U.S. Mortgage Index

Ability-to-repay

Also called ATR

Definition

Ability-to-repay is the federal mortgage standard that generally requires a lender to make a reasonable, good-faith determination that the consumer can repay the loan. It is not the same as a qualified mortgage.

In plain English

Before closing many mortgages, the lender has to look at whether the borrower can actually pay the loan back. That check is the ability-to-repay rule. A qualified mortgage is a related, narrower product category. This page names the repayment-determination duty. It does not list current underwriting tests.

Technical definition

CFPB’s mortgage key-terms page defines the ability-to-repay rule as the reasonable, good-faith determination most mortgage lenders must make. 12 CFR 1026.43 is technical context for the same duty, not a checklist of current numeric tests.

Why it matters

Product labels such as qualified mortgage or non-QM still sit under this broader repayment-determination idea.

Sources reviewed

12 CFR 1026.43

Consumer Financial Protection BureauTechnical context

ObservedSeptember 6, 2026

Open 12 CFR 1026.43 ↗

Important note

This page does not publish current ability-to-repay factors or numeric tests.