Serving the underserved mortgage market

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Deephaven Mortgage serves the underserved in the mortgage market, through out-of-the-box thinking to get non-QM borrowers qualified

IF EVER Tom Davis or Aaron Drago need a boost at work, they look at the Company Compliments inbox. There’s plenty to look at. “I would say we get these [compliments] on a daily basis, actually,” said Davis, Deephaven Mortgage’s chief sales officer, joined by Drago, Deephaven’s chief operating officer. The entire company can view the inbox to see the “positive feedback from our clients,” Davis said. The Company Compliments inbox helps keep the company centered on their core job: “We’re serving the underserved borrowers who don’t always check the boxes necessary to qualify for a traditional government-backed mortgage. Originators need these non-QM products to compete in this important market.”

Deephaven Mortgage is a leading non-QM lender that provides mortgages to millions of Americans who otherwise would not qualify for a traditional, government-backed loan. Deephaven was founded in 2012 and led the formation and development of the non-QM mortgage market. The firm has a network of more than 1,500 mortgage broker and correspondent partners.

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Charlotte, North Carolina

“Then the magic happens, right? When the borrower is able to get a loan that they haven’t been able to get”

Tom Davis, Deephaven Mortgage

These words help power them forward to teach mortgage brokers and loan officers “how to go out and tap into these underserved markets.” But that is not the only thing that sets Deephaven apart. Deephaven, founded in 2012, is a non-QM pioneer, having helped to lead the formation and development of the non-QM market. “As a full-service, multi-channel leader, we have several different delivery options, including wholesale, non-delegated, and delegated delivery,” said Davis. “A lot of non-QM investors don’t offer all these options, and that helps make us unique.” “Our education and training resources reflect a certain level of expertise that is unmatched in many circumstances,” said Drago. “We continue to be innovative in the space and offer many products with flexible features and terms.”

As a leading non-QM lender, the Deephaven Mortgage team expertly helps everyone from the self-employed to business-purpose borrowers find out-of-the-box mortgage financing. “There are non-QM borrowers in every town in the United States,” said Davis. “So, it’s teaching our clients how to tap into alternative ways to qualify these borrowers. This can include leveraging alternative income sources to credential those who may have difficulty qualifying for a loan because they lack traditional documentation such as W-2 tax forms. This can

involve getting a great forensic view of [a borrower’s] cash flow, by way of 12 or 24 months of bank statements, for example,” said Davis. “There’s this massive, underserved market that people previously were not paying attention to,” added Davis. “Now, we’re seeing attention being paid there.” A good example of how well these loans perform was seen during the pandemic. “These loans performed well, in part, because our underwriters were able to make responsible credit decisions based on the cash flows of these borrowers,” said Davis. The desire to learn more about the growing non-QM field is evident in Deephaven’s webinars. The company has 600 people registered for an upcoming webinar, and they put out as many as 150 webinars a month for clients, “to teach them about the products, about our resources, such as a Scenario Desk and Quick Qualifier tools, that they can leverage to help them become comfortable in this market. And then the magic happens, right? When the borrower is able to get a loan that they haven’t been able to get, and their mortgage brokers or loan officers gain new non-QM business.” It can be an eye-opening experience for those watching from their offices.

“We have been asking webinar participants, ‘Have you originated a non-QM loan?’ An average of 70 percent of them have not,” said Davis. “We’re hand-holding them through the sales and the manufacturing processes, and then we’re seeing all these compliments come in. It’s our culture.” With more than a decade in the business, it goes to show that “our expertise really allows us to make strong, informed credit decisions, and that sets us apart in terms of our ability to differentiate in this non-QM space. We continue to build and innovate on that logic each and every day, leveraging a solutions-oriented approach for each transaction,” said Drago. “Some of our borrowers, such as high-net-worth individuals, property investors, or entrepreneurs, have more complex income streams. We really are tailored to evaluate these borrowers by analyzing their bank statements, property income, and other assets.”

“We continue to look at individuals and the scenarios that are presented to us and adjust and adapt”

Aaron Drago, Deephaven Mortgage

Spring is around the corner and with it comes the homebuying season. Despite the fallout of the pandemic and higher interest rates, Davis is still “excited. We’re very bullish on non-QM.” His excitement continued as he revealed that “we’re maniacally focused on giving our partners all the tools available to serve all non-QM borrowers.” Deephaven is seeing increasing interest not just in webinars

but in their growing customer base as well, year over year, across all channels. “We’re seeing a lot more new customers coming on board and delivering to us,” he said. Another amazing indicator? At a recent industry conference, their biggest so far, they held a staggering 120 meetings over two days. (Yes, we broke out the calculator for this – that’s 2.5 meetings per hour over 48 hours.) “We’ve seen an exceptionally challenged market over the last couple of years,” said Drago. “Our webinars, education, outreach, and marketing support, combined with our ability to customize our service, are all competitive advantages to Deephaven and the channel partners who depend on our expertise,” he said. “We continue to look at the individuals and scenarios that are presented to us and adjust and adapt.” As we emerge from the pandemic, and into a possible recession, Drago keeps his eye on the prize of helping those who need help. “Think about the massive number of small business owners and self-employed people out there who we can provide for,” said Drago. “That’s where we’re really focused-on helping them and our partners deliver.”

Business man being guided through mortgage market maze.

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Headquarters

2012

Year founded

1,500+ and growing

Number of independent partners

46 states and the District of Columbia

Number of states Deephaven operates in

Deephaven delivery options

Wholesale

Correspondent delegated

Correspondent non-delegated

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“These loans performed well, in part, because our underwriters were able to make responsible credit decisions based on the cash flows of these borrowers,” said Davis. The desire to learn more about the growing Non-QM field is evident in Deephaven’s webinars. The company has 600 people registered for an upcoming webinar, and they put out as many as 150 webinars a month for clients, “to teach them about the products, about our resources, such as a Scenario Desk and Quick Qualifier tools, that they can leverage to help them become comfortable in this market. And then the magic happens, right? When the borrower is able to get a loan that they haven’t been able to get, and their mortgage brokers or loan officers gain new Non-QM business.” It can be an eye-opening experience for those watching from their offices. “We have been asking webinar participants, ‘Have you originated a Non-QM loan?’ An average of 70 percent of them have not,” said Davis. “We’re hand-holding them through the sales and the manufacturing processes, and then we’re seeing all these compliments come in. It’s our culture.”

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“As a full-service, multi-channel leader, we have several different delivery options, including wholesale, non-delegated, and delegated delivery,” said Davis. “A lot of Non-QM investors don’t offer all these options and that helps make us unique.” “Our education and training resources reflect a certain level of expertise that is unmatched in many circumstances,” said Drago. “We continue to be innovative in the space and offer many products with flexible features and terms.”

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MORTGAGE INDUSTRY

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