For his part, Jeanmonod, the regional VP of sales at Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions, described his company’s $10 billion plus in non-QM closing this month as a “huge milestone”, predicting that 2022 would be an even better year.

The success of non-QM was in stark contrast to the decline in refinancing loans – according to Jeanmonod they dropped by half compared to last year – stressing the need for brokers to diversify their portfolio.

Colson, account executive at Fundloans, revealed that broker shops were reporting up to a 50% slump in refinances, prompting a scramble among brokers to find business.

“You can see the need for non-QM, they’re digging through their drawers for all those people they passed up over the last year – those are the brokers supplementing their income right now,” he remarked.

A predicted rise in the mortgage rate would help boost non-QM and make it an even more attractive proposition for borrowers, the panel agreed.