The STR Financing Debt Playbook
How to use debt as a business tool on a short-term rental — how leverage changes the economics, how lenders evaluate you, and how to choose (or decline) financing.
New to Builders Finance? Start here. This guide introduces the whole Financing system, and links to every supporting guide you'll need as you put it in place.
- How leverage amplifies both directions
- How lenders treat STR income
- DSCR and what 'good' means
- When not to borrow at all
Start with the flagship above — everything else in Financing supports it.
The guides, in order
In dependency order — Understand the debt before you shop for it.
How Debt Changes the Economics of an STR
Leverage, cash-on-cash amplification, and the risk it adds.
How Lenders Evaluate Short-Term Rentals
Income treatment, DSCR, reserves, credit.
The Loan Landscape
DSCR vs. conventional vs. portfolio vs. commercial.
Should You Borrow — and How?
The decisions leverage comes down to.
When there's a real choice
Judgment calls, not how-tos — each weighs the options for your situation.
Should I Pay Cash or Finance My STR?
Liquidity, opportunity cost, and risk — the flagship capital decision, with a calculator.
Work through it →When Should I Avoid Taking on More Debt?
The trust piece: leverage vs. liquidity vs. paying down what you owe.
Work through it →The tools that do the most
The guide teaches; the tool implements.
Cash-vs-Finance Calculator
Compare paying cash against financing across cash-on-cash and liquidity.
DSCR Calculator
The income cushion a lender reads before approving.
Stay ahead of the changes.
A weekly email on the financial side of short-term rentals — what changed, why it matters, and what owners should understand. Plus the STR Tax Mistake Checklist.