What is the purpose of this loan?

A non-qualified mortgage (non-QM) is any home loan that doesn’t meet the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s “qualified mortgage” standards. They serve borrowers who don’t fit conventional boxes: self-employed, foreign nationals, real estate investors, or those with recent credit events.

Major non-QM categories include: bank statement loans, DSCR loans for investors, asset-based loans (qualify on liquid assets), interest-only mortgages, foreign national programs, and recent credit event programs (recent bankruptcy, foreclosure, or short sale).

Yes. Non-QM doesn’t mean subprime. Post-2008 regulations require all lenders to verify ability to repay. Non-QM simply means the loan doesn’t check every box of the “qualified mortgage” definition — it uses alternative documentation methods to verify income and creditworthiness.