DSCR loan calculator

Two different formulas travel under the name DSCR, and they give different answers on the same property. Pick the one your lender uses for the headline; the calculator keeps the other on screen, because being handed the wrong one is how a borrower arrives at an underwriting surprise.

Loaded with the example property from our guides. Every figure is yours to change, and the results update as you type or drag.

Your lender's definition
Headline ratio

Rental-loan programs divide gross rent by principal, interest, taxes, insurance and dues. Nothing comes off for vacancy, management or repairs.

Income and costs
Loan
You know
$3,070/mo
Term
Your lender

Coverage, PITIA basis

Gross rental income
$60,000
Annual principal and interest
$36,838
Taxes, insurance, dues
$9,000
Annual PITIA
$45,838
DSCR
1.31

Coverage, NOI basis

Gross rental income
$60,000
Vacancy and credit loss
$3,000
Operating expenses
$21,000
Net operating income
$36,000
Annual principal and interest
$36,838
Annual debt service
$36,838
DSCR
0.98

The two definitions

Commercial and agency underwriting divides net operating income by annual debt service. Operating expenses come out of the numerator first, so vacancy, management and maintenance all push the ratio down.

Most single-family DSCR loan programs divide gross rent by PITIA — principal, interest, taxes, insurance and association dues. Nothing is deducted for vacancy, management or repairs, so on the same property this reads materially higher. That is a program convention, not an accounting identity, and it is why the ratio your lender quotes may not match the one you calculated.

Why there is no minimum shown here

Because there isn't one to show. Published minimums vary by loan type and by tier — Fannie Mae's multifamily standards, for instance, set DSCR requirements per mortgage loan type through its underwriting guide rather than as a single figure, and single-family DSCR loan products are non-agency programs whose thresholds each lender sets and moves as rates move.

Enter the number your lender actually quoted you and the calculator measures against that. A figure invented here would be worth less than the one in your term sheet.

The three levers when it comes up short

A ratio below your lender's minimum has only three fixes, and they are all arithmetic: raise the income, lower the payment, or put more money down so there is less loan to cover. Interest-only periods raise the ratio by lowering the payment, which is why some programs offer them — and why the ratio goes back down when the period ends.