Physician Mortgage Loans in DC, MD & VA: Buy With Little Down and No Mortgage Insurance

Doctors, dentists, and other high-earning medical professionals face a mortgage problem that looks contradictory on paper: you have strong income and excellent job stability, but you also carry six figures of student debt and you may be buying before your first real paycheck lands. A conventional lender runs that through standard DTI math and hands you a denial. A physician mortgage loan is built specifically around that reality — and across DC, Maryland, and Virginia, where med schools, hospital systems, and research institutions cluster, it is one of the most underused programs we broker.

What a Physician Mortgage Loan Actually Is

A physician mortgage loan (sometimes called a doctor loan) is a specialty program designed for licensed medical professionals — MD, DO, DDS, DMD, and sometimes DPM, OD, and PA depending on the lender. It is not a government loan and it is not a standard conventional loan. The underwriting is tailored to the financial profile of a physician: high future income, heavy student debt, and often a relocation that happens before employment begins. Lenders who offer it understand that a doctor's earning curve is different from a W-2 employee's.

The Four Features That Make It Different

• Little or no down payment — often 0% to 5% down, with some lenders going up to $1 million or more at 5% down and no mortgage insurance
• No mortgage insurance — even with less than 20% down, physician loans do not require the PMI that a conventional loan below 80% LTV would force on you
• Student loans excluded or reduced from DTI — the lender either excludes deferred student debt entirely or uses an income-driven repayment amount instead of the full amortizing payment
• Employment-contract qualifying — you can close before your first day of work using your signed employment contract, so you can buy when you relocate rather than waiting months for paystubs

Physician Loan vs Conventional vs Jumbo

In the DMV, where a Bethesda or Arlington home easily clears the $1.25 million conforming limit, physicians often assume they need a jumbo loan — which carries strict 20% down requirements and full income documentation. A physician loan lets you finance above conforming limits with far less down and no MI. Here is how the three compare for a doctor buying a $900,000 home:

Who Qualifies for a Physician Loan

Eligibility is narrower than a conventional loan — it is a specialty product — but for the right borrower it is the strongest option on the board. Typical requirements:

• Licensed MD, DO, DDS, DMD (some lenders include DPM, OD, veterinarians, and physician assistants)
• Residents and fellows with a signed contract — most programs accept you before you start practicing
• Credit score typically 680+ (lender-dependent)
• Proof of employment or a signed employment contract with a start date
• Student loans in grace, deferment, or income-driven repayment

Why the DMV Is a Strong Market for Physician Loans

Washington, DC and its Maryland and Virginia suburbs are dense with the exact employer profile physician loans are built for: MedStar, Johns Hopkins, Inova, George Washington, Georgetown, Children's National, the NIH, and Walter Reed. Physicians relocating for residency, fellowship, or a first attending job land here in waves every summer. Many of them are buying in a market where a starter home in Northwest DC or close-in Northern Virginia can run $800,000 to $1.2 million — precisely the price range where a 20% down jumbo requirement would lock them out, and a 5% down physician loan with no MI opens the door.

A note on timing

Because physician loans accept a signed contract, the smart move is to start the pre-approval before you move — not after. We have closed physician loans for clients who were still finishing training in another state, using a contract that started 60 days out, so the pre-approval letter was ready the moment they hit town. Waiting until you have two paystubs costs you the advantage the program is designed to give you.

We Shop Physician Loans Across 100+ Lenders

Not every lender offers a physician mortgage, and the ones that do each have different loan limits, eligible professions, and student-loan treatment. As a broker, we shop the physician programs across our network alongside conventional and jumbo options, so you see the real comparison in a single file — not one bank's take. And as always, our services cost you nothing. The lender compensates us directly, uniformly across every program, so there is no incentive to steer you anywhere except the loan that fits.

Get Your Physician Loan Pre-Approval

If you are a physician, dentist, or resident buying in DC, Maryland, or Virginia — and you have been told you do not qualify because of student debt or lack of down payment — talk to us before you give up. Bring your employment contract and your student loan statements, and we will show you exactly what a physician loan can do on your numbers. Pre-approval typically comes back within 24 hours, with no broker fees at any point.