DSCR Loans in California

The eight lenders that lend in California

California is the one state here where the lender list shrinks: 8 of the 13 DSCR lenders compared say they lend there, because Ternus excludes it and Upright does not list it. It also has the highest median rent of the eight states, $2,160, and the highest share of renters.

• Easy Street Capital: Statewide, including Los Angeles and San Diego (its California DSCR page)
• CoreVest: Has a California DSCR page, which shows DSCR (1.0x); its 30-year DSCR page says 0.80x

Easy Street Capital's California page names Los Angeles and San Diego and claims statewide coverage. CoreVest has a California DSCR page. Kiavi keeps California on its state list without a California page. New Silver, Express Capital Financing, Lima One, LendingOne and Griffin Funding round out the eight.

Ternus lists CA among the states it does not lend in, and Upright's state list skips California. RCN Capital and Groundfloor publish no state list.

California rent versus the payment

With a 2025 median gross rent of $2,160 (Census ACS 2025, table B25064), a California rental at Lima One's 1x minimum can carry a payment of $2,160, or $1,728 at 1.25x.

Lima One advertises 6.5%. After an assumed $350 a month for taxes and insurance, that supports a 30-year loan of about $286,300 at 1.00x and $218,000 at 1.25x. A bigger loan than that pushes the ratio under 1.00x at this rent, so a higher-priced property needs more cash down to qualify.

California's median rent carries these maximum loans at each lender that publishes a minimum ratio and rate, after an assumed $350 a month for taxes and insurance:

• New Silver: 0.75x minimum at its advertised 6.875% gives about $385,100
• Kiavi: 0.8x minimum at its advertised 6.375% gives about $376,600
• Express Capital Financing: 1x minimum at its advertised 6.25% gives about $293,900 (it also offers a no-DSCR option)
• Lima One Capital: 1x minimum at its advertised 6.5% gives about $286,300

Why California's numbers rarely clear 1.00x

Full PITIA at the median home. Assume 20% down on the $734,700 median value, so a $587,760 loan at 6.5% (the starting rate Lima One Capital advertises) over 30 years: $3,715 a month in principal and interest. Add the median property tax ($5,124 a year, $427 a month) and an assumed $1,200 a year for insurance, and PITIA is $4,242. Against the $2,351 median 3-bedroom rent the DSCR is 0.55. That is below Lima One Capital's published 1x minimum. To reach 1.00x at that rent, the loan would have to fall to about $288,500, which means about $446,200 down (60.7% of the value).

California's median rent is $2,103 for two bedrooms and $2,351 for three (B25031), the highest of these eight states at every size. The median home was built in 1976 (B25035).

California renters and prices

44.3% of California's 13,898,622 occupied homes were rented in 2025 (table B25003), the highest share of the eight states. Rent rose 2.7% from $2,104, while home prices slipped -0.3% over the year to 2026 Q2 (FHFA): Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine +2.2%, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad +0.2%, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale -0.1% (FHFA metro index).

California prices rose +17.1% over five years, just ahead of Oregon (+15.7%) and well behind Nevada (+28.5%) and Arizona (+27.3%).

California trustee sales

The California Courts self-help guide says nonjudicial foreclosure is the most common type in California, because most deeds of trust carry a power of sale. The standard instrument is a deed of trust (Form 3005). Source: California Courts self-help guide.

California documentary transfer tax

Counties may charge a documentary transfer tax of $0.55 per $500 of value, $330 on a $300,000 purchase. Some cities add their own transfer tax, so check the city as well as the county. Source: California Attorney General opinion 06-1009, quoting Rev. and Tax. Code 11911.

On the $734,700 median California home the county documentary transfer tax at that rate is $808.50.

Two California lenders on this site list DSCR loans and publish rates. Source Capital Funding (Hard Money First) (San Diego, CA: hard money, bridge, private money, commercial, DSCR, owner-occupied, non-QM); California Hard Money Direct (No office address on its site: bridge, fix and flip, construction, land, mixed use, multifamily, DSCR, second mortgage).

California deposit and notice rules

California caps security at one month's rent on top of the first month, with a two-month exception for landlords who are natural persons (or LLCs owned only by natural persons) and own no more than two rental properties with no more than four units in all (Civ. Code 1950.5). The itemized statement and refund are due within 21 days after the tenant leaves (1950.5). No statute caps late fees on ordinary rent. An owner ending a month-to-month tenancy must give 30 days' notice, or 60 days once any tenant has lived there a year (Civ. Code 1946.1); other rules, such as just-cause requirements, may also apply.

What this means for a California DSCR deal. A price-to-rent ratio of 30.1, the highest here, is the whole story: the median home at 20% down produces a DSCR of 0.55, and getting to 1.00x would take about 60.7% down. California DSCR loans work on lower-priced properties, on 2 to 4 unit buildings (7.8% of homes), or with lenders that have no minimum, such as Easy Street Capital and Griffin Funding.

Before you apply in California

• Skip Ternus and Upright for California properties.
• Size the down payment so the loan stays within what the rent supports.
• Check the county's documentary transfer tax on the deed.

General requirements, rate tables and rent rules for every lender: DSCR loans compared, DSCR loan rates, DSCR calculator. Short-term lenders: hard money lenders in California. Other states: Florida, Texas, Michigan, Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, Illinois.