Angel Oak Mortgage REIT is a mortgage REIT focused on non-QM (non-qualified mortgage) residential loans — mortgages that don't conform to GSE underwriting standards and are typically used by self-employed borrowers, entrepreneurs, and contract workers. The company buys newly originated non-QM loans, holds them on warehouse lines, then securitizes them into rated MBS through its AOMT securitization shelf, retaining the subordinate bonds. Angel Oak earns net interest income on the spread between the underlying loan coupons and the cost of securitization funding. A key structural advantage is the REIT's affiliation with Angel Oak Mortgage Lending, a non-QM originator, and Angel Oak Capital, its external manager, which gives the REIT proprietary access to loan flow and visibility into underwriting. The portfolio totaled approximately $2.7B at year-end 2025. The core growth model involves buying $200-300M of non-QM loans per quarter, securitizing roughly four times per year to lock in term funding, and recycling released capital into new higher-coupon loans. The company also calls and re-securitizes older, delevered deals to recapture trapped capital. Beyond core non-QM loans, the REIT is building a smaller allocation to HELOCs and closed-end second mortgages, which carry higher coupons of around 9-11%. In October 2025, Brookfield Asset Management acquired approximately 51% of the parent of the REIT's external manager, though management does not expect this to change day-to-day operations.