Company: MFAN
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001055160-25-000004
Chunk: 261

Company: MFA FINANCIAL, INC.
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 261
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 cause the cost of our financing to increase relative to the income earned on our leveraged assets.  If the interest income on the residential mortgage investments that we have purchased with borrowed funds fails to cover the interest expense of the related borrowings, we will experience net interest losses and may experience net losses from operations.  Such losses could be significant as a result of our leveraged structure. The risks associated with leverage are more acute during periods of economic slowdown or recession.  The use of leverage to finance our residential mortgage investments involves a number of other risks, including, among other things, the following:

•If we are unable to renew our borrowings at acceptable interest rates, it may force us to sell assets under adverse market conditions, which may materially adversely affect our liquidity and profitability.  Since a portion of our borrowings to finance longer-term residential mortgage investments are under short-term repurchase agreements, our ability to achieve our investment objectives depends on our ability to borrow funds in sufficient amounts and on acceptable terms, and on our ability to renew or replace maturing borrowings on a continuous basis.  Our repurchase agreement credit lines are renewable at the discretion of our lenders and, as such, do not contain guaranteed roll-over terms.  Our ability to enter into repurchase transactions in the future will depend on the market value of our residential mortgage investments pledged to secure the specific borrowings, the availability of acceptable financing and market liquidity and other conditions existing in the lending market at that time.  If we are not able to renew or replace maturing borrowings, we could be forced to sell assets, including assets in an unrealized loss position, in order to maintain liquidity.  Forced sales, particularly under adverse market conditions, could result in lower sales prices than ordinary market sales made in the normal course of business.  If our residential mortgage investments were liquidated at prices below our amortized cost (i.e., the cost basis) of such assets, we would incur losses, which could materially adversely affect our earnings.

•A decline in the market value of our assets may result in margin calls that may force us to sell assets under adverse market conditions, which may materially adversely affect our liquidity and profitability.  In general, the market value of our residential mortgage investments is impacted by changes in interest rates, prevailing market yields and other market conditions, including general economic conditions, home prices and the real estate market generally.  A decline in the market value of our residential mortgage investments may limit our ability to borrow against such assets or result in lenders initiating margin calls