Make your down payment with crypto

Yes. You can use Bitcoin or other crypto held in a self-custody wallet for the down payment on a traditional mortgage. RealOpen verifies ownership of the crypto, documents the assets and relevant holding period for the lender, converts the required amount when funding is due, and provides a transaction record tracing the funds from the verified wallet through conversion to the U.S. dollar wire sent to escrow. The lender makes the final underwriting determination.

See the complete process — from verifying crypto held in your own wallet to documenting the U.S. dollar wire that reaches escrow.

1. 0:00Can You Use Crypto for a Mortgage Down Payment?
2. 0:38Why Is Crypto Different From Money in the Bank?
3. 1:20How Do You Prove You Own a Self-Custody Wallet?
4. 2:00How Do You Document Crypto for a Mortgage?
5. 3:05When Do You Have to Sell Your Crypto?
6. 3:35How Do You Document the Crypto-to-Dollar Transaction?
7. 4:20What Should You Ask Your Loan Officer?

Watch “How to Use Bitcoin for a Mortgage Down Payment From Self-Custody” on YouTube

Yes. RealOpen turns crypto into a documented down payment on a regular QM or non-QM mortgage from any lender, and the mortgage itself does not change. Your crypto stays in your wallet until closing day; RealOpen converts it and wires escrow, and your lender receives a record tying those dollars to a wallet you provably own.

There are three routes to a crypto down payment. Liquidate and season: sell on an exchange, park the cash in a bank, and wait 60 days so the lender doesn’t have to source it. Pledge it: a crypto-backed loan (Better with Coinbase, Milo) holds your coins as collateral. Convert at closing, documented: the route RealOpen runs — no early sale, no 60-day seasoning detour, nothing pledged, no exchange custody.

Fannie Mae’s rule is that virtual currency must be converted to U.S. dollars before it counts; the trail RealOpen produces is what lenders have used to satisfy it. Details in the Fannie Mae crypto down payment guidelines and why you can skip the seasoning trap.

Underwriters treat these differently, and so do we. Most buyers end up using both:

• Qualify with it. Crypto as a reserve asset on your mortgage application. Your holdings strengthen your file without selling a single coin — RealScore™ documents them in a format underwriting can verify.
• Fund with it. Crypto as the source of your down payment — some or all of it. We convert exactly what you need and wire fiat to escrow, with the sourcing paper trail attached. No 90-day seasoning detour.

Bitcoin-only? No. Any crypto we support works — BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, stablecoins, and the rest of the accepted list. And note what this page is not: pledging your coins as loan collateral. If you’re weighing that instead, read the crypto-backed mortgage comparison first.

The most expensive sentence in crypto homebuying is "sell it now and let it season for 60–90 days." It forces your taxable event months early, parks you in cash through whatever the market does next, and delays your offer — all to satisfy a requirement (sourcing) that a documented conversion satisfies directly. If a loan officer has said those words to you, start here: crypto down payment seasoning, explained — or go straight to what to say back to your lender.

• How to document crypto as a source of funds
• Fannie Mae crypto down payment guidelines (2026)
• When do you actually have to sell your crypto?