Kevin Karner works under NMLS 1009680. He is not Kevin McGee. If a friend said “talk to Kevin” without a last name, stop and match the NMLS number. Karner’s email is kevin.karner@firstadvantagemortgage.com and his direct line is (704) 472-9036. McGee’s page, number and email are different.
People find Karner when tax returns alone do not tell the story they need a wholesale lender to hear, or when they want to see an adjustable-rate structure beside a fixed-rate one. He originates a full range of brokerage files, including conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, jumbo, investment-property, adjustable-rate and non-QM paths when they fit. The firm behind those files works from the uptown suite numbered 1933 at 128 South Tryon.
When pay stubs are not the whole picture
Self-employed borrowers often arrive with strong cash flow and messy paperwork. Tax returns may show write-offs that shrink the qualifying income a wholesale lender will use, even when the business is healthy. Kevin can look at options that still use those tax returns and at non-QM paths that qualify using bank statements, then explain what you gain and give up in rate, documentation and reserves.
He will not tell you a bank-statement file is “easier.” It is different. Statement history, large deposits and how the business pays you all get more attention. If you have both a W-2 job and a side business, say so at the start; mixing those stories after underwriting has begun wastes days. The bank-statement overview and the self-employed document checklist are useful reading before you send him a folder of PDFs.
Fixed versus adjustable, on paper, not as a slogan
An adjustable-rate loan can look attractive during its first stretch and then change. Kevin will price a fixed-rate structure next to adjustable-rate options from more than one wholesale lender and show how the payment could move after the initial period ends. That is a planning conversation, not a dare. If you know you will sell or refinance before the first adjustment, say that. If you plan to keep the house for a long time and want the payment to stay put, say that too.
The ARM explainer is a good companion if you want the vocabulary before the call. He will still run numbers on your file rather than reciting a generic example.
Everything else he originates
Not every file that reaches Kevin is a bank-statement or ARM puzzle. He also originates ordinary purchase and refinance loans using conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, jumbo and investment-property financing. Occupancy still comes first. A house you will live in, a second home and a rental are three different files even if the porch looks the same.
Military households should read the VA guide and then ask him to include that path. Owners considering a refinance can start with the refinance decision page and arrive with a current statement.
Reaching Karner, not McGee
Call (704) 472-9036 or email kevin.karner@firstadvantagemortgage.com. Messages addressed to kevin.karner@firstadvantagemortgage.com reach him. If you meant Kevin McGee, go to his page instead.
Search 1009680 on NMLS Consumer Access for Karner’s personal file. The company record is filed under 2468711. McGee’s personal file is 1441739. Matching the number prevents a file from landing on the wrong desk.
If you meant the other Kevin, use his profile rather than this one.
How he wants business and personal money labeled
Bank-statement files stall when large deposits appear without a clear story. Kevin asks borrowers to mark which deposits are revenue, which are transfers between accounts they already own and which are one-time events such as a sale of equipment. He would rather sort that labeling before a wholesale underwriter does it less charitably.
He also wants to know whether the business pays you on a regular draw, in uneven bursts or by leaving money in the company until year end. Those patterns produce different qualifying pictures even when annual revenue looks similar. If you share accounts with a spouse or partner who will not be on the loan, say that early so the statements can be read correctly.
None of this replaces the judgment of the wholesale lender who eventually underwrites the file. It does keep you from sending a raw export that raises more questions than it answers. If you have already been turned down somewhere else because of documentation, bring that denial letter. The reason code is often more useful than a general feeling that “they did not like the tax returns.”
If you keep personal and business activity in one account because it has always been simpler, say that. Kevin would rather help you decide whether to separate activity going forward, or how to explain the mix, than discover the blend when an underwriter starts highlighting transfers.
Bring a one-paragraph description of the business: what it sells, how long it has operated and whether anyone else owns a share. That paragraph saves a long back-and-forth later and helps him choose which wholesale path to price first.
If your CPA already prepares business returns, ask them for the most recent two years before the first call. Having those packets in hand keeps the first conversation about structure instead of about hunting for files.