Are the seller's rent numbers real?
You can find out before you offer, by asking for the signed leases. A listing can show rent a tenant pays today, or rent the seller thinks a unit could get. Under Fannie Mae and FHA rules, a lender counts only rent backed by a signed lease or the appraiser's own figure.
WHAT MOST PEOPLE ARE NEVER TOLD
FHA compares the lease rent with the rent an appraiser writes down, and counts 75 percent of the lower one. So a lease above the going rent adds nothing, and a lease below it lowers what counts.
Gather four things before you offer. Together they show which rent a lender will count.
- A signed, current lease for each rented unit.
- Proof the rent is being paid, such as two months of deposits.
- For an empty unit, what similar units nearby rent for now.
- The county's record of the unit count, and what the local zoning office allows on the lot. If either shows fewer units than the listing, leave the extra unit's rent out of your budget.
Under Fannie Mae's rules the lender needs the appraiser's written rent estimate plus a signed copy of each lease that passes to you. If the going rent does not support the lease, the lender must justify the gap in writing or use the lower figure.
A lease can lapse to month to month without the paper being redone. Ask now whether a signed, current lease exists, so you know before you offer.
GOOD TO KNOW
A signed lease shows what a tenant agreed to pay. Ask the seller whether each tenant is paid up and plans to stay after the sale, and set your budget on the rent a lender will count.
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WHERE THIS COMES FROM
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.8-02, Rental Income from the Subject Property (09/02/2026)
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B3-3.8-01, General Rental Income Information (09/02/2026)
- HUD Handbook 4000.1, FHA Single Family Housing Policy Handbook (last revised 8/12/2026), pages 240 to 241: rental income from the property being bought
- Fannie Mae Selling Guide B4-1.3-04, Site Section of the Appraisal Report (06/04/2025)
Researched and written by Series Homes. Checked against its sources on . Lending rules change. This page is general information, not a loan offer or legal or tax advice.