Florida Investment Property Loans

Florida is a business-purpose lending state for us. We finance non-owner-occupied investment property here through DSCR, non-owner bank statement, NONI, bridge, and commercial programs.

Owner-occupied and consumer mortgage products (FHA, VA, USDA, conventional, jumbo, reverse) are not offered in Florida.

In Florida, insurance is a DSCR input

This is the single most important thing to understand about financing Florida investment property, and it is the thing most out-of-state investors get wrong.

DSCR is rent divided by PITIA. Insurance sits inside PITIA. In most states that’s a rounding error. In Florida it decides the file.

The illustrative arithmetic: the difference between $200 a month and $400 a month in insurance is roughly the difference between a 1.16 DSCR and a 1.05 DSCR on the same property at the same rent. One clears comfortably. The other is a conversation about structure.

And the spread across the state is enormous. Estimated 2026 annual premiums on a $300,000 dwelling:

That is a swing of roughly $300 a month between an inland property and a coastal one — on identical dwelling value. Two properties with the same rent and the same price will produce very different debt-service coverage depending on which county they sit in.

Get the actual insurance quote before you run the ratio. Not an estimate, not last year’s number on a comparable, and not the seller’s premium, which may reflect a policy you can’t assume. On Florida files an insurance binder is a DSCR document.

For current observed pricing across credit tiers, see the non-QM rate index , updated weekly.

Two pieces of good news on cost

Florida insurance has been brutal — statewide average premiums rose from roughly $2,520 in 2021 to about $4,480 by mid-2024, a 78% increase in three years. But 2026 brought the first real relief in a while:

• Citizens Property Insurance approved an 8.7% statewide premium decrease, with South Florida counties seeing larger cuts in the 11%–14% range
• Average annual savings of roughly $423 to $462 per policy in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach

The second lever is the hurricane deductible. A 2% of dwelling deductible is standard, but 5% and 10% options carry meaningfully lower premiums. On a marginal DSCR file, moving from 2% to 5% can be the concession that clears the ratio — as long as the borrower understands they’re trading monthly certainty for a larger number after a named storm. That’s a real tradeoff to put in front of an investor, not a trick.

Florida also has no state income tax, which does not affect the ratio but does affect after-tax return on the same yield.

Condos: the SIRS problem is now a lending problem

If the file is a condo, this section matters more than everything above.

Florida’s Structural Integrity Reserve Study (SIRS) deadline has passed as of May 2026, and the rules changed in a way that directly reaches investors:

• Associations must fully fund the reserves identified in their SIRS
• The previous waiver option for key structural components has been eliminated under HB 913 and DBPR enforcement — boards can no longer vote to skip funding
• The component threshold requiring SIRS inclusion sits near $25,675 for 2026, inflation-adjusted annually
• Acceptable funding methods include regular assessments, special assessments by majority vote, loans, or lines of credit
• Reserve study preparation alone runs $5,500 to $16,500+, and post-hurricane reconstruction costs have risen 20%–30%

What that means for your file: an association that is behind on reserve funding has to close the gap, and a special assessment is one of the four ways it can. A special assessment lands on the owner, changes the real carrying cost of the unit, and can arrive after you close.

Non-compliant associations also face higher insurance premiums or outright denial of coverage — which loops straight back into the PITIA problem above.

Before you underwrite a Florida condo:

1. Ask for the SIRS and the milestone inspection report, not just the budget
2. Ask whether reserves are fully funded per the study, and if not, what the plan is
3. Ask whether a special assessment has been discussed, voted, or is pending
4. Confirm the association currently carries insurance and at what cost

A condo with a clean SIRS and funded reserves is a perfectly good DSCR asset. One without is a file where the numbers you underwrote may not be the numbers you own.

Florida lending mechanics

Prepayment structures are not available everywhere. Availability and terms vary by state, by loan amount, and by whether the borrower takes title personally or through an entity. We confirm the structure for your state and vesting before quoting.

Second-lien structures are available on Florida files, so CLTV approaches remain on the table where the down payment is the binding constraint.

Florida is not an attorney-closing state for our purposes, so no 24-hour document approval window applies.

Short-term rental income is accepted by some programs and not others, and those that do accept it differ on whether they’ll use a 12-month operating history or third-party market data. Confirm the program before you write the offer — Florida STR files fall out over this regularly.

LLC vesting is standard on DSCR files. Bring the operating agreement, EIN and formation documents to closing.

Programs available in Florida

• DSCR Loans — qualified on the property’s rental income, not your personal income. No limit on financed properties.
• Non-owner bank statement loans — 12 or 24 months of deposits for self-employed investors.
• NONI / Foreign National Loans — Florida carries heavy foreign-national investor volume; these programs require no documentable U.S. income.
• Hard Money Loans — Short-term, asset-based financing for fix-and-flip, lot acquisition, and value-add deals. Available in all 50 states.
• Rehab Loans — Purchase and renovation financing in one loan. Fix-and-flip, BRRRR, and value-add projects.
• Bridge Loans — Short-term financing between an acquisition and permanent loan, or while a property is stabilizing.
• Commercial Real Estate Loans

Florida investor FAQ

Why did my Florida DSCR come back lower than I expected? Almost always insurance. It sits in PITIA, and the gap between an inland and a coastal premium on the same dwelling value can be $300 a month. That alone can move a ratio from 1.16 to 1.05.

Can I lower my premium to make the deal work? Sometimes. Raising the hurricane deductible from 2% to 5% or 10% of dwelling value reduces the premium meaningfully. You’re trading a lower monthly cost for a larger out-of-pocket after a named storm — a legitimate structuring choice, but make it deliberately.

Are Florida condos financeable for investors right now? Yes, if the association is in good shape. The SIRS mandate and the elimination of the reserve-funding waiver mean underfunded associations are closing gaps through special assessments. Get the SIRS, the milestone inspection, and the reserve funding status before you underwrite.

Does Florida’s landlord-friendly reputation help my file? It supports the rent side and keeps vacancy assumptions reasonable. It doesn’t offset the insurance line. Underwrite the actual carrying cost.

Can I finance a Florida short-term rental? Some programs accept STR income, some don’t, and the ones that do differ on documentation. Confirm program eligibility before the offer rather than after the appraisal.

Do you lend on Florida owner-occupied purchases? No. Florida is business-purpose only for us — investment and non-owner-occupied property financing. We do not offer FHA, VA, USDA, conventional, jumbo, or reverse mortgages in Florida.

Ready to run a specific Florida property? Check DSCR eligibility or call (833) 350-9185 .

For illustration only. Not a commitment to lend. Rates and terms subject to change and qualification. Insurance and market figures are illustrative observations and not guarantees — obtain an actual quote for any specific property. Statutory and association requirements are general information, not legal advice. 1st Nationwide Mortgage Corporation, NMLS #1281. Equal Housing Lender.