| Existing loan payoff | $500,000 |
| DSCR at the full 75% LTV | About 0.84x |
| Loan the rent supports | $790,000 |
| Cash before closing costs | $290,000 |
| Estimated principal and interest | About $5,524 |
| Taxes and insurance | $1,250 |
| Total monthly payment | About $6,774 |
| DSCR at $6,800 rent | About 1.00x |
In many NYC files the rent supports a loan well below 75% of value. If you mainly want to replace a maturing loan, a rate-and-term refinance on the same balance may be simpler, and a CEMA can limit recording tax there too.
Two limits apply at once: 75% of the appraised value, and the loan the rent can support at the program minimum. Whichever is lower sets the cash. On two- to four-unit properties, the combined rent of all units counts, and on 5-8 unit buildings max LTV can be lower, so it varies by program. If the ratio falls short, programs below 1.0x exist, or a rate-and-term refinance may fit better.
Seasoning also matters. Some programs allow a cash-out soon after purchase, while others want several months of ownership or cap the loan at purchase price plus documented improvements. For rules that apply statewide, see our New York cash-out page.
A complete file usually closes faster and with fewer surprises.
Yes. Our investor loans are business-purpose loans on non-owner-occupied property. In New York City we finance cash-out refinances on 1-8 unit rentals up to 75% LTV, with loans from $150,000.
Yes. A CEMA can limit the mortgage recording tax to new money. Ask whether your program allows it.
Co-ops are share loans and generally do not fit DSCR programs. Condos and one- to eight-unit buildings usually do.
Yes. Underwriting uses in-place rents, so regulated rents below market reduce the loan the property supports.
No. The loan qualifies on the property's rent. You still need a 620 or higher credit score, reserves and LLC documents if the property is held in an entity.
Seasoning varies by program. Some allow a cash-out shortly after purchase; others want several months of ownership or limit the loan to cost plus documented improvements.
You can take a smaller loan that the rent covers, look at programs that allow a ratio below 1.0x, or compare a rate-and-term refinance.
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