How to Buy a House with Crypto

Buying a house with crypto is no longer a curiosity. It is an active market. Platforms like Linkhome now let U.S. buyers close on property using Bitcoin or stablecoins directly. Lenders like Milo have issued over $65 million in crypto-backed mortgage loans. In March 2026, Better Home and Finance and Coinbase launched a Fannie Mae-backed mortgage that lets borrowers pledge crypto as collateral without selling a single coin.

Three real pathways exist today. Each has different tax consequences, different costs, and different risk profiles. This guide breaks them down so you can pick the right one.

The 3 Ways to Buy a House with Crypto

👉 Quick takeaway: Cashing out and paying directly with crypto both trigger a taxable disposal event in most jurisdictions. A crypto-backed loan avoids selling entirely — no disposal, no capital gains tax — making it the most tax-efficient route for buyers who want to keep their crypto exposure.

The right choice depends on your tax position, how much crypto you hold relative to the property price, and whether you believe the asset will keep appreciating. The sections below walk through each option in detail.

Cash out to Fiat, then buy

This is the route that many early crypto investors chose. Since most lived in countries where crypto is treated as a CGT asset, they naturally had to pay capital gains tax on their crypto profits, but the process is pretty straightforward. You send your crypto to your local exchange, sell it for your local currency, and then send the fiat to your bank account. Not too tricky, but maybe not the best option if the crypto were to keep going up in value.

Pay Directly with Crypto via a Platform

Several U.S. platforms now handle the entire process. Linkhome launched in September 2025 specifically to enable direct crypto-to-property purchases in the United States. RealOpen lists properties and accepts Bitcoin and other major assets. Crypocto maintains a searchable database of crypto-friendly listings.

Accepted currencies typically include Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDC, and USDT. The specific coins accepted depend on the platform and the seller.

One tax point matters here. Sending crypto to a seller is treated as a disposal in most jurisdictions, the same as selling it for cash. You will owe capital gains tax on the difference between your cost basis and the market value at the time of transfer, even if no fiat ever changes hands. Factor this into your net cost before choosing this route.

Crypto-Backed Mortgage or Loan

This is the route that has seen the most institutional movement in 2025 and 2026. You pledge your crypto as collateral. You keep the asset. You get the liquidity to close on the house.

Two types of product now exist in this category.

The first is a dedicated crypto mortgage from a lender like Milo. Milo has issued over $65 million in crypto-backed mortgage loans and offers up to 100% loan-to-value financing against qualifying crypto holdings. The loan is secured against your crypto, not a traditional income-based underwrite.

The second is a Fannie Mae-backed product. In March 2026, Better Home and Finance and Coinbase launched a mortgage that lets borrowers pledge crypto as collateral while qualifying under conventional underwriting standards. This is a significant shift. It connects crypto holders to the mainstream mortgage market for the first time at this scale.

For DeFi-native users, Liquid Loans lets you collateralize ETH and borrow USDL stablecoin with no intermediaries. You control the collateral ratio directly. There are no third parties taking a cut.

In most jurisdictions, loans are not taxable events. That single fact can save a meaningful amount compared to selling and triggering capital gains on a large position.

Can I Pay My Mortgage in Crypto?

Most traditional banks still do not accept crypto directly for monthly mortgage payments as of 2026. That has not changed.

What has changed is how you fund the mortgage in the first place. The Better/Coinbase product announced in March 2026 lets you pledge crypto as collateral to qualify for and fund a Fannie Mae-backed mortgage. The monthly payments themselves are still made in fiat. The crypto sits in a collateral account rather than being liquidated at closing.

If you are using a DeFi loan like Liquid Loans, you borrow USDL against your ETH, convert to fiat, and use that to service your mortgage. You do not need your total crypto holdings to equal the full property value before you start. You need enough to maintain a safe collateral ratio on your loan.

How to Choose: A Decision Framework

Run through these four questions in order.

1. How large is your unrealized gain? If your cost basis is very low relative to current price, selling triggers a large tax bill. Borrowing against the position avoids that event entirely.
2. Do you believe the asset will keep appreciating? If yes, selling to buy a house locks in your exit. A crypto-backed mortgage or DeFi loan lets you keep the upside.
3. Does your seller or target property accept crypto directly? If yes, a direct platform purchase (Linkhome, RealOpen) may be the fastest path. If no, you need to either cash out or use a mortgage product.
4. Can you qualify for a conventional mortgage? The Better/Coinbase Fannie Mae product requires standard underwriting. Milo’s crypto mortgage does not rely on traditional income verification in the same way. If your income documentation is thin, Milo or a DeFi loan may be more accessible.

Most buyers with large, low-basis crypto positions will find the crypto-backed mortgage or DeFi loan route saves the most money after tax. Buyers who want simplicity and have a smaller tax liability may prefer cashing out.

A Worked Example: $500,000 House, $300,000 in Bitcoin

Say you bought 5 BTC at $20,000 each (total cost basis: $100,000). They are now worth $300,000. You want to buy a $500,000 house.

Option A: Sell the BTC and use cash toward the purchase. You realize a $200,000 gain. At a 20% long-term capital gains rate, you owe $40,000 in tax. You net $260,000 from the sale. You still need $240,000 more to close, so you take a conventional mortgage for that amount.

Option B: Crypto-backed mortgage (e.g., Milo). You pledge the BTC as collateral. You take out a mortgage against it. You keep the BTC. Tax owed at this step: $0. If BTC doubles again while you hold the mortgage, you capture that gain. The risk is that a sharp price drop may require you to add collateral or reduce your loan balance depending on the lender’s terms.

Option C: DeFi loan via Liquid Loans. You collateralize your ETH, borrow USDL, convert to fiat, and use that toward the purchase. You control the collateral ratio. No intermediaries take a cut. Tax owed on the loan itself: $0 in most jurisdictions.

The tax difference between Option A and Options B or C in this example is $40,000 before any appreciation on the held asset. That is the core financial case for borrowing rather than selling.

Should I Sell My Crypto to Buy a House?

The short answer for most long-term holders: no. Not if you can avoid it.

Selling a large crypto position before a purchase locks in your exit, triggers capital gains tax, and removes your exposure to future appreciation. A crypto-backed mortgage or DeFi loan lets you do all three in reverse: keep the position, defer the tax event, and still close on the property.

That said, selling makes sense in specific situations. If your crypto position is small relative to the property price, the tax bill is manageable, and you want a clean balance sheet with no collateral obligations, cashing out is the simpler path.

For investors who want to hold both assets, crypto and real estate, the borrow-against strategy is the more efficient structure. The crypto-backed mortgage market passed $65 million in origination volume at Milo alone by mid-2025, which tells you this is no longer a theoretical option.

If you are a DeFi-native user, Liquid Loans offers a zero-intermediary path to extract liquidity from your ETH without selling. The Liquid Loans Staking Pool also generates yield on your position while it sits as collateral, which is an overhead structure that real estate investment cannot match.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which cryptocurrencies are accepted when buying a house?

It depends on the platform. RealOpen and Crypocto typically accept Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDC, and USDT. Linkhome supports crypto purchases of U.S. real estate and specifies accepted assets at listing level. Stablecoins are the most universally accepted because they remove price-volatility risk for the seller during escrow.

How long does it take to close on a house using crypto?

Timelines vary by platform and method. Direct-purchase platforms like Crypocto aim for faster closes than traditional mortgage timelines because the transaction does not require bank underwriting. Crypto-backed mortgages through lenders like Milo or the Better/Coinbase product follow conventional closing timelines, typically 30 to 45 days, because they involve standard underwriting and title processes

Does pledging crypto as collateral for a mortgage trigger a tax event?

In most jurisdictions, pledging crypto as collateral for a loan is not treated as a disposal and does not trigger capital gains tax. The tax event occurs only when you sell or otherwise dispose of the crypto. Consult a tax professional in your jurisdiction before proceeding, as rules vary.

What happens if my crypto drops in value after I take out a crypto-backed mortgage?

This is the primary risk. Most lenders set a loan-to-value ratio and require you to add collateral or reduce the loan balance if the value of your pledged crypto falls below a threshold. The Better/Coinbase Fannie Mae product was specifically noted for its no-margin-call structure, which is a meaningful protection compared to some other crypto loan products. Check the specific terms of any lender before committing.

Can I use crypto for the down payment only, rather than the full purchase?

Yes. Several platforms and lenders allow crypto to fund the down payment specifically while the remainder is financed conventionally. This is one of the use cases the Better/Coinbase product is designed to support.

The Crypto Real Estate Market in 2026

The numbers tell the story. Milo surpassed $65 million in crypto mortgage loan volume by mid-2025, with total residential loan activity across its portfolio reaching over $250 million. That is not a niche experiment. It is a functioning lending market.

In September 2025, Linkhome launched the first platform specifically built to enable direct cryptocurrency purchases of U.S. real estate. In March 2026, Better Home and Finance and Coinbase brought crypto collateral into the Fannie Mae system, connecting crypto holders to the same conventional mortgage infrastructure that most U.S. homebuyers use.

Propy has also unveiled a Bitcoin-backed mortgage service. RealOpen, Protolium, and Crypocto continue to expand their crypto-friendly listing inventories. The infrastructure for buying a house with crypto is no longer being built. It is already built and operating.