East Star Mortgage

What East Star Mortgage does

East Star Mortgage is a privately held California mortgage brokerage operating under NMLS #338096 from a single office at 1045 E Valley Blvd in San Gabriel. Founded in 2000 by Louisa Wu, who serves as Founder, Broker and President, the firm serves homebuyers, homeowners, and real estate investors across Southern California, with named coverage in San Gabriel, Hacienda Heights, Rowland Heights, Arcadia, Irvine, Los Angeles County, and Orange County. The brokerage is differentiated by bilingual service in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin, enabling access to Chinese-speaking communities underserved by mainstream lenders.

The company runs an 11-program loan catalog spanning conventional purchase and refinance, FHA, jumbo, DSCR for rental investment properties, bank statement loans for self-employed borrowers, Non-QM, foreign national, bridge, construction, and non-warrantable condo financing. Its technology stack is built on a content-driven marketing site, multilingual secure intake via Tally.so, six interactive calculators (DSCR, mortgage payment, affordability, bank statement income, refinance savings, rent-vs-buy), and a digital secure upload portal, supported by an extensive SEO-oriented resource library of loan-program guides and FAQs. There are no APIs, SDKs, AI/ML components, or native mobile applications disclosed.

Commercially, East Star Mortgage acts as a broker rather than a balance-sheet lender, generating transaction-based revenue through origination fees and yield spread premiums paid by lender partners on closed loans. Distribution mixes enterprise in-person consultations for complex investor and self-employed scenarios, inside sales via phone, SMS, and WeChat, and self-serve digital intake. No funding rounds, ownership investors, subsidiaries, M&A, or leadership changes are disclosed; revenue is not publicly reported.

Name

East Star Mortgage

Legal name

East Star Mortgage

Website

https://eaststarmortgage.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

East Star Mortgage is a privately held San Gabriel, California mortgage brokerage that originates purchase, refinance, and specialty loans (DSCR, bank statement, Non-QM, foreign national, jumbo, FHA, bridge, construction) for Southern California homebuyers, self-employed borrowers, investors, and foreign nationals, with bilingual English/Cantonese/Mandarin support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Residential Mortgage Brokerage

NAICS

Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310)

SIC

Loan Brokers (6163)

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial Mortgage Brokerage (FSAEAEAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Purchase Mortgage Origination (Homebuyer Focused) (FSALAAAD), Government-Insured Mortgage Origination (FHA/VA/USDA) (FSALAAAI), Multifamily Mortgage Origination (FSALADAB)

Keywords

• Mortgage brokerage
• Residential lending
• DSCR loans
• Bank statement loans
• Foreign national mortgages

Headquarters

HQ city

San Gabriel

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Mortgage Origination Fees: Earn origination fees or yield spread premiums on mortgage loans originated through the brokerage. Revenue generated when borrowers close on purchase, refinance, or investment property loans. Fee structure varies by loan program (conventional, FHA, DSCR, bank statement, jumbo, Non-QM) and lender partnerships.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

East Star Mortgage is a California mortgage brokerage that originates residential mortgage loans for individual homebuyers, homeowners, and real estate investors. The brokerage offers 11 loan programs including Purchase, Refinance, FHA, Jumbo, DSCR, Bank Statement, Non-QM, Non-Warrantable Condo, Bridge, Construction, and Foreign National loans, with in-house processing and underwriting support delivered in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Product overview

East Star Mortgage is a California mortgage brokerage offering a unified platform of mortgage lending products and borrower education tools. The core product portfolio includes 11 loan programs: Purchase Loans, Refinance, FHA Loans, Jumbo Loans, DSCR Loans, Bank Statement Loans, Non-QM Loans, Non-Warrantable Condo Loans, Bridge Loans, Construction Loans, and Foreign National Loans. Supporting the loan products are 18 digital tools and educational resources including DSCR Calculator, Mortgage Payment Calculator, Affordability Calculator, Bank Statement Income Calculator, Refinance Savings Calculator, Rent vs Buy Calculator, Secure Upload Portal, and multiple comprehensive guides (DSCR Loan Requirements 2026, DSCR Loans Explained, Bank Statement Mortgage Guide, Foreign National Mortgage Guide, Self-Employed Mortgage Options, Pre-Approval Process) plus FAQs for first-time buyers, investment properties, and refinancing. The company operates from San Gabriel, California with bilingual support in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Purchase Loans Home purchase financing for California buyers with pre-approval planning, loan option comparison, and guidance from application to closing.
• Refinance Loans Mortgage refinancing options including rate-and-term and cash-out refinance to improve payment, term, cash flow, or equity strategy for California homeowners.
• FHA Loans Federal Housing Administration loans offering flexible primary-residence financing with lower down payment options and more forgiving credit guidelines for eligible California buyers.
• Jumbo Loans Financing for higher-value California homes exceeding standard conforming loan limits, with guidance on reserves, down payment, and documentation requirements.
• DSCR Loans Investment property financing focused on rental income and property cash flow (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) instead of traditional personal income documentation, designed for California real estate investors.
• Bank Statement Loans Flexible mortgage option for self-employed borrowers and business owners whose bank deposits may better reflect real cash flow than tax-return income documentation.
• Non-QM Loans Flexible mortgage solutions for borrowers whose income, property, or documentation does not fit standard agency guidelines, including alternative documentation options.
• Non-Warrantable Condo Loans Specialty condo financing for properties where the building or HOA does not meet standard warrantable guidelines, with project-level review support.
• Bridge Loans Short-term financing to bridge timing gaps between purchase, sale, refinance, or investment plans for California real estate transactions.
• Construction Loans Financing for ground-up construction, major renovation, ADU projects, and property improvements with project-based financing structure and draw schedule support.
• Foreign National Loans Mortgage guidance and financing options for eligible overseas buyers and borrowers with foreign income or limited U.S. credit history purchasing California property.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4.9★ Google Rating based on customer reviews
• +2 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• loanDepot: Large California-headquartered retail mortgage lender and broker operating across conventional, FHA, jumbo, and niche products. Direct comparison point for scale, lender partnerships, and digital origination practices versus a small brokerage like East Star.
• Carrington Mortgage Services: National non-QM and specialty lender with deep Bank Statement, DSCR, and Foreign National offerings. Closest direct comparison for product mix — particularly the non-traditional income and investor financing programs East Star specializes in.
• Guild Mortgage: Large California-headquartered retail mortgage lender offering conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, and jumbo products. Comparable in California retail-mortgage orientation though with a less specialized non-QM product menu.
• RPM Mortgage (Rocket Pro Mortgage): California-headquartered retail mortgage lender owned by Rocket Companies offering conventional, FHA, jumbo, and non-QM products. Comparable in California focus and broad product menu, but operates at substantially greater scale.
• New American Funding: California-based retail mortgage lender with strong focus on Hispanic and multicultural borrower segments. Comparable in its emphasis on serving non-English-primary communities in California, though at much larger scale than East Star.

Emerging players

• Defy Mortgage: DSCR-focused mortgage lender specializing in rental-property financing for investors. Directly comparable in the DSCR segment — both firms target California real-estate investors with cash-flow underwriting.
• Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions: Non-QM-focused wholesale and correspondent lender with strong Bank Statement and DSCR programs. Comparable as a specialist competing for the same non-prime borrower pool East Star serves, though operating through wholesale rather than retail broker channels.
• Foreign National Loan (Kris Krohn / NewFi-style alternative lenders): Non-QM and Foreign National specialist lender. Comparable for the foreign-buyer borrower segment East Star pursues, particularly overseas buyers purchasing California investment property.
• Paramount Equity (now Paramount Equity/RCN Capital): Non-QM and bank statement lender serving self-employed and complex-income borrowers. Comparable in targeting alternative-documentation borrowers with similar bank statement and investor financing products.
• Lendz Financial: Wholesale mortgage lender with strong non-QM, DSCR, and bank statement product offerings. Comparable product mix to East Star's specialty programs, though operating through broker/wholesale channels rather than retail.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/east-star-mortgage

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about East Star Mortgage