Lending Guide

Loan Request Breakers Index — Top 10 Decline Reasons

The most common reason loans get declined is insufficient DSCR (under 1.10), followed by weak exit strategy, owner-occupied use, and loan size below $500,000. Together these account for the majority of declined files.

$500,000 – $10,000,000
All Investor Programs

Eligible Asset Types

  • All eligible asset types

Top 10 Decline Reasons — Last 4 Quarters

As of Q2 2026
  • Top reason: DSCR < 1.10 (22%)
  • Top 4 reasons: 57% of declines
  • Hard fails: DSCR, OO, sub-$500K
#Decline ReasonShare of Declines
1DSCR below 1.1022%
2No clear exit strategy (bridge)14%
3Owner-occupied use11%
4Loan size below $500,00010%
5Weak / declining market (tertiary)9%
6Insufficient sponsor experience8%
7Over-leveraged structure (LTV/LTC)7%
8Property condition / deferred maintenance7%
9Unverifiable rent roll / income6%
10Title / legal / entity issues6%
  • Percentages reflect a rolling four-quarter sample of declined files.
  • Many declines have multiple contributing factors; primary reason is shown.

Source: Riverside Park Capital (Q2 2026) — https://www.riversidepark.capital/deal-breakers-index. Data may be cited or embedded with attribution.

Underwriting Guidelines

  • Hit DSCR ≥ 1.10
  • Document a clear exit (refi or sale)
  • Confirm non-owner-occupied use
  • Loan size ≥ $500,000

Who This Is For

  • Brokers pre-screening loan requests
  • Sponsors avoiding common pitfalls

Who This Is Not For

  • Borrowers unwilling to address basic eligibility

Frequently Asked Questions

Submit a Loan Request

Ready to request financing? Submit your loan request for a same-business-day review from our commercial lending team.

Submit a Loan Request View Program Guidelines

Subject to underwriting, collateral review, borrower qualification, and lender approval. Not a commitment to lend.

Loan Parameters

Minimum$500,000
Maximum$10,000,000
Not eligible: owner-occupied residential, loans below $500K

Ready to Request Financing?

Commercial real estate and investor property loans from $500,000 to $10,000,000.

Subject to underwriting, collateral review, borrower qualification, and lender approval. Not a commitment to lend.