If you're a mortgage professional who wants to master non-QM and other niche products, read on
The needs of the housing market are constantly changing. Over the past year, we’ve heard a chorus of brokers talk about the unprecedented demand for niche products such as non-QM, fix and flip, and bridge loans, to name a few. Housing Industry Icon Taylor Stork reaffirmed this as he discussed with MPA how alternative loan programs can fill in the gaps of traditional agency financing.
“When people talk about niche products, we often think of the old stated income/stated asset and portfolio loan programs of the past,” Stork, chief operating officer of The Developer’s Mortgage Company, said. “Today, we need to solve the ‘qualified mortgage’ problem faced by those who can’t use traditional methods to document their income. So, we turn to a more contemporary breed of non-qualified mortgage products for the self-employed, or business purpose loans for investment properties.”
However, Stork pointed out that there is a growing need for niche agency programs as well. Reverse mortgages, FHA 203k/renovation loans, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s Home Ready and Home Possible are some of the programs Stork thinks mortgage professionals should brush up on.
“Few originators truly focus on or specialize in these, and they are desperately needed to shore up housing supply issues and ensure the availability of credit for minority and underserved borrowers as well as the traditional first-time homebuyer,” he said.
When asked to give mortgage professionals advice on how they can position themselves as experts in this space and better capitalize on available opportunities, Stork said:
“You don’t know how to be an expert in anything that you’ve never done. But, I do know that there are a lot of people ready, willing and able to teach you everything they know about any kind of lending you want to explore. So, find a mentor. Sign up for a class or a webinar. Attend a conference and sit in on a panel. Then skip the toe and just jump headfirst into the deep end, originate a loan.”
Read the 2021 Housing Industry Icons special report, “Transforming the Industry Landscape,” to learn about Stork’s and other mortgage leaders’ outlook on the prospects of the niche space this year.
