A handful of publicly traded real estate investment trusts have been quietly making inquiries about buying residential loans that do not meet the qualified mortgage standard, including subprime credits and even unsecured consumer loans, according to players on both sides of the equation. One executive who manages a REIT that plays in the jumbo market admitted as much in an interview with Inside MBS & ABS, but pointed to one major deterrent: the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. “We’ve tried to get clarifications from them on such things as the ability-to-pay rule, but they haven’t been very helpful,” he said. The source noted that his REIT has so far avoided buying any nonprime, non-QM loans, saying he fears the regulator will ...