Buying a Tampa Bay Luxury Home Without Selling Your Stock Portfolio: Pledged-Asset Mortgages, SBLOCs, and Asset-Depletion Loans Compared

Can you buy a Tampa Bay luxury home without selling your stock portfolio?

Yes. Three lending structures let you use your investments without liquidating them: a securities-backed line of credit (SBLOC) that borrows against your portfolio for a fast, cash-style purchase; a pledged-asset mortgage that substitutes pledged securities for some or all of the cash down payment; and an asset-depletion loan that converts documented assets into qualifying income when your tax returns don't show traditional W-2 income. Each approach avoids selling appreciated holdings — and the federal capital gains bill that comes with a sale — but they carry different rates, risks, and underwriting rules.

Plenty of buyers I work with could write a check for a Davis Islands home tomorrow — on paper. The wealth is real, but it's sitting in appreciated stock, fund positions, or a concentrated holding from an IPO or a business sale. Selling enough to fund a $2M purchase can mean realizing hundreds of thousands of dollars in gains, taxed federally at up to 20% for long-term capital gains plus the 3.8% net investment income tax above the income thresholds.

Florida helps — there's no state income tax to stack on top — but the federal bill alone is enough to make “just sell some stock” the most expensive down payment strategy on the table.

The alternative is borrowing against the portfolio instead of selling it. Lenders build three distinct products for exactly this situation, and choosing the right one depends on your timeline, your income profile, and how long you plan to hold the home.

Option 1: The SBLOC — buying with cash-like speed

A securities-backed line of credit is a revolving line from a bank or brokerage, collateralized by your investment account. FINRA and the SEC describe advance rates typically ranging from about 50% to 95% of portfolio value depending on the collateral — diversified equity portfolios usually land toward the middle of that range, high-grade bonds toward the top.

The mechanics matter in Tampa Bay's premium segment:

• You close as a cash buyer. Drawing on an SBLOC puts funds in hand without a mortgage contingency, an appraisal condition, or a weeks-long underwriting timeline. When you're competing for waterfront on Sunset Park's canals or a resale unit at The Plaza at Harbour Island, that speed is often the entire point.
• No recorded mortgage at purchase. Florida charges documentary stamp tax of $0.35 per $100 on a recorded note plus a 2-mill nonrecurring intangible tax on a recorded mortgage. A cash-style SBLOC purchase records no mortgage, so those charges don't apply at closing.
• You can still get a mortgage afterward. Fannie Mae's delayed financing exception allows a cash-out refinance within six months of a cash purchase — the source of the cash has to be documented, the transaction arm's-length, and the new loan generally can't exceed your initial investment in the property.

The trade-offs are real. SBLOC rates are variable and payments are interest-only, so the balance doesn't amortize on its own. Most lines are demand loans: if your portfolio drops, the lender can require additional collateral or a pay-down on short notice, and can liquidate positions if you don't respond — potentially forcing the very taxable sale you were trying to avoid, at depressed prices. Regulators flagged these risks in a joint FINRA-SEC investor alert, along with a practical one: accounts pledged to an SBLOC are hard to move to another firm until the line is repaid.

I treat SBLOCs as a bridge, not a permanent structure — draw, close, then refinance or repay on a defined schedule.

Option 2: The pledged-asset mortgage — keeping your down payment invested

A pledged-asset mortgage is a genuine first-lien mortgage on the home. The difference is the down payment: instead of liquidating securities to wire cash, you pledge eligible securities as supplemental collateral. The positions stay in your name and stay invested — the lender records a control agreement that restricts withdrawals of the pledged value until the pledge is released.

For buyers holding low-basis stock, this structure does two things at once. It avoids realizing gains on the down payment, and it keeps the interest profile of a conventional mortgage — including potential deductibility of interest on up to $750,000 of acquisition debt, a benefit SBLOC interest generally doesn't get when the proceeds buy a personal residence. Confirm the specifics with your CPA; the IRS interest-tracing rules are unforgiving.

Private-bank programs in this space can finance up to 100% of the purchase price against a sufficient pledge, typically without PMI. I covered how those programs fit alongside conventional jumbo underwriting in my guide to Tampa Bay jumbo mortgages for luxury buyers.

Two costs to plan for: because a mortgage records, Florida's note doc stamps and intangible tax do apply — roughly $11,000 combined on a $2M loan. And the pledge carries collateral-maintenance requirements, so a market drawdown can trigger a call to post additional securities or cash.

Option 3: The asset-depletion loan — when the assets are the income

The first two options solve a down-payment and liquidity problem. Asset-depletion lending — sometimes called an asset-qualifier loan — solves a different one: qualifying income. Retirees, founders between liquidity events, entrepreneurs whose returns show aggressive write-offs, and athletes with short earning windows often have seven-figure balance sheets and tax returns that underwrite poorly.

There are two distinct flavors, and buyers regularly confuse them:

• The agency version. Fannie Mae's Selling Guide allows employment-related assets — eligible retirement accounts, a lump-sum retirement distribution, or a severance package — to be converted into qualifying income by dividing net documented assets by the loan's term in months (360 on a 30-year loan). It's deliberately narrow: maximum 70% loan-to-value (80% if the asset owner is at least 62), purchase and limited cash-out only, principal residences and second homes only, and ordinary taxable brokerage accounts generally don't qualify.
• The non-QM version. Portfolio and non-QM lenders run broader programs that accept taxable brokerage assets and use shorter depletion periods, with loan amounts commonly reaching into the millions. The flexibility is priced in: expect a larger down payment and a rate premium over conforming loans.

For a buyer whose obstacle is documentation rather than wealth, this is often the difference between “declined” and “cleared to close” — and it pairs naturally with entity and privacy planning, which I walk through in buying a Tampa Bay luxury home in an LLC or land trust.

Choosing among the three

The decision usually comes down to three questions.

How fast do you need to close? If you're competing against cash offers for a Culbreath Isles listing, the SBLOC's speed wins. Pledged-asset and asset-depletion loans still run on mortgage timelines.

How long will you hold the debt? Variable, interest-only SBLOC debt suits a months-long bridge. A pledged-asset mortgage is built for a long hold — amortization, a defined structure, and the interest deduction. And if what you're really bridging is the gap between selling one home and buying the next, that's a different toolkit, which I compare in buying before you sell in Tampa Bay.

What does your income look like on paper? If qualifying income is the obstacle, asset-depletion is the product designed for it. If income documents fine and the goal is avoiding liquidation, an SBLOC or pledged-asset structure fits better.

They also combine. A common sequence in the premium tier: draw an SBLOC to close as cash, then use delayed financing into a jumbo mortgage — with the refinance proceeds required to pay down the line — once the dust settles. Another: pledge securities for the down payment on a jumbo loan and keep the full portfolio working.

One discipline applies to all three — borrow against a cushion, not against capacity. Every structure here shares the same failure mode: a sharp drawdown that triggers a collateral call at the worst possible moment. The buyers who use these tools well size the borrowing so a bad quarter is an inconvenience, not a forced liquidation.

This is also a conversation to have before you shop, not after you've found the house. Private banks and non-QM lenders move at different speeds, and the pre-approval conversation looks different for each product. When I work with relocating executives and members of our Professional Athlete Advisory clientele, the financing structure is usually settled before the first showing — it changes which offers we can credibly make, from Water Street condos to Belleair waterfront. If you're starting that process, my buyer representation pageoutlines how we sequence it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between an SBLOC and a margin loan?

Both borrow against your investment account, but an SBLOC is non-purpose credit — you can use it to buy real estate, but not additional securities. A margin loan is purpose credit that can buy securities and follows different regulatory limits. For a home purchase, lenders will route you to the non-purpose structure.

Do these strategies avoid capital gains tax permanently?

They defer it. You don't owe capital gains tax until you actually sell the appreciated positions, and holdings kept until death currently receive a step-up in basis for heirs. Borrowing isn't a taxable event — but this is tax planning, and you should model it with your CPA or advisor before relying on it. I'm a broker, not a tax professional.

How much can I borrow against my portfolio?

FINRA and the SEC note advance rates typically between 50% and 95% of the account's value depending on what's in it — more against high-grade bonds, less against concentrated or volatile equity positions. Each lender sets its own schedule, and prudent borrowers stay well below the maximum to absorb market swings.

Can I still get a mortgage after buying with SBLOC funds “as cash”?

Yes. Fannie Mae's delayed financing exception permits a cash-out refinance within six months of a cash purchase, provided the funds are documented, the purchase was arm's-length, and the new loan doesn't exceed your initial investment. Many premium-tier buyers plan this two-step from the start.

Does Florida tax the stock I'd sell to buy a home?

Florida has no state income tax, so there's no state-level capital gains hit. Federal tax still applies — up to 20% on long-term gains plus the 3.8% net investment income tax for higher earners — which is exactly why these borrowing structures exist.

If you're planning a Tampa Bay purchase and weighing whether to sell assets or borrow against them — or just trying to understand where the market stands — a direct conversation usually clears more up than another search.

About Shane Vanderson

Shane Vanderson is a License Partner and Broker Associate with Engel & Völkers South Tampa, licensed since 2012 representing buyers and sellers across Tampa Bay's luxury market. He specializes in South Tampa, Harbour Island, Hyde Park, Davis Islands, Downtown Tampa waterfront, and luxury condominiums, and holds membership in Engel & Völkers' Professional Athlete Advisory. Connect with Shane at shanevanderson.com or 813-205-5430.