Non-QM Loans
If your income is real but your tax returns do not show it the way an agency underwriter wants, a non-QM loan qualifies you on bank deposits, rental cash flow, 1099s, a profit-and-loss statement, or assets instead of W-2s and two years of returns. It is fully underwritten to the federal Ability-to-Repay rule, not a return to the no-doc loans that blew up in 2008. As a veteran-owned broker we shop your file across a wide network of non-QM wholesale investors most retail banks never touch.
A loan outside the agency box, still underwritten to the same repayment standard
QM stands for Qualified Mortgage, the safe-harbor category the CFPB created out of the Dodd-Frank Act after the 2008 crash. A QM loan fits a tight set of rules: income proven with tax returns and W-2s, debt-to-income inside a defined cap, no risky features. Most QM loans are sold to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA, or USDA, so they all underwrite to that same agency box.
A non-QM loan is simply a mortgage that sits outside that box. The single most important thing to understand is what non-QM is not: it is not a no-doc, stated-income, or subprime loan. Every non-QM loan must still satisfy the federal Ability-to-Repay (ATR) rule. The CFPB is explicit that non-QM loans are not exempt from ATR. The difference is the form of the documentation, not whether your ability to repay is documented at all. Instead of two years of tax returns, the lender verifies repayment through bank-statement deposits, a property's rental income, 1099 totals, a CPA-prepared profit-and-loss, or liquid assets.
That distinction matters because the term scares people who remember the pre-2008 era. Today's non-QM file is fully underwritten: credit is pulled and analyzed, income or cash flow is documented and averaged, reserves are verified, and the appraisal stands. What changed is that the income test finally fits how self-employed people, investors, and complex earners are actually paid.
The borrowers the agency box leaves behind
After 8+ years originating loans, the pattern is consistent: these are not weak borrowers, they are borrowers whose strength does not fit a W-2 form. If you see yourself below, a non-QM path is likely the right tool.
Self-employed with write-offs
You run a profitable business, but legal deductions shrink the net income on your Schedule C. A bank-statement or P&L loan qualifies you on real cash flow instead of the taxable number you worked hard to lower. See bank statement loans and self-employed mortgages.
Real estate investors
You want to qualify on the property, not your personal tax returns. A DSCR loan sizes the loan to the rent the home produces. Explore DSCR loans and investment property loans.
Complex or variable income
Commission, gig, seasonal, restricted stock, or large 1099 contractor income that swings year to year. A 1099-only or bank-statement program reads the deposits, not a rigid two-year average.
Recent credit event
A bankruptcy, foreclosure, or short sale that has not finished the multi-year agency seasoning clock. Many non-QM programs have far shorter waiting periods, some as little as one day out of certain events, with a larger down payment.
Foreign nationals
You earn and live abroad with no U.S. credit or tax filing. A foreign-national DSCR program can qualify you on the U.S. rental property's cash flow, typically with a larger down payment and reserves.
High-net-worth, asset-rich
You hold significant savings, brokerage, or retirement assets but show little ordinary income. An asset-depletion (asset-qualifier) loan converts your liquid assets into a qualifying income stream.
We place non-QM files across many wholesale investors most banks cannot reach.
The non-QM programs we place, and the borrower each one fits
Non-QM is an umbrella, not a single product. The right program depends on how your income or assets are best documented. Each card below links to the deep page or the right starting point.
Bank statement loans
Qualify on 12 or 24 months of personal or business bank deposits instead of tax returns. The workhorse program for self-employed owners whose write-offs hide their real cash flow.
Bank statement loans →DSCR investor loans
The loan qualifies on the rental property's debt-service coverage ratio, the rent measured against the payment. No personal income on the application. Built for buy-and-hold investors.
DSCR loans →ITIN loans
Financing for borrowers who file taxes with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number rather than a Social Security number, using alternative documentation of income and history.
ITIN loans →Asset-based / asset depletion
For high-net-worth borrowers, we convert verified liquid assets (savings, brokerage, retirement) into a qualifying income figure when ordinary income is low or irregular.
Ask us if this fitsP&L-only
Qualify on a CPA or licensed tax preparer's profit-and-loss statement for your business, with lighter deposit documentation. A clean fit for established, well-bookkept companies.
Ask us if this fits1099-only
Independent contractors qualify directly from 1099 income totals rather than full returns, useful when business expenses depress the net on a Schedule C.
Ask us if this fitsJumbo non-QM
Loan amounts above conforming limits paired with alternative income documentation, for high-balance borrowers who do not fit agency jumbo overlays.
Jumbo loans →Recent-credit-event
Programs with shorter seasoning after a bankruptcy, foreclosure, or short sale than agency rules allow, structured around a larger down payment and reserves.
Ask us if this fitsWhat a non-QM file looks like versus a tax-return loan
The headline difference is the income test. A conventional file averages the net income on two years of tax returns. A non-QM file replaces that single test with whichever documentation actually reflects your ability to repay, then underwrites the rest of the loan the same way any mortgage is underwritten.
Alt income docs, not tax returns
Bank-statement deposits, rental income, 1099 totals, a P&L, or liquid assets stand in for W-2s and returns. We pick the document set that shows your true earning power, then match it to a lender that prices that program well.
Typically a larger down payment
Because the income proof is alternative, non-QM loans generally ask for more down payment than a comparable agency loan, often in the range of 10 to 25 percent depending on program, credit, and property. More equity offsets the documentation flexibility.
More reserves expected
Plan on documented cash reserves, often several months of payments and sometimes more on investor or foreign-national files. We tell you the reserve target up front so it never surprises you at underwriting.
Still fully underwritten
Credit is pulled and analyzed, the appraisal stands, income or cash flow is documented and averaged, and the file must satisfy Ability-to-Repay. Flexible documentation does not mean no documentation.
Not sure which document set fits you? The fastest way to find out is a mortgage pre-approval, where we review your actual numbers and tell you which non-QM program, if any, gives you the strongest file.
What non-QM is not
"Non-QM is just a no-doc loan with a new name."
No. Non-QM loans must satisfy the federal Ability-to-Repay rule. Income, cash flow, or assets are documented and verified on every file. What changed is the type of proof, not whether proof is required.
"Only people who can't really afford a home use non-QM."
Most non-QM borrowers are profitable business owners, active investors, and high-net-worth earners. Their strength simply does not show up on a W-2, which is the only thing the agency box was built to read.
"A bankruptcy or foreclosure means waiting years no matter what."
Agency loans impose long seasoning periods. Many non-QM programs allow far shorter waits after a credit event, sometimes as little as one day out, in exchange for a larger down payment.
"My bank said no, so I don't qualify anywhere."
Most retail banks do not offer non-QM at all, so a bank decline often just means the program does not exist on their shelf, not that you cannot be approved. A broker reaches lenders the bank cannot.
Why a non-QM file belongs with a broker, not a single bank
Non-QM is the clearest case there is for using a mortgage broker. These loans are sold almost entirely through wholesale channels: the lenders that fund them work through brokers, not retail branches, so most banks simply do not have the product on the shelf. One bank's "no" is frequently just the absence of any non-QM program, not a judgment on your file.
Because we are a broker, your one application is shopped across a wide panel of non-QM wholesale investors, each with different specialties, seasoning rules, reserve requirements, and pricing for the exact program you need. A bank-statement borrower and a DSCR investor belong at different lenders, and we already know which is which. Founder Jason Sharon is a U.S. Navy veteran (former nuclear engineer) who built Home Loans Inc in 2018, holds NMLS #1281448 (company NMLS #1728740), and runs every file with the same precision. You work with a veteran-owned broker, not a call center.
Talk to a non-QM loan specialist
Home Loans Inc: Jason Sharon, Mortgage Broker
2557 Ashley Phosphate Rd, North Charleston, SC 29418
How a non-QM loan actually gets done
1. Find the right document set
We review how you are actually paid and pick the program that shows your true ability to repay: bank statements, DSCR, 1099, P&L, or assets. This step decides everything downstream.
Start pre-approval →2. Match the file to the lender
We shop your one application across our non-QM wholesale panel and place it with the investor whose program, seasoning, and pricing best fit your scenario.
One app, many lenders3. Document and verify
We gather the deposits, rents, 1099s, or asset statements, confirm reserves, and build a clean, fully underwritten file that satisfies Ability-to-Repay.
Underwritten, not no-doc4. Appraisal to closing
We manage the appraisal and conditions and drive the loan to the closing table, keeping you informed at every step.
We run the fileWhy borrowers outside the box choose Home Loans Inc
Jason Sharon founded Home Loans Inc in 2018 after serving as a nuclear engineer in the U.S. Navy, a background that shows up as precision on every loan file. He holds NMLS #1281448 (company NMLS #1728740) and has spent 8+ years originating loans, including the non-QM programs that retail banks rarely offer, which is why this page reads like a lender's map of the category rather than a brochure.
Because we are a broker and not a single bank, your non-QM file is shopped across a wholesale lender network on one application, so the same borrower can land at the investor with the right program instead of being declined for a product that bank never carried. Clients have left 430+ reviews at a 5.0 rating, and we are BBB A+ accredited.
Non-QM loans, frequently asked
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Jason and his team did an amazing job for me. They communicated often and made the entire mortgage process smooth and efficient. I can genuinely say that they are honest, trustworthy and strive to provide the best service possible to their clients.
Jason has been awesome since the beginning. He has been communicative, professional, KNOWLEDGEABLE, and honest. I am very happy with all my services so far, and I recommend UWM!