A loan is a Qualified Mortgage (QM) with “safe harbor” legal protection if its APR does not exceed the average prime offer rate (APOR) by more than 100 basis points (1%) for a first-lien transaction.
“A covered transaction is a safe harbor QM if the APR does not exceed the APOR for a comparable transaction by 1.5 or more percentage points for first-lien transactions, or 3.5 percentage points for subordinate-lien transactions. For purposes of safe harbor protection, the threshold is 1 percentage point (100 basis points) above APOR.”
— 12 CFR § 1026.43(e); CFPB QM/ATR Rule Summary
[References:, , CFPB, Qualified Mortgage and Ability-to-Repay Rule, , SAFE MLO National Test Study Guide, , ]
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