Everything. Including the parts that don’t flatter us.

Yes — and in a high-rate market this is a genuinely valuable and widely ignored asset. A qualified buyer can take over your existing FHA loan at your original interest rate. If you lock 6% today and rates are 8% when you sell, your loan itself becomes a selling point that can command a higher price. Conventional loans are almost never assumable.

Yes. A qualified buyer — who does not have to be a veteran — can take over your VA loan at your original interest rate. If you lock a low rate and sell into a high-rate market, your loan becomes a genuine selling advantage. Note that assumption by a non-veteran can tie up your entitlement until the loan is paid off.

No. The spread moves, and in some markets jumbos have priced at or below conforming, particularly for borrowers with large deposits and substantial assets held at the lending bank. It is worth checking rather than assuming, which is precisely why the rates on this page are inputs you can change.

Yes, and this is the single most useful thing on this page. If your loan lands just over the limit, increasing your down payment enough to bring the loan under it re-prices the entire mortgage as conforming. On a $1,550,000 purchase, roughly $30,250 more down can save close to $100,000 in lifetime interest. Very few loan officers volunteer this, because it means a smaller loan.

Yes, but the underwriter will read the income remaining on your tax return after write-offs — which is often far below your actual cash flow. If your tax return supports the loan you want, take the conventional loan; it is cheaper. If it does not, a bank statement loan may qualify you on deposits instead. We will tell you honestly which one fits.

Generally yes, after a waiting period — commonly two years after a Chapter 7 discharge, one year into a Chapter 13 with on-time payments and court approval, and three years after a foreclosure. These are guidelines, not laws, and exceptions exist for documented extenuating circumstances.

Yes. Gift funds from a family member are permitted on conventional loans, and with 20% down the entire down payment may be gifted. The gift must be properly documented with a signed letter confirming it is not a loan, and the funds must be traceable. Do not move money around informally before applying — it creates problems in underwriting.

Yes. Entitlement can be restored after you sell the property and pay off the loan. Some veterans hold two VA loans at once using partial entitlement. The benefit is not a one-time coupon.

Yes — and this is the most overlooked fact in veteran lending. If you receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability, the funding fee is waived entirely. Any rating qualifies, including 10%. Purple Heart recipients on active duty and eligible surviving spouses are also exempt. On a $700,000 loan the waiver is worth roughly $15,000 up front.

Yes, up to 6% of the sales price — considerably more generous than conventional, which typically caps seller concessions at 3% for low-down-payment buyers. In a buyer's market this is often the single most valuable feature of the entire program.

Often, yes. Lenders frequently want to see cash remaining after closing — commonly two to six months of mortgage payments, depending on the file. This is one reason a smaller down payment sometimes beats a larger one: emptying your accounts to reach 20% can weaken the file rather than strengthen it.

Yes. With full entitlement you can finance 100% of the purchase price. This is not a gimmick or a teaser — it is the core of the benefit, and it exists because the VA guarantee stands in place of your down payment.

Generally yes. Where a conforming loan may want a couple of months of reserves, a jumbo lender frequently wants six to twelve months of full housing payments held in liquid assets after closing. Plan for it early; it catches people out at underwriting.

Only if you put at least 10% down. Below 10%, FHA mortgage insurance premium lasts the ENTIRE LIFE OF THE LOAN — it never cancels, no matter how much equity you build. At 10% or more down, it terminates after 11 years. This is the single most important and least understood fact about FHA lending, and it is the opposite of how conventional PMI works.

If you put down less than 10%, there is exactly one exit: refinance into a conventional loan once you have 20% equity. There is no cancellation request, no appraisal that helps, no automatic termination. Many FHA borrowers pay the premium for thirty years simply because nobody ever told them to refinance out.

It depends far more on how quickly complete documentation is assembled than on the program itself. Files where income, assets, and identity documents are gathered up front — rather than chased during escrow — close materially faster. Ask any broker for a realistic timeline in writing rather than accepting a marketing number.

As little as 3% for a qualified first-time buyer, and 5% for most other buyers. However, any down payment below 20% triggers private mortgage insurance (PMI). Twenty percent down avoids PMI entirely. The right answer depends on whether the cash is better used as a down payment or kept as reserves.

Usually a modest premium — often around 0.2 to 0.5 percentage points, though it varies and occasionally a jumbo prices better than conforming for very strong borrowers. The bigger cost is usually the underwriting: larger deposits, more reserves, tighter debt-to-income tolerance.

Usually, if you qualify. Conventional PMI is removable; FHA mortgage insurance generally lasts the life of the loan when you put less than 10% down. FHA is more forgiving on credit — down to 580 with 3.5% down. If your credit is 680 or better, conventional is almost always the cheaper long-run choice. We will run both and show you the difference.

No, and this confusion costs people money. A standard jumbo is a full-documentation loan — tax returns, W-2s, the lot. It is simply too large to be bought by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, so a bank holds it. Non-QM refers to how you prove income, not how big the loan is. If you can document your income, take the jumbo and do not pay a Non-QM premium you do not owe.

It depends entirely on your credit score. Below 640, FHA is often materially cheaper because its mortgage insurance is priced the same regardless of credit, while conventional PMI gets punitive at low scores. Above 680, conventional almost always wins because its PMI cancels. The only honest answer is to price both, which takes about ten minutes.

For borrowers with full entitlement, no. The Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act removed VA loan limits for full-entitlement borrowers, which means the ceiling is what a lender will approve based on your income — not an arbitrary cap. This matters enormously in California.

Yes. HUD sets FHA loan limits annually by county, with a national floor and a ceiling for high-cost areas. Most expensive California counties qualify for the high-cost ceiling, but many purchase prices here still exceed it — at which point FHA is simply unavailable and you need conventional, jumbo, or a Non-QM program.

None. Ever. No PMI like a conventional loan, no MIP like an FHA loan, at any down payment. This is the single largest financial advantage of the program and it is worth tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the loan.

The practical minimum is 620, but that number is misleading. Pricing improves in tiers — 620 to 679, 680 to 739, and 740 and above. A 740+ score earns materially better pricing than a 680, on the identical loan. If you are close to a tier boundary, waiting a few months to cross it can be worth more than a larger down payment.

580 gets you in at 3.5% down. Between 500 and 579 you can still qualify, but the down payment jumps to 10%. Many lenders impose overlays above the FHA minimum, so a 580 borrower may be declined at one lender and approved at another — which is precisely what a broker is for.

Then file one before you close. Even a 10% rating — for tinnitus, hearing loss, or a joint injury — eliminates the funding fee completely. Many veterans never file because they assume their condition is too minor or that they are taking something they do not deserve. A rating you are entitled to is not charity, and on a large loan it is worth more than any rate negotiation.

Then take the jumbo, and stop optimising. If your loan is $2.1M in a county with a $1.21M limit, getting under the line would mean buying an entirely different house. The conforming-cliff strategy only helps borrowers who land near the line — and we will tell you plainly which one you are.

Private mortgage insurance protects the lender, not you, and it is required on conventional loans with less than 20% down. Under the federal Homeowners Protection Act, you may request cancellation once your loan balance reaches 80% of the original property value, and the servicer must automatically terminate it at 78%. Unlike FHA mortgage insurance, conventional PMI is removable.

The Upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium is 1.75% of your base loan amount. Almost nobody pays it in cash — it is financed into the loan, which means you borrow it and pay interest on it for thirty years. On a $579,000 base loan that is roughly $10,100 added to what you owe on day one.

A VA loan is a mortgage guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and made by a private lender. The VA does not lend the money — it guarantees a portion of it, which is why a lender will accept zero down payment and charge no mortgage insurance. It is, for those who qualify, the most powerful mortgage in America.

A conventional loan is a mortgage that is not insured or guaranteed by a government agency such as the FHA, VA, or USDA. Most conventional loans are 'conforming' — they meet the guidelines of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, including a maximum loan size set annually by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Conventional loans typically offer the lowest long-run cost for borrowers with solid credit.

A first mortgage at the conforming limit plus a second lien for the remainder, keeping the first loan conforming. It can work, but the second lien carries a higher rate and the arithmetic does not always favour it. We will run both and show you which actually wins — sometimes it is simply the jumbo.

An FHA loan is a mortgage insured by the Federal Housing Administration, part of HUD. The government does not lend the money — it insures the lender against loss, which lets that lender accept a lower credit score and a smaller down payment than a conventional loan would. You can buy with 3.5% down at a 580 credit score.

A one-time fee paid to the VA to keep the program running without taxpayer cost. For a first-time user with no down payment it is commonly around 2.15% of the loan; for subsequent use it rises. It can be financed into the loan, which means you pay interest on it for thirty years.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency sets the conforming loan limit annually, and raises it in designated high-cost counties — which includes much of the Bay Area and coastal Southern California. A loan above that ceiling is a jumbo loan and follows different guidelines and pricing. Because California prices are high, many buyers here cross the line without realising it.

For 2025, the high-balance conforming limit in high-cost counties including Santa Clara, San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Marin and Contra Costa is $1,209,750. The baseline limit for most other counties is $806,500. Above your county's limit, the loan is a jumbo.

Generally: 90 consecutive days of active service during wartime, 181 days during peacetime, six years in the National Guard or Reserves, or you are the surviving spouse of a service member who died in the line of duty or from a service-connected disability. Eligibility is confirmed with a Certificate of Eligibility, which we pull for you.

Often, yes. FHA regularly approves higher with compensating factors. VA does not use a hard DTI cap at all — it uses residual income. Automated underwriting on conventional loans will approve above 43% when reserves and credit are strong. 43% is where it gets difficult, not where it becomes impossible.

That is precisely the plan, and we will put a date on it before you sign. Once you have enough seasoning and clean history to qualify conventionally, you refinance and drop the premium. Check the prepayment penalty first — Non-QM loans frequently carry one for 3 to 5 years, and it can swallow the saving if you move too early.

In most states, no — only the borrowers on the application are counted. California is a community property state, and for certain government loan programmes a non-borrowing spouse's debts may still be counted even though their income is not. It is a genuinely unfair asymmetry and it catches people out. Ask before you assume.

Only if it lowers the minimum payment, and partial paydowns often barely move it. Paying a card to zero and keeping it open is usually the highest-leverage move — it removes the payment from your DTI while preserving the available credit that helps your score. Do not close the account.

Yes, and it is mechanical rather than discretionary. Non-QM pricing tiers on months since the credit event and on payment history since. Every clean month moves you toward a better tier. It is one of very few things in mortgage finance where simply doing nothing, carefully, makes you money.

This varies significantly by programme and it matters enormously. Some allow the actual documented IDR payment, even if it is very low. Others impute a percentage of the balance regardless of what you actually pay. The same borrower can qualify for wildly different loan amounts depending on which programme is used — which is a real reason to work with a broker rather than a single lender.

On a $900,000 loan, roughly 9.75% immediately after the event versus about 7.5% with 24 months of clean history. That is about $1,439 more every month and roughly $518,205 more in lifetime interest. It is the single largest number on this page and it is why we lead with it.

With a Non-QM credit event loan, effectively the day after discharge — there is no mandatory seasoning period. Conventional financing generally requires about 2 years after a Chapter 13 discharge and 4 years after a Chapter 7, and FHA typically 2 years after Chapter 7. The Non-QM route removes the wait entirely and charges you for it.

Yes, but it matters less than the event and the history since. A borrower one year out of bankruptcy with twelve months of perfect payments and a rebuilt 660 is often priced better than someone with a higher score and a recent late payment. What lenders are really buying is the story of what you have done since.

A one-off event outside your control that caused the credit event — serious illness, the death of a wage earner, a job loss from a plant closure. Documented properly, extenuating circumstances can cut conventional waiting periods roughly in half. Almost nobody applies for this, because almost nobody is told it exists. Ask us.

Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, foreclosure, short sale, deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, or a loan modification. Lenders treat them differently — a short sale is generally viewed more kindly than a foreclosure, and a medical bankruptcy more kindly than a discharged pile of consumer debt.

Anything that appears as a recurring obligation: car loans and leases, credit card minimums, student loans, personal loans, child support, alimony, and HOA dues. What does not count: utilities, phone, insurance, groceries, and most subscriptions. The line is roughly 'does it show on a credit report or a court order.'

For a conventional loan, 43% back-end is the common ceiling and under 36% is comfortable. Front-end — housing alone — is traditionally guided at 28%. But these are conventions, not laws: automated underwriting approves above 43% every day when credit, reserves and loan-to-value are strong.

The one with the highest monthly payment relative to its balance. Lenders count the payment, not the balance — so a $7,200 personal loan with a $340 payment hurts your DTI more than a $61,000 student loan with a $410 payment, and costs a fraction as much to remove. Nearly everyone gets this backwards.

Usually yes. Expect 20–30% down depending on how recent the event is and how strong everything else looks. The more recent the event, the more equity the lender wants standing between them and the risk.

Badly, and at the worst possible moment. Lenders re-pull credit shortly before closing. A car loan, a furniture plan, or a new card signed during underwriting can add hundreds of dollars of monthly payments, push you over the ceiling, and kill a loan that was already approved. Buy nothing on credit until you have the keys.

Yes, and it happens most often in the last ten days. Credit is re-pulled and employment re-verified before funding. A car bought in week three, a new credit card, a job change, or a large unsourced deposit can all end a file that was already clear to close. The checklist above is not scaremongering — it is the list.

A mortgage credit pull is a hard inquiry and typically moves a score by a handful of points. Multiple mortgage inquiries inside a short shopping window are treated as one event by the scoring models, so shopping several lenders does not compound the damage. That is deliberate — the system wants you to shop.

About thirty days from accepted offer to keys on a clean conventional file. A Non-QM loan usually runs forty to forty-five. But the honest answer is that the loan type moves the number less than you do — a borrower who returns documents the same day closes roughly eleven days sooner than one who takes a week, and that is the single largest variable in the whole process.

Locking is insurance, not a bet. It protects you from rates rising while your file is in process, and it costs you the chance to benefit if they fall. Ask two questions before you decide: how long is the lock, and is there a float-down? A thirty-day lock on a file that needs forty-five days is a trap, and an extension is not free.

She reads your file on day two instead of day twenty-five. Nearly every deal that collapses was visible early — an income structure that will not document, a condo project that will not pass review, a deposit nobody can source. A call centre finds those things when the underwriter does. A broker who looks first finds them while there is still time to fix them.

You have four moves: renegotiate the price with the seller, bring the difference in cash, split it, or walk away if your contract has an appraisal contingency. There is also a fifth — a reconsideration of value, where we submit better comparable sales and ask the appraiser to look again. It does not always work, but it is free to try and most people are never told it exists.

Pre-qualified means somebody listened to you talk and typed it in. Pre-approved means an underwriter looked at your documents and your credit. Only one of them is worth anything in a multiple-offer situation, and only one of them survives escrow. If your letter arrived after a five-minute phone call and no paperwork, it is the first kind.

Federal law requires you to receive your Closing Disclosure at least three business days before you sign. That window exists so you can compare it, line by line, against the Loan Estimate you were given at the start. Read it. If a number moved and nobody told you why, ask before you sign, not after.

Usually, yes. How the payment is counted depends on the loan type and repayment plan, and the treatment differs between conventional, FHA and VA. Income-driven repayment plans in particular are handled differently by different programmes — which means the same borrower can qualify for very different amounts.

Yes, and this is the most under-used lever in the whole transaction. Seller credits are negotiated into the purchase contract and are limited by loan type and down payment — typically 3–6% on conventional. It costs you nothing to ask, and in a slower market sellers frequently agree. Most buyers never raise it.

Yes, and heavily. Lenders count HOA dues in your debt-to-income ratio like any other obligation. A $700 monthly HOA can cut over $100,000 from your maximum loan — and it surprises people constantly.

It lowers your payment and can remove PMI, so yes, it increases what you qualify for. But be careful: emptying your savings into a down payment to buy more house is exactly how people end up asset-rich and one repair away from a crisis. Keep reserves.

Yes, slightly. You prepay interest from your closing date to the end of the month, so closing on the 28th means far less prepaid interest than closing on the 3rd. It is not a large saving but it is free, and it is worth knowing when you have flexibility on the date.

No — and this surprises people. Extra principal shortens the term, it does not reduce the required monthly payment. If you want a lower payment you need a recast (which some servicers offer for a small fee) or a refinance. If you want to be free sooner, prepay.

Yes, significantly. Lenders count HOA dues in your debt-to-income ratio exactly like a car payment. A $700 monthly HOA can reduce your borrowing power by well over $100,000 — and it is one of the most common reasons a pre-approval falls apart at underwriting.

It can help, but far less than people expect. The standard deduction is high, the SALT cap limits property tax deductibility, and many California households do not itemise at all. Where it does apply, it improves the buy case — talk to a tax adviser rather than assuming.

Tell your servicer explicitly, in writing, that the extra funds are to be applied to principal. This is not a formality. Many servicers will otherwise hold the money in a suspense account or apply it toward your next scheduled payment, which achieves nothing. Then check your statement the following month and confirm the principal balance actually fell.

It changes it more than anything else on the page. At 5% annual appreciation buying may overtake renting around year 6. At 2% it may never overtake it within thirty years. Nobody can tell you which will happen — which is exactly why we show you the whole band instead of picking one.

Proposition 13 sets the base rate at 1% of assessed value, but local assessments, school bonds and special districts push the effective rate to roughly 1.1%–1.35% in most Bay Area cities. Your assessed value resets to your purchase price when you buy.

Three to six months of full housing costs is the common guidance, and in high-cost California we would push toward six. Some loan programmes require reserves outright. If buying the house leaves you with nothing, you have bought too much house.

A 15-year loan carries a much higher payment and dramatically less lifetime interest. It is better if you can comfortably afford it and worse if it leaves you with no margin. We would rather see you take 30 years and pay extra voluntarily than take 15 and be trapped.

Earlier is always better, because every dollar of principal removed stops accruing interest immediately. A lump sum today beats the same amount spread over a year. But consistency beats intention — an automatic $300 a month you never think about will usually outperform a lump sum you keep meaning to make.

No more than mortgage interest is. In year one of a $960,000 loan at 6.75% you pay roughly $64,000 in interest and about $19,000 of principal — the interest is gone forever, exactly like rent. Add property tax, insurance and maintenance and the unrecoverable cost of owning frequently exceeds the unrecoverable cost of renting for the first several years.

On standard conventional, FHA and VA loans in California, no. Prepayment penalties were largely eliminated for qualified mortgages. They can still appear on some non-QM and investor products — including certain DSCR loans — so check your note before you assume. If you don't know, ask us and we will read it.

It's a real argument and the calculator models it. Rising rent is the strongest structural case for buying, because a fixed mortgage payment does not rise with it. But your taxes, insurance and maintenance do rise, and California insurance has risen sharply. Fixed-rate does not mean fixed-cost.

Almost certainly not. Selling costs alone run around 6% of the sale price, which on a $1.2M home is roughly $72,000. Add closing costs on the way in and you are deeply underwater against a renter unless the market moves sharply in your favour.

Often, arithmetically, yes — and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise. Prepaying is a guaranteed, risk-free, tax-free return equal to your mortgage rate. Investing has a higher expected return but no guarantee, real volatility, and taxes. If your rate is 3%, invest. If your rate is 7.5%, prepaying is a very hard, very safe return to beat. In between, it is genuinely a judgement call about risk and temperament, not a maths problem.

Almost never. If your employer matches contributions, that match is an immediate 50–100% return, which no mortgage rate can compete with. Take the full match first. Prepay after that, if you still want to.

No. Pay the highest-rate debt first, always. Credit cards at 24% and personal loans at 14% should be gone long before you send an extra dollar to a 6.75% mortgage. Prepaying a cheap mortgage while carrying an expensive card is the most common ordering mistake in personal finance.

It's a rule of thumb, not a law, and it is the closest thing to an honest average. Some years you spend nothing. Then the roof goes, or the water heater, or the sewer lateral, and you spend $30,000. Budgeting 1% a year means those years don't destroy you.

It should change it a lot. If your income varies — commission, self-employment, contract work — the same payment carries far more risk. We reduce the recommended ratio for variable income, because a payment that is merely tight in a good month is impossible in a bad one.

Typically 2–5% of the purchase price, on top of your down payment. The main components are lender fees (origination, underwriting, processing), title insurance and escrow, appraisal, recording and transfer taxes, prepaid interest, and impound accounts for property tax and insurance.

An impound (or escrow) account is money the lender collects up front to guarantee your property taxes and insurance get paid. Depending on when you close relative to the tax calendar, you may need to fund six or more months of property tax and a full year of insurance at closing. It is the single most common reason cash to close exceeds expectations.

Options exist and they are worth exploring early rather than in a panic: reduce the down payment and accept PMI, negotiate a seller credit, take a lender credit at a higher rate, or use gift funds from family (which have documentation rules). What you must not do is discover the shortfall three days before closing. Run the numbers now.

Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance — the four components of a normal mortgage payment. Most online calculators show only the first two, which is why the number they give you is roughly 20–25% lower than what you will actually pay.

Private mortgage insurance is charged when you put down less than 20% on a conventional loan. It protects the lender, not you. It typically runs 0.3% to 1.5% of the loan per year and can be removed once you reach 20% equity — automatically at 78% loan-to-value, or on request at 80%.

One where the lender covers your closing costs in exchange for a higher interest rate. You pay the costs either way — the only question is whether you pay them once at the table or every month for thirty years. If you will keep the loan a long time it is usually the more expensive option.

Lenders commonly allow up to 43% back-end (all debts including the mortgage), and some programmes go higher. The traditional guidance is 28% front-end — housing alone — and it exists for a reason. The distance between 28% and 43% is where most housing stress lives.

You make a large lump-sum principal payment and the servicer re-amortises the remaining balance over the remaining term — lowering your monthly payment while keeping your rate and your payoff date. It usually costs a few hundred dollars and it is dramatically cheaper than refinancing. Very few borrowers know it exists.

It is the year at which the total unrecoverable cost of owning finally falls below the total cost of renting. In California at current rates it commonly lands between year 5 and year 12 — and if appreciation is weak, it may never arrive at all.

The down payment is your equity contribution. Cash to close is that plus all closing costs, prepaid items and impounds, minus any credits. On a $1.2M purchase with 20% down, buyers who budget $240,000 routinely discover they need over $270,000 — and they discover it late.

Lender fees are negotiable — origination, processing, underwriting and any vaguely named 'admin' or 'document' fee. Title and escrow are shoppable: you are legally entitled to choose your own provider in California and prices vary meaningfully. What is not negotiable: recording fees, transfer taxes, the appraisal, and impounds — those are set by government or by arithmetic.

Because they don't know your property. Tax rates vary by county and by parcel; insurance depends on the structure, the roof, and increasingly on fire risk. Rather than guess, most tools omit them entirely — which quietly understates your payment by well over a thousand dollars a month in California.

Because a lender is measuring their risk of loss, not your quality of life. At a 43% debt-to-income ratio most borrowers still repay reliably — which is all the lender needs to be true. Whether you can also save, travel, replace a car, or absorb a bad year is not something they underwrite.

Because it isn't free. Money tied up in home equity is money not invested elsewhere. If $240,000 could earn roughly 6% a year in a diversified portfolio, the return you gave up is a genuine cost of buying, and honest comparisons include it. Most calculators quietly do not.

Because we would rather earn your trust now and your business later than sell you a loan you regret. If the maths says rent, we say rent. That is not generosity — it is the only way the rest of this website means anything.

Principal and interest are fixed on a fixed-rate loan. Taxes and insurance are not — both tend to rise, and California insurance has risen sharply. Your escrow payment will be adjusted, usually annually. Budget for that.

A full pre-approval involves a hard credit inquiry, which typically has a small, temporary effect. Multiple mortgage inquiries within a short shopping window are generally treated as a single event by scoring models. This calculator does not touch your credit at all.

24 months usually prices better and reads more convincingly. 12 months is faster and helps if your business is growing quickly and last year understates you. If your income is falling, 24 months will show that — and we will not pretend otherwise.

Not always. Some lenders price the combination better than the sum of its parts, and some price it worse. We separate them here for clarity, because you cannot attack a premium you cannot see — but the real quote will be whatever the real quote is, and we will get you several.

Yes, typically. This is a non-QM loan and it prices above conventional — often meaningfully. Anyone who tells you otherwise is misleading you. The honest question is not whether it costs more; it is whether the alternative is qualifying for nothing at all.

Usually yes. Many programs will add asset-depletion income to pension income, Social Security, rental income, or part-time work. Blending is common and often produces a far stronger file than either source alone.

Very often, yes, and this is the most valuable thing on this page. An ITIN from the IRS, two US credit accounts (a secured card and a small instalment loan work well), and twenty-four months of clean history can move you onto Non-QM pricing near 8% — or better if you also have documentable US income. On a $1,000,000 loan that is worth roughly $255,089.

Often, yes, and it is worth real money. Lenders apply 10%, 15% or 20% to the same file depending on their own policy — so shop it. A CPA letter stating your actual expense ratio can also move it. On $250,000 of gross income, the difference between a 10% and a 20% factor is $25,000 of qualifying income and roughly $150,000 of borrowing power.

Often, yes — and it is frequently the right plan. Once you have two clean years of tax returns showing sufficient income, a conventional refinance may cut your rate substantially. We build that exit into the conversation on day one.

Yes, and you should plan to. Once you have two years of tax returns showing income that supports the loan conventionally, refinance and drop the premium. Check the prepayment penalty first — many Non-QM loans carry one for the first three to five years, and it can eat the saving if you move too early.

Occasionally, yes — if you can both document income and get under the conforming limit, you are simply a conventional borrower and none of this applies. It happens more often than you would think, usually because nobody actually checked.

Sometimes, and it is often cheaper — but you generally need it opened <b>before</b> you list the property, because most lenders will not open a HELOC on a home that is on the market. If you are considering a move in the next year, open the HELOC now while you still can. This is a genuinely valuable piece of timing that almost nobody is told.

Yes. Foreign national loans exist specifically for buyers with no US credit file, no social security number and no US residency. Income is documented from your home country — employer letters, foreign tax filings, foreign bank statements — and credit is established through international references rather than a FICO score.

No. This is a common misunderstanding. The lender is not requiring you to draw the money down — the division is purely a method of calculating a qualifying income figure. Your assets stay yours and stay invested.

No. That is the entire point. Asset depletion exists precisely for people with no employment income — the retired, the recently exited, those living on a portfolio.

Not necessarily. Many lenders permit closing through a power of attorney or at a US consulate abroad. Requirements vary and the documentation must be exact — an incorrectly executed power of attorney will stop a closing dead. Plan this early rather than in the final week.

Correct. No 1040s, no W-2s, no P&L in most programs. We read your deposits. Some lenders will ask for a CPA letter confirming your business exists and your ownership percentage — that is not the same as underwriting your tax return.

Usually not for income qualification, which is the entire point. Lenders will still verify your business exists and is active — typically a CPA letter, a business licence, and a look at your business bank account. Some will still want a signed 4506-C on file even when they do not pull the transcripts.

Yes — and this is the whole game. Divisors of 60, 84, 120, and 240 months are all in use, and the full-term 360-month approach exists as well. Two lenders can look at identical assets and arrive at wildly different loan amounts. The only way to know is to have somebody who talks to all of them.

By documenting income conventionally. Have someone actually calculate qualifying income from your tax returns — with the standard add-backs for depreciation, depletion, amortisation and business use of home. If it works, take a full-documentation jumbo and drop 1.65%. This is the single most valuable thing on this page.

By getting your loan under your county's conforming limit — $1,209,750 in the Bay Area's high-cost counties. A larger deposit or a negotiated price reduction can do it. If you land near the line, this is very achievable and worth real money.

A 1099 is issued by somebody else and reported to the IRS — it is third-party evidence. Bank deposits are self-generated and could be anything: a loan, a gift, money moved between your own accounts. Because the evidence is stronger, 1099 programs usually price a little better, around 7.90% against 8.00%, and require less documentation.

Most P&L programmes want 24 months. Some will accept 12 months with compensating factors — strong credit, real reserves, a lower loan-to-value. Under 12 months is genuinely difficult, and if that is you, waiting is often the cheaper answer than borrowing.

Usually one to two years in the same line of work. Two years is standard and gets the best pricing; some lenders will accept twelve months with compensating factors such as a larger deposit or strong reserves. A gap or a career change mid-history is the thing that most often trips people up, so raise it early rather than late.

On a $1,500,000 loan, the jumbo premium of roughly 0.20% costs about $54,712 in lifetime interest. The Non-QM premium of roughly 1.65% costs about $433,281. They are not remotely the same size, and almost nobody shows them to you apart.

Far more than the rate implies, because the rate is not the main cost — carrying two properties is. On a typical Bay Area move you are looking at roughly $7,990 a month in extra burn (the old mortgage, the old taxes and insurance, and the bridge interest) plus about 2 points up front. If the old house takes six months to sell, that is around $55,939.

Usually 10% to 20%, sometimes more depending on credit and the program. Larger down payments improve pricing substantially on non-QM loans — more so than they do on conventional.

Most bridge lenders will go to roughly 80% combined loan-to-value on your current home. On a $1.4M home with $600,000 owed, that means around $520,000 of accessible equity. The more equity you have, the more flexible the terms and the calmer the whole exercise becomes.

Typically 1.25 to 2 percentage points above conventional. On a $1,000,000 loan, 6.75% against 8.35% is roughly $1,097 more every month and about $394,957 more in interest across a 30-year term. That is the number most lenders will not put in front of you, and it is the first number we show you.

No. A bank statement loan derives income from deposits into your business or personal accounts over 12–24 months. A P&L loan uses your CPA's stated net income. They price differently and they suit different businesses — a high-revenue, high-expense business often does better on a P&L, while a business with clean, consistent deposits often does better on bank statements. We price both.

The loan is not exotic — it is a standard mortgage with a different way of proving income. The risk is qualifying for more than you can comfortably carry, because deposits can flatter a business that is having a good year. We will tell you if we think the number is too big.

Usually, yes — often by ten to thirty thousand dollars. Selling first and renting for six months might cost $45,000 including two moves, against $55,939 for the bridge. What selling first costs you is <i>certainty</i>: you may lose the house you want. That is the trade, and it is a legitimate one to make in either direction — as long as somebody has actually priced it for you.

Legally, largely yes. Which is precisely why no 1099 lender puts this calculator on their website. We put it on ours because a client who cannot make the payment is not a client for very long, and because being the only broker in California who shows you this number is worth more to us than the occasional loan it costs.

It depends on three things: whether you can wait, what rent costs you meanwhile, and whether prices are likely to run. If you intend to live in the US long term and can wait two years, building a credit file is very often worth more than buying immediately. If this is a pure investment, or you must move now for family or work, the foreign national loan is the right product and we will place it well.

Yes — when the house you are buying is genuinely rare, when a contingent offer would certainly be rejected, and when you can comfortably absorb the burn for twice as long as you expect to need it. Those three conditions together justify the premium. Any two of them do not.

Yes, and put a date on it before you sign. Once you have two years of tax returns that support the loan conventionally, refinance and drop the Non-QM premium. Check the prepayment penalty first — they are common on Non-QM and can run three to five years.

No. Check the tax returns first, properly — which means having someone actually calculate qualifying income rather than glancing at the bottom line. Add-backs for depreciation, depletion, amortisation, and business use of home can lift usable income substantially. We have moved people off Non-QM and onto conventional more than once, and it costs us money every time.

Typically checking, savings, brokerage accounts, and retirement accounts — though retirement funds are usually discounted, often to around 70%, and may only count if you are of an age to access them without penalty. Property equity, business assets, and illiquid holdings generally do not count.

Roughly 1.15 percentage points, which on a $1,000,000 loan is about $281,546 in extra lifetime interest. It is one of the cheaper Non-QM products — but it is not cheap, and it is worth twenty minutes to check whether you needed it at all.

Expect 20–30% for a Jumbo Non-QM, and more for investment property or a very recent credit event. Reserves matter enormously at this loan size — six to twelve months of full payments held in liquid assets after closing is common, and it catches people out.

This is the risk nobody dwells on. You must extend (at a cost), refinance into something longer, or face default. Extensions are usually available and usually expensive. Before you sign, ask exactly what an extension costs and put that number in your plan — not in your optimism.

Then check conventional first, seriously. The standard mileage deduction is largely a <b>paper</b> expense — a conventional underwriter adds a substantial portion of it straight back. For high-mileage realtors it is frequently the single largest add-back in the file, and it has taken more than one of our clients off Non-QM entirely.

A Non-QM mortgage that qualifies you on the gross income shown on your 1099 forms, with a flat expense factor applied — usually 10%, sometimes 15–20%. No tax returns are required. It suits contractors, real estate agents, commissioned salespeople, consultants and gig workers whose 1099s cleanly capture what they earn.

A loan that is both above your county's conforming limit (making it jumbo) and underwritten on alternative income documentation such as bank statements, a CPA-prepared P&L, or assets (making it Non-QM). It carries both surcharges, which is why it is one of the most expensive products in residential lending.

A mortgage that qualifies you on a profit-and-loss statement prepared and signed by a licensed CPA, EA or tax preparer — rather than on tax returns or bank statements. It is designed for self-employed borrowers whose legitimate write-offs have driven their taxable income far below what the business actually earns.

A mortgage that qualifies you on the money actually landing in your bank account — typically 12 or 24 months of deposits — instead of the net income on your tax return. It exists because the tax code rewards business owners for showing less income, and the mortgage system then punishes them for it.

A short-term loan — usually 6 to 12 months — secured against the equity in your current home, letting you fund the purchase of the next one before the first has sold. It is almost always interest-only and typically carries 1.5 to 3 points up front.

An offer to buy conditional on your current home selling. It costs nothing and protects you completely — and in a competitive market a seller with three clean offers will very often bin it without a second thought. That gap is precisely the market that bridge loans serve, and precisely why they can charge for it.

An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, issued by the IRS to people who need to file US taxes but are not eligible for a social security number. You apply on Form W-7, usually alongside a tax return. It is <b>not</b> work authorisation and it is <b>not</b> immigration status — it is a tax identifier. But it is the doorway to a US credit file, and a US credit file is worth a great deal of money.

A mortgage that converts your liquid assets into qualifying income. The lender divides your eligible assets by a set number of months — the divisor — and treats the result as monthly income. No job required, no tax returns in most programs.

The share of your deposits the lender assumes went to running the business. Business account statements are commonly discounted around 50%, personal account statements often around 100% — meaning almost all of it counts. Which account you use can change your approval by hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The gap between what the program credits you with and what you actually keep. If you gross $250,000 and the lender applies a 10% factor, it qualifies you on $225,000. If your real expenses are 35%, you actually keep $162,500. The program has credited you with $62,500 that never reaches your bank account — and at a 43% ratio that supports about $2,240 a month of payment you cannot truly make.

The divisor is the number of months the lender spreads your assets over. It is the single most important number in the loan and almost nobody talks about it. $2,000,000 divided by 60 months is $33,333 of monthly income. The same $2,000,000 divided by 360 is $5,556. Same assets. Eleven times the difference in what you can borrow.

Roughly 2 to 2.5 percentage points above what a US buyer with identical finances would pay — around 9% against 6.75%. On a $1,000,000 loan that is about $1,521 more every month and roughly $561,688 more over the life of the loan. That is the number this page exists to show you.

Two. The rate is higher than conventional. And a short divisor can qualify you for a loan that is larger than you should sensibly carry — 60 months makes your assets look like a torrent of income, but you may need those assets to last thirty years. We will run the long divisor as well and show you both.

Self-employed people, business owners, 1099 contractors, freelancers, real-estate agents, and anyone whose tax return is a poor description of what they actually earn. If your CPA is doing a good job, a conventional lender will think you are broke.

A licensed CPA, Enrolled Agent, or licensed tax preparer — not you. It must be signed, and most lenders want it to cover 12 or 24 months and to reconcile broadly with your business bank activity. If your numbers and your deposits tell different stories, expect questions.

Generally yes, though it must be documented and usually translated and converted to US dollars. Employer letters, foreign tax returns, and audited financials are typical. Some lenders restrict which countries they will accept income from, and a few will not lend to nationals of certain countries at all — which is a reason to work with a broker who knows which doors are actually open.

Usually yes, and most DSCR lenders prefer it. This is one of the practical advantages over conventional financing, which generally requires the loan in your personal name. Speak to your attorney and CPA about the structure.

Some lenders will use documented short-term rental history — typically via a rental history report — while others insist on long-term market rent from the appraisal. It varies enormously by lender, and the difference can decide the deal. We know which ones will.

No. That is the entire point of the product. The property qualifies on its own cash flow, so there are no tax returns, no W-2s, and no debt-to-income calculation. This makes it enormously useful for self-employed investors and for anyone whose portfolio has grown past conventional limits.

Often, yes — commonly a 3–5 year declining structure. This differs sharply from conventional loans and it matters enormously if you plan to refinance or sell early. Always read the prepayment terms before you sign, and ask us to read them with you if the language is unclear.

No. That is the entire point of the product. There is no DTI calculation, no tax returns, no employment verification. We are underwriting the property, not you. Your credit score and reserves still matter.

No, and this is the most expensive misunderstanding in real estate investing. DSCR 1.00 means the rent covers <i>the mortgage</i>. It does not cover vacancy, maintenance, capital expenditure or management — all of which are real, all of which are certain, and none of which appear in the ratio. A property at DSCR 1.00 is, in reality, losing money every month.

Monthly rent divided by PITIA — principal, interest, taxes, insurance and any HOA. If a property rents for $5,500 and the full payment is $4,219, the DSCR is 1.30. Above 1.00 means the property pays for itself.

Generally unlimited — which is a genuine advantage over conventional financing, where you hit a wall around ten financed properties. Each DSCR property stands on its own. That is the strength of the product, and also how people end up with six properties that each lose $600 a month.

There is generally no cap. Conventional financing effectively stops most investors at around ten financed properties; DSCR programs do not have that ceiling. This is why serious portfolio investors move to DSCR — not because it is cheaper, but because it does not run out.

Yes. Self-managing is not free — it is unpaid work you have decided not to price. It also makes the deal look better than it is, and if you ever want to stop, or you get sick, or you buy a fourth property and run out of evenings, the 8% appears instantly and the deal that 'worked' stops working.

As a working rule, around 1.25 or better before the deal has genuine room — that is roughly the margin that absorbs vacancy, maintenance, CapEx and management and still leaves cash flow. Below about 1.15 you are usually subsidising the property out of your salary and calling it an investment.

1.00 is the common threshold — the property covers its own payment. 1.25 and above prices meaningfully better. Some lenders will go down to around 0.75 with a larger down payment and a rate premium. Below that, almost nobody will lend, and frankly they shouldn't.

Typically 20% to 25%, and pricing improves with more. A larger down payment also raises your DSCR directly, because it lowers the payment the rent has to cover — which is the lever most investors forget they have.

Then the deal does not work, and we will say so. A DSCR below 1.00 means the rent does not cover the payment and you will be feeding the property every month. Sometimes there is a fix — more down, a different property, a better rent. Sometimes the honest answer is that this is a bad deal.

Capital expenditure — the roof, the HVAC, the water heater, the windows, the sewer lateral. These are not maintenance; they are large, infrequent and absolutely certain. Budgeting nothing for them does not mean they will not happen. It means you will fund them from your own pocket, usually at the worst possible moment.

Debt Service Coverage Ratio — the property's monthly rent divided by its monthly debt payment (usually PITI). A DSCR of 1.00 means rent exactly covers the mortgage. Most DSCR lenders want 1.00 or above; some go to 0.75 with pricing adjustments.

A mortgage for an investment property that qualifies on the property's own rental income rather than your personal income. DSCR means Debt Service Coverage Ratio: the rent divided by the full monthly payment. No tax returns, no W-2s, no debt-to-income calculation on you at all.

Usually far lower than a refinance — sometimes near zero, though some lenders recover them if you close the line early. Because you are not touching your first mortgage, there is much less to pay for.

Yes, usually. Lenders price cash-out refinances higher because the risk profile is different — you are extracting equity rather than simply improving your terms. Expect a premium over a comparable rate-and-term refinance.

Yes — that is precisely what it is for. A HELOC is a separate second lien. Your first mortgage, and its rate, are entirely unaffected. This is the single most valuable thing on this page and most homeowners do not know it.

It depends on the resulting loan-to-value. A rate and term refinance generally needs sufficient equity, though FHA and VA offer streamline programs with lighter requirements. If you are underwater, tell us — there are still options, and pretending otherwise wastes your time.

Yes. Lenders can freeze or reduce a HELOC if your home's value drops or your circumstances change. This happened at scale in 2008 to people who were relying on the line as an emergency fund. A HELOC is a good tool; it is a fragile safety net.

There is a hard inquiry and a new, larger account. The bigger risk is behavioural: people who consolidate credit-card debt into their mortgage and then run the cards back up end up with both debts, secured against their home. That is the most common way this goes wrong.

Most lenders allow a combined loan-to-value of around 80% to 90% of your home's value, including your first mortgage. Programs and limits vary, and California valuations move — the number you qualify for today is not a number you can bank on forever.

Typically 2% to 5% of the loan amount — appraisal, title, escrow, lender fees, and prepaid items. These can often be rolled into the loan, which does not make them free; it means you finance them and pay interest on them.

Most lenders will let you borrow up to about 80% of your home's value across all liens combined, though some go higher on a HELOC. On a $1.4M home with a $620,000 mortgage, roughly $500,000 of equity is theoretically accessible — which is not the same as saying you should take it.

Most conventional cash-out programs cap you around 80% loan-to-value, meaning you must leave 20% equity in the home. VA allows more in some cases. FHA has its own limits. The cap is not the question, though — the question is what the money is for.

There is no universal rule, and the old advice about 1% is meaningless. What matters is whether the savings clear the costs within your time horizon, and whether the total interest goes down. On a large California balance, even a 0.5% improvement can pay back quickly. On a small balance it may never.

There is no universal threshold, and the old 'one percent rule' is lazy. What matters is your break-even in months against how long you will actually keep the loan. On a large California balance, even a 0.5% drop can break even in under two years.

Nothing. It does not move. Ten years of interest-only payments on $150,000 at 8.5% costs about $127,500 — and at the end you still owe the entire $150,000. The money is gone and the debt is intact. This is not a defect; it is how the product works, and you must go in knowing it.

It can be, if the funds are used to buy, build or substantially improve the home securing the loan — and subject to overall limits. Using a HELOC to consolidate credit cards or pay for a holiday generally is not deductible. Speak to a tax adviser rather than assuming.

No. The costs are recovered through a higher interest rate, and you pay them for as long as you hold the loan. A no-cost refinance can be the right choice if you expect to move or refinance again soon — and a poor one if you plan to keep the loan for twenty years.

Almost never. HELOC rates are typically variable, tied to the prime rate plus a margin. If prime rises, your payment rises — with no cap in most cases beyond a lifetime ceiling. This is the single most important thing to understand, and it is the thing least often said out loud.

Only if your existing rate is at or above current market rates. If you hold a below-market first mortgage, a HELOC is almost always dramatically cheaper because it leaves that rate untouched. The headline HELOC rate looks higher, and it is still the cheaper answer. Run both.

Interest may be deductible when the funds are used to buy, build, or substantially improve the home securing the loan — and generally not when used for other purposes. Rules are specific and change. We are not tax advisors; speak to a CPA before you rely on this.

Not really. In a so-called no-cost refinance the lender covers your closing costs and recovers them through a higher interest rate, or the costs are added to your balance. The money always comes from somewhere. Ask to see both versions priced side by side.

Almost certainly not. If your first mortgage is at 3%, a cash-out refinance re-prices your ENTIRE balance at today's rate to hand you a small slice of cash. On a $600,000 balance, moving from 3.25% to 7% costs roughly $1,970 a month — forever — to access $80,000. A HELOC leaves your low rate intact and would cost a fraction of that.

That is a cash-out refinance, and it is a different calculation — you are converting unsecured debt into debt secured by your home. It can lower your total interest substantially. It can also turn a manageable credit-card problem into a foreclosure risk. Use the Cash-Out calculator, and be honest with yourself about why the card balance exists.

Very often, yes — and almost no one is offered it. Refinancing from a 30-year into a 20-year or 15-year at a lower rate can cut your lifetime interest dramatically, sometimes for a payment close to what you already pay. We will always price the shorter term alongside the longer one.

The interest arithmetic almost always favours it — 8.5% against 24% is not close. The behavioural arithmetic often does not. You have converted unsecured debt, which can be negotiated or discharged, into debt secured by the house you live in. If the spending pattern that created the balance has not changed, you will simply rebuild the card balance and now owe both.

Typically 2% to 5% of the total new loan — not of the cash you receive. On a $680,000 new loan that is real money, and it is often rolled into the balance, which means you finance it and pay interest on it for the life of the loan.

Legally, almost anything. Financially, the question is whether the purpose survives being paid for over thirty years. $50,000 of kitchen at 7% over 30 years costs about $120,000. Debt consolidation and value-adding improvements can be sound. A holiday is not.

Repayment begins — typically over twenty years — and your payment jumps, because you are now paying principal as well as interest. On $150,000 at 8.5% that is roughly $1,063 rising to $1,302. If rates have moved against you, the jump is far larger.

A home equity line of credit is a revolving line secured against your home. You are approved for a limit, you draw what you need, and you pay interest only on what you have drawn. Your first mortgage stays exactly where it is — which is the entire point.

A cash-out refinance replaces your existing mortgage with a larger one and hands you the difference in cash. You are not borrowing 'extra' money on the side — you are re-writing your entire mortgage at today's rate, and that is the part most people miss.

A rate and term refinance replaces your existing mortgage with a new one at a different interest rate, a different term, or both — without taking any cash out. Because you are not increasing the loan balance, lenders price it better than a cash-out refinance and the qualifying requirements are lighter.

Refinancing into whatever term you have left — 26 years, not a fresh 30. Your monthly saving is smaller, so it makes a weaker advertisement, but your lifetime interest falls dramatically. Ask for it by name. Many lenders will not offer it unprompted.

It is the number of months it takes for your monthly saving to repay the closing costs. Divide total closing costs by the monthly saving. If you will move or refinance again before that month arrives, the refinance loses you money — no matter how much better the rate looks.

Closing costs divided by monthly savings. If your costs are $9,000 and you save $600 a month, you break even in 15 months. If you plan to move in a year, refinancing loses you money no matter how good the rate looks.

A cash-out refinance replaces your existing mortgage with a new, larger one — so your entire balance is re-priced at today's rate. A HELOC is a second lien that sits behind your first mortgage and leaves it completely untouched. If your existing rate is low, that distinction is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Usually ten years. During the draw you can borrow, repay, and borrow again, and your required payment is typically interest only. It feels wonderfully cheap. That feeling is the trap.

Two things. First, the rate is usually variable and moves with Prime — your payment can rise. Second, most HELOCs are interest-only during the draw period, so the balance does not fall unless you make it fall, and there is a payment shock when the repayment period begins. Plan for that from day one.

When your existing rate is already at or above market, when the money is going somewhere that genuinely earns or saves more than it costs, and when you have run the alternative — a HELOC — side by side and it lost. If those three things are true, it is a powerful tool. If they are not, it is an expensive one.

When your current rate is at or above today's rate, so there is nothing to destroy — or when you need a very large sum and want it at a fixed rate over thirty years. If you are sitting on a 3% mortgage, it almost never makes sense, and any lender who does not raise that with you is not looking after you.

When the monthly saving pays back the closing costs before you sell or refinance again — and when the new loan does not quietly cost you more in total interest. Most people only check the first condition. The second one is where the money is lost.

When you need a large, fixed, one-time sum and current rates are at or below your existing mortgage rate — a cash-out refinance may then be cheaper and safer, because it fixes the rate. And it is the wrong choice, always, if you are using it to fund a lifestyle rather than an asset.

A cash-out refinance is a much larger loan, so it generates a much larger commission. That is not a conspiracy, it is just an incentive — and it is why you should always ask for the HELOC quote explicitly and compare the two yourself.

Because most refinances quietly restart your amortisation. If you are six years into a 30-year loan and refinance into a fresh 30-year term, you have just added six years of interest back onto the loan. The rate fell but the clock reset, and interest is front-loaded.

Because restarting a 30-year clock adds years of interest back onto a loan you had already partly paid off. Seven years into a 30-year mortgage, refinancing into a brand-new 30-year can lower your payment and still cost you six figures more in total interest. The fix is to refinance into a term that matches the years you have left.

Because a cash-out refinance re-prices your whole mortgage at today's rate. If you hold a 3% loan, that is catastrophically expensive. A HELOC leaves that rate untouched and only charges you on the money you actually use. When you have a below-market first mortgage, the HELOC usually wins by a very wide margin.

There is a hard inquiry and a new account, so a small temporary dip is normal. Rate-shopping inquiries within a short window are typically treated as a single inquiry by the scoring models. The effect is minor and short-lived compared with the money at stake.

No — and that is not a promise, it is federal law. Under the Loan Originator Compensation Rule (Regulation Z §1026.36(d)), a broker’s compensation cannot vary with the terms of your loan. Not the rate, not the product, not the margin. It is a fixed percentage agreed with each lender in advance. We are paid exactly the same on a 6.75% conventional loan as on a 10.50% bridge loan. The tool above lets you watch that for yourself.

Yes. Regularly. The rent-versus-buy calculator on this site will tell you to keep renting when that is what the numbers say, and it does not check with us first. Every loan page here contains a tool built to argue against the loan it is selling. That is not modesty — it is that a borrower who should not have bought is a borrower who will not refer anyone to us.

Two ways, and you choose which. Lender-paid: the lender pays us a percentage of the loan amount, agreed in advance, and it is priced into your rate. Borrower-paid: you pay us directly at closing and the rate comes down. Neither is free — the money comes from the same place, it just travels a different road. What matters is that you can see it, and your Loan Estimate shows you exactly what it is.

Usually not, and often the opposite — but the honest answer is it depends, and you should check. A bank has one product line and one set of rates. A broker shops dozens of wholesale lenders. But a bank sometimes has a portfolio product or a relationship discount that no broker can touch. Get both quotes. Put the two Loan Estimates side by side. If the bank wins, take the bank — we would rather you did that than resent us for three decades.

The loan amount. Our compensation is a percentage of the loan, so a bigger loan pays us more. That is the one incentive you should watch — with us, and with everybody else. It is also the exact reason every calculator on this site is built to talk you down rather than up. If we wanted the biggest possible number, we would not have built a tool that tells you a 1099 loan will approve you for more than you can actually afford.

We are not always the cheapest on a plain-vanilla conventional loan with perfect credit and a big down payment. Large retail lenders buy that business with volume pricing and we cannot always match them on it. Where we win is complexity — self-employed income, a credit event, a foreign national, an investment property, a condo project nobody wants to touch. If your file is simple, shop it. If it is complicated, that is the whole reason we exist.

It is the old name for lender-paid compensation — money a lender pays a broker when a loan closes. It used to be hidden, and it used to be genuinely abusive: brokers were paid more for putting borrowers into higher rates. That is precisely what the LO Compensation Rule banned in 2011. Today it must be a fixed percentage, disclosed, and it cannot vary with your rate. Ask anyone quoting you a mortgage to show you their compensation on the Loan Estimate. If they will not, that tells you something.

Several times, and we will say so. If you are a straightforward W-2 borrower with a 780 score and 20% down, and your own bank offers a relationship discount, take it. If you qualify for a conventional loan, do not let anyone sell you a Non-QM product — including us. And if a lender has a niche portfolio programme we cannot access, we will tell you it exists and point you at it.