- Published 30-year DSCR pricing for top-tier files ran 6.875%–7.25% on Total Quality Lending's sheet (October 26, 2026; 800 credit, 75% LTV, the lowest rate with 1.75 points), from 7.125% at Griffin (October 14) and 7.375% as Defy's best case (October 23; 740+ credit). The 2025 HMDA median for 30-year DSCR-type investor loans was 7.375%.
- Advertised floors of 5.39%–6.56% are best-case starting rates, not typical quotes.
- Credit's biggest step is at the bottom tier: Defy says a 640 and a 680 score can price more than 2 percentage points apart in some cells of its pricing.
- A longer prepayment penalty buys a lower rate. It pays only if you hold past the penalty years, and a refinance counts as a prepayment.
- On one published rate sheet, buying the rate down from 7.25% to 6.875% took about 64 months to pay back.
DSCR loan rates on lenders' published 30-year fixed pricing for top-tier files ran from about 6.875% to 7.375% in October 2026, and a third-party analysis of federal HMDA data puts the 2025 median for 30-year DSCR-type investor loans at 7.375%. Where your quote lands depends on credit, leverage, DSCR, the prepayment penalty, points, loan size, property type and term. Rates change daily, so every figure here is a dated snapshot, not a quote.
DSCR rates today: what lenders published, with dates
| Source (date) | Scenario | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Defy Mortgage (Oct 23, 2026) | Best case: single-family purchase, 740+ FICO, 75% LTV, 1.00+ DSCR, 5-4-3-2-1 prepayment penalty built in | 7.375% |
| Griffin Funding (Oct 14, 2026) | Starting rates for 30-year fixed, 40-year fixed and 5-year ARM; 1-year ARM | From 7.125%; 1-year ARM from 5.99% |
| Total Quality Lending (Oct 26, 2026) | $600,000 loan, 800 FICO, 75% LTV, 1.00 DSCR, 5-year penalty, 30-year fixed | 6.875% with 1.75 points to 7.25% with 0.125 points |
| LendingOne (Sept 22, 2026) | Average investor profile; short-term rental | 7–9%; 7–10% |
| 2025 HMDA data, third-party analysis | Median 30-year DSCR-type investor loan | 7.375% (7.625% in 2024) |
| Advertised floors (Oct 2026) | Best-case starting rates | Roc 5.39%, Easy Street 5.75%, RCN 6.00%, Lima One 6.25%, Kiavi 6.375%, Civic 6.56% |
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Two cautions. The floors assume the top of every tier at once: high credit, low leverage, a strong DSCR and usually a long prepayment penalty. And the HMDA median comes from a public loan-level file that leaves out points and fees and misses lenders below the federal reporting threshold. Use it to sanity-check a quote, not to forecast one.
DSCR loan rates by credit score: the steep step is at the bottom
Defy describes the shape of its credit pricing without printing the grid. Its 7.375% best case, as of October 23, 2026, needs a 740+ score at 75% LTV. The 700–739 band prices above that, and at the bottom of its range Defy says the gap between a 640 and a 680 score is more than 2 percentage points in some pricing cells. Total Quality Lending prices in steps at 660, 700, 720 and 740+ above its 640 floor, and its maximum purchase LTV rises from 75% to 80% at 700.
If your score sits just under a cutoff, raising it before you lock can be worth more than shopping for an eighth of a point. Once you're at 720 or above, which LendingOne names as the range that earns more favorable rates, credit has done most of its work, and leverage and prepayment terms move the price from there.
What moves a DSCR rate: eight inputs
Lenders start from a base rate and add or subtract adjustments for each risk. Few publish the size of each adjustment, but the direction is consistent across the program pages we reviewed:
- Credit score. The largest steps sit at the low tiers, as Defy's pricing above shows.
- Loan-to-value. More equity means less risk. Defy says its step from 75% to 80% LTV is wider than a smooth grid would suggest, and 85% steps up again; Total Quality Lending calls 80% the most expensive place on its grid.
- DSCR. Lima One prices its top tier at 1.20 and above. LendingOne calls ratios above 1.25 favorable and says those below 1.0 face more underwriting scrutiny.
- Prepayment penalty. A longer penalty lowers the rate and buying it out raises it (Griffin, Easy Street). FundLoans' published matrix builds in 3 years and charges extra for 1 or 2.
- Loan size. On the matrices we read, size moves leverage more than rate: FundLoans cuts a 740+ borrower from 80% to 75% LTV above $1 million. Small loans run into minimums of $70,000–$150,000.
- Property type. LendingOne says single-family rentals with stable occupancy can price better, and quotes short-term rentals at 7–10% against 7–9% for its average investor.
- Points. Paying points at closing buys the rate down; taking a lender credit pushes it up.
- Term and interest-only. ARMs start lower: Griffin's 1-year ARM from 5.99% against 7.125% on its 30-year fixed. Interest-only lowers the payment, and some programs cap it at 75% LTV.
Worked example: a $300,000 loan at three rates
Rate sits inside the DSCR's denominator, so it changes whether you qualify, not just what you pay. Take a $300,000, 30-year fixed loan on a property renting for $2,600 a month, with $450 a month in taxes and insurance and no HOA.
| Rate | Monthly P&I | PITIA | DSCR at $2,600 rent | Total interest, 30 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.50% | $1,896 | $2,346 | 1.11 | $382,633 |
| 7.25% | $2,047 | $2,497 | 1.04 | $436,750 |
| 8.00% | $2,201 | $2,651 | 0.98 | $492,466 |
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Each three-quarter-point step moves the payment by about $150 a month and the ratio by roughly 0.06. The same house clears a 1.05 minimum at 6.50%, scrapes past 1.00 at 7.25% and fails it at 8.00%. When the ratio is tight, a longer amortization or interest-only period helps: at 7.25%, the 40-year payment is $1,919 and interest-only is $1,812.50, which lift the DSCR to 1.10 and 1.15.
Prepayment penalty buydown: trading flexibility for rate
Most DSCR loans carry a prepayment penalty, and the default is a 5-4-3-2-1 step-down: 5% if you pay off in year one, falling a point a year to zero after year five. Shorter structures such as 3-2-1 or 2-1, a flat 5%, or no penalty are widely available. Choosing a shorter one is called buying down the penalty, and you pay for it in rate. Kiavi, for example, publishes no penalty after year 3.
| Payoff month | Balance | 5-4-3-2-1 | 3-2-1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month 10 (year 1) | $297,595 | $14,880 (5%) | $8,928 (3%) |
| Month 18 (year 2) | $295,564 | $11,823 (4%) | $5,911 (2%) |
| Month 30 (year 3) | $292,328 | $8,770 (3%) | $2,923 (1%) |
| Month 42 (year 4) | $288,849 | $5,777 (2%) | $0 |
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Every 0.25% of rate on this loan costs about $51 a month. Sell in month 18 and the 3-2-1 saves $5,912 in penalty, while a 0.25% higher rate would have cost about $920 over those 18 months. The math flips on a long hold: past year five neither structure charges anything, and the premium keeps running, about $3,680 over six years.
A refinance is a prepayment. If your plan is a cash-out refinance in year two, or a sale once the rehab equity shows up, price the shorter penalty in from the start. Check the note, too; the percentage normally applies to the balance you prepay, and terms vary by lender.
Points vs. rate: find the break-even month
A point is 1% of the loan amount, paid at closing to lower the rate. Total Quality Lending's October 26, 2026 sheet shows the trade on a $600,000 loan, where one point is $6,000:
| Rate | Points | Cost at closing | Monthly P&I |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.875% | 1.75 | $10,500 | $3,942 |
| 6.99% | 1.125 | $6,750 | $3,988 |
| 7.125% | 0.625 | $3,750 | $4,042 |
| 7.25% | 0.125 | $750 | $4,093 |
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Going from 7.25% to 6.875% costs $9,750 more at closing, $10,500 against $750, and saves $151 a month. That's about 64 months to break even, a little over five years. The first step pays back fastest: 7.25% to 7.125% costs $3,000 for $51 a month, about 59 months. The last one, 6.99% to 6.875%, costs $3,750 for $46 a month, about 81 months.
Points pay when you're confident you'll keep the loan past break-even. If you'd refinance when rates fall, or sell inside the penalty period, money spent on points is gone, and a lender credit may be the better trade. Always compare quotes at the same points, or you're comparing different products.
Locking: when a quoted rate becomes your rate
A quote is not a rate until you lock it, and the lock has its own price. Defy offers 30-, 45- and 60-day locks, with 75–90 days on some products for an extension fee; LendingOne advertises a complimentary 45-day lock. Longer locks protect you if rates rise before closing. Published closing times run from 14–21 days at Defy to an average of 34 days at Griffin, so a 45-day lock covers most purchases with room for an appraisal delay.
- Lock after the numbers are settled. If the appraisal comes in low or the rent schedule under your lease, the LTV or DSCR tier can change and so can the price.
- Match the lock to the contract. A 30-day lock on a purchase closing in 45 days invites an extension fee.
- Use the HMDA median as a reference. At the 2025 median of 7.375%, a $300,000, 30-year loan costs $2,072 a month in P&I; at 2024's 7.625%, $2,123.
How to compare DSCR quotes line by line
- Same day and lock period. Rates change daily, and a 30-day lock isn't priced like a 60-day lock. Defy, for one, offers 30-, 45- and 60-day locks.
- Same prepayment structure. A quote with a 5-year penalty against one with a 3-year penalty isn't a comparison.
- Same points. Ask each lender for the rate at zero points, or for the cost of the same rate.
- Same LTV and loan amount. A rate at 75% LTV tells you nothing about 80%.
- Same product. A 30-year fixed against a 30-year fixed, not against a 7/6 ARM or an interest-only loan.
- All fees in dollars. Get origination, underwriting and processing fees on paper. APR helps, but it assumes you keep the loan for the full term.
Then ask what would change the rate: 20 more points of credit score, 5% more down, or a different penalty. The answers show where your next price break sits, which is often worth more than haggling over the current one.