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Mortgage Merlin
Standards

Editorial policy

Mortgage decisions are high-stakes, so we hold our content to a high bar: primary sources, transparent review standards, and dated updates. Here's how we work.

Last updated: June 15, 2026

Who we serve

We write for self-employed, 1099, freelance, newcomer, ITIN and other non-traditional borrowers — people whose income is real but doesn’t fit the standard W-2, perfect-credit profile. Our job is to explain their options clearly and neutrally.

How we source

Factual claims about loan rules, eligibility and consumer protections are grounded in primary sources — the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), HUD, the IRS, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and lender program guidelines. We prefer original documents over secondary summaries and cite them where it matters.

Expert review

Money-affecting guides are written to be reviewed by a licensed mortgage professional (NMLS-licensed MLO or equivalent), who checks loan-program details, eligibility and process — not investment or tax advice. We are finalizing our named reviewer: until their name and NMLS license number are published on our About page, reviewed-content labels should be treated as pending. Every guide shows a “last updated” date.

Independence from revenue

Editorial and commercial are separated. Advertisers and affiliate partners do not get to review, approve, or influence our comparisons or recommendations, and compensation never affects rankings. See how we make money and our affiliate disclosure.

Accuracy, updates and corrections

Rates and rules change, so we date our pages and revisit them as programs shift. All rates, charts and calculator outputs on this site are illustrative samples for education — not live quotes, pre-approvals or offers of credit. If you spot an error, tell us through the contact link in the footer and we’ll review and correct it, noting material changes.

What we will not publish

  • “Guaranteed approval,” payday, or no-credit-check style content.
  • Claims presented as personalized financial, legal or tax advice.
  • Rates or outputs dressed up as real quotes or offers of credit.

See also our disclaimer.