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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2023
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
    
Definitions – The following defines certain of the commonly used terms in these financial statements: 

“RMBS” refers to residential mortgage-backed securities backed by adjustable-rate, hybrid adjustable-rate, or fixed-rate residential loans;
“Agency RMBS” refers to RMBS representing interests in or obligations backed by pools of residential loans guaranteed by a government sponsored enterprise (“GSE”), such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”), or an agency of the U.S. government, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”);
“non-Agency RMBS” refers to RMBS that are not guaranteed by any agency of the U.S. Government or GSE;
“IOs” refers collectively to interest only and inverse interest only mortgage-backed securities that represent the right to the interest component of the cash flow from a pool of mortgage loans;
“POs” refers to mortgage-backed securities that represent the right to the principal component of the cash flow from a pool of mortgage loans;
“ABS” refers to debt and/or equity tranches of securitizations backed by various asset classes including, but not limited to, automobiles, aircraft, credit cards, equipment, franchises, recreational vehicles and student loans;
“CMBS” refers to commercial mortgage-backed securities comprised of commercial mortgage pass-through securities issued by a GSE, as well as PO, IO or mezzanine securities that represent the right to a specific component of the cash flow from a pool of commercial mortgage loans;
“CDO” refers to collateralized debt obligation and includes debt that permanently finances the residential loans held in Consolidated SLST and the Company's residential loans held in securitization trusts that we consolidate, or consolidated, in our financial statements in accordance with GAAP;
“business purpose loans” refers to (i) short-term loans that are collateralized by residential properties and are made to investors who intend to rehabilitate and sell the residential property for a profit or (ii) loans that finance (or refinance) non-owner occupied residential properties that are rented to one or more tenants;
“Consolidated SLST” refers to a Freddie Mac-sponsored residential loan securitization, comprised of seasoned re-performing and non-performing residential loans, of which we own or owned the first loss subordinated securities and certain IOs and senior securities that we consolidate in our financial statements in accordance with GAAP; and
“SOFR” refers to Secured Overnight Funding Rate.

Basis of Presentation – On March 9, 2023, the Company effected a one-for-four reverse stock split of its issued, outstanding and authorized shares of common stock (the "Reverse Stock Split"). Accordingly, all common share and per common share data for all periods presented in these condensed consolidated financial statements and notes thereto have been adjusted on a retroactive basis to reflect the impact of the Reverse Stock Split.

The accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2022 has been derived from audited financial statements. The accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet as of March 31, 2023, the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss) for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of changes in stockholders’ equity for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 and the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 are unaudited. In our opinion, all adjustments (which include only normal recurring adjustments) necessary to present fairly the Company’s financial position, results of operations and cash flows have been made. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted in accordance with Article 10 of Regulation S-X and the instructions to Form 10-Q. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Accordingly, significant accounting policies and other disclosures have been omitted since such items are disclosed in Note 2 in the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Provided in this section is a summary of additional accounting policies that are significant to, or newly adopted by, the Company for the three months ended March 31, 2023. The results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023 are not necessarily indicative of the operating results for the full year.
The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the accrual basis of accounting in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Management has made significant estimates in several areas, including fair valuation of its residential loans, multi-family loans, certain equity investments, real estate held by Consolidated VIEs and Consolidated SLST CDOs. Although the Company’s estimates contemplate current conditions and how it expects those conditions to change in the future, it is reasonably possible that actual conditions could be different than anticipated in those estimates, which could materially impact the Company’s results of operations and its financial condition.
    
Reclassifications – Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified in the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements to conform to current period presentation. In particular, prior period disclosures have been adjusted for the aforementioned Reverse Stock Split. Additionally, prior period disclosures have been conformed to the current period presentation of interest expense, mortgages payable on real estate. Starting in the fourth quarter of 2022, interest expense, mortgages payable on real estate is presented in expenses related to real estate on the Company's condensed consolidated statements of operations. Previously, interest expense, mortgages payable on real estate was presented in interest expense and net interest income on the Company's condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Principles of Consolidation and Variable Interest Entities – The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements of the Company include the accounts of all its subsidiaries which are majority-owned, controlled by the Company or a variable interest entity (“VIE”) where the Company is the primary beneficiary. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation (see Note 7).

A VIE is an entity that lacks one or more of the characteristics of a voting interest entity. A VIE is defined as an entity in which equity investors do not have the characteristics of a controlling financial interest or do not have sufficient equity at risk for the entity to finance its activities without additional subordinated financial support from other parties. The Company consolidates a VIE in accordance with ASC 810, Consolidation ("ASC 810") when it is the primary beneficiary of such VIE, herein referred to as a "Consolidated VIE". As primary beneficiary, the Company has both the power to direct the activities that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and a right to receive benefits or absorb losses of the entity that could be potentially significant to the VIE. The Company is required to reconsider its evaluation of whether to consolidate a VIE each reporting period, based upon changes in the facts and circumstances pertaining to the VIE.

The Company evaluates the initial consolidation of each Consolidated VIE, which includes a determination of whether the VIE constitutes the definition of a business in accordance with ASC 805, Business Combinations ("ASC 805"), by considering if substantially all of the fair value of the gross assets within the VIE are concentrated in either a single identifiable asset or group of single identifiable assets. Upon consolidation, the Company recognizes the assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, and any third-party ownership of membership interests as non-controlling interest as of the consolidation or acquisition date, measured at their relative fair values (see Note 7). Non-controlling interest in Consolidated VIEs is adjusted prospectively for its share of the allocation of income or loss and equity contributions and distributions from each respective Consolidated VIE. The third-party owners of certain of the non-controlling interests in Consolidated VIEs have the ability to sell their ownership interests to the Company, at their election, subject to certain conditions. The Company has classified these third-party ownership interests as redeemable non-controlling interest in Consolidated VIEs in mezzanine equity on the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Derivative Financial Instruments – The Company enters into various types of derivative financial instruments in connection with its risk management activities which are recorded on the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets as assets or liabilities at fair value in accordance with ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging (“ASC 815”). Changes in fair value are accounted for depending on the use of the derivative financial instruments and whether they qualify for hedge accounting treatment. The Company elected not to apply hedge accounting for its derivative financial instruments; accordingly, all changes in fair value are reported on the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations as unrealized gains (losses), net.
The Company is subject to interest rate risk exposure in the normal course of pursuing its investment objectives. Primarily to help mitigate interest rate risk, the Company may enter into interest rate swaps. Interest rate swaps are contractual agreements whereby one party pays a floating interest rate on a notional principal amount and receives a fixed-rate payment on the same notional principal, or vice versa, for a fixed period of time. Interest rate swaps change in value with movements in interest rates. All of the Company’s interest rate swaps are cleared through a central clearing house which requires that the Company post an initial margin amount determined by the central clearing house, which is generally intended to be set at a level sufficient to protect the exchange from the derivative financial instrument’s maximum estimated single-day price movement. The Company also exchanges variation margin based upon daily changes in fair value, as measured by the central clearing house. The exchange of variation margin is treated as a legal settlement of the exposure under the interest rate swap contract, as opposed to pledged collateral. Accordingly, the Company accounts for the receipt or payment of variation margin as a direct reduction to or increase in the carrying value of the interest rate swap asset or liability. The receipt or payment of initial margin is accounted for separate from the interest rate swap asset or liability and classified within restricted cash and included in other assets on the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets. Any additional margin fundings, in excess of initial margin and variation margin, are included in other assets on the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Summary of Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-04, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting ("ASU 2020-04"). ASU 2020-04 provides optional expedients and exceptions to GAAP requirements for modifications to debt agreements, leases, derivatives and other contracts, related to the expected market transition from LIBOR, and certain other floating rate benchmark indices, or collectively, IBORs, to alternative reference rates. ASU 2020-04 generally considers contract modifications related to reference rate reform to be an event that does not require contract remeasurement at the modification date nor a reassessment of a previous accounting determination. In January 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-01, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Scope ("ASU 2021-01"). ASU 2021-01 clarifies that certain optional expedients and exceptions in Topic 848 for contract modifications and hedge accounting apply to derivatives that are affected by the "discounting transition" (i.e., changes in the interest rates used for margining, discounting, or contract price alignment for derivative instruments that are being implemented as part of the market-wide transition to new reference rates). Once ASU 2020-04 is elected, the guidance must be applied prospectively for all eligible contract modifications. The amendments in ASU 2021-01 were effective immediately and may be applied on a full retrospective basis as of any date from the beginning of an interim period that includes or is subsequent to March 12, 2020 or on a prospective basis for eligible contract modifications. In December 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-06, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Deferral of the Sunset Date of Topic 848 ("ASU 2022-06"), which allows ASU 2020-04 to be adopted and applied prospectively to contract modifications made on or before December 31, 2024. The Company continues to evaluate the impact of ASU 2020-04 and ASU 2021-01 on its financing transactions that are subject to LIBOR and may apply elections, as applicable, as the expected market transition from IBORs to alternative reference rates continues to develop.