California Loans for Heroes is the hero homebuyer program of Qualified Financial Inc., a licensed California mortgage brokerage led by Jon Cohen.
Who We Are
California Loans for Heroes is a DBA (trade name) of Qualified Financial Inc., a California corporation licensed as a real estate broker with a mortgage loan originator endorsement. We are a mortgage brokerage, not a bank and not a direct lender. That distinction matters to you: rather than offering one institution’s product menu, we place loans with a panel of more than 20 wholesale lenders and compete them against each other on your behalf.
Everything we do is focused on one state and one audience — California, and the service professionals who live and work here: veterans and active-duty military, law enforcement officers, firefighters and EMS, teachers and educators, nurses and healthcare workers, pilots, and government and social-services employees.
Company Facts
| Legal entity | Qualified Financial Inc., a California corporation |
|---|---|
| Trade name (DBA) | California Loans for Heroes |
| Business type | Licensed mortgage brokerage (not a bank or direct lender) |
| CA DRE Broker License | #02194854 — verify with the California DRE |
| NMLS ID (company) | #2439105 — verify on NMLS Consumer Access |
| DFPI | #60197466 |
| Corporate license issued | September 13, 2022 |
| Designated Officer | Jonathan Howard Cohen, CA DRE #01515546 |
| Service area | Residential property throughout California |
| Telephone | (866) 374-4040 |
| Equal Housing | Qualified Financial Inc. is an Equal Housing Lender |
Every license number above links to the regulator’s own public record so you can confirm our standing directly rather than taking our word for it.
Meet Jon Cohen
President & CEO, Qualified Financial Inc.
Licensed Mortgage Broker | NMLS #207422 | CA DRE #01515546
20+ years in mortgage banking
Jon Cohen has spent more than two decades in mortgage banking. Before founding Qualified Financial Inc., he held leadership roles at regional and national lenders — including Director of Sales at a regional bank, where he built a training platform that developed new hires into accomplished mortgage bankers.
Today Jon serves as President and CEO of Qualified Financial Inc., and is the Designated Officer of record for the brokerage with the California Department of Real Estate. He is personally licensed as a mortgage loan originator (NMLS #207422) and as a California real estate broker (DRE #01515546), and he works directly with the buyers this program serves.
Jon created California Loans for Heroes because the people who keep California running — the teachers, nurses, officers, firefighters and veterans — are frequently the people priced out of it. The program combines the loan programs those buyers already qualify for with down payment assistance and a rewards structure delivered through participating real estate professionals.
How We Work
1. Eligibility review, not a loan application
Most people meet us through the eligibility form. That form is deliberately not a loan application: it asks no Social Security number and triggers no credit inquiry. It exists so we can tell you what you likely qualify for before you commit to anything.
2. Loan placement across a lender panel
As a broker, we shop your file across our wholesale lender panel — VA, FHA, conventional, jumbo, and California-specific programs including CalHFA products — and bring back the structures that actually fit your income, credit and timeline.
3. How participating real estate professionals work
Several of the incentives described on this site are funded and delivered by participating real estate agents in the California Loans for Heroes network, not by Qualified Financial Inc. If you want those benefits, you generally need to be represented by an agent in that network. If you already have an agent you love, tell us — we will explain plainly which benefits do and do not still apply, and you are never required to change agents to obtain a loan from us. Agents interested in the network can apply to become a partner.
How We Handle Accuracy
Mortgage content is only useful if the numbers are right. Loan limits, funding fees and program rules change at least annually, and a stale figure can send a buyer down the wrong path.
Our editorial practice is to source factual claims from the agency that sets the rule — VA.gov for VA loan policy, HUD for FHA, FHFA for conforming loan limits, and CalHFA for California programs — rather than from secondary mortgage websites. Articles carry a named author, a publication date and a reviewed date.
If you spot something on this site that looks wrong, please call us at (866) 374-4040. We would rather correct it than rank for it.
Important Disclosures
Qualified Financial Inc. and California Loans for Heroes are independently owned and are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), or any federal, state, or local government agency. References to government loan programs are descriptive only.
Qualified Financial Inc. is an Equal Housing Lender. Loan programs, pricing, incentives, and advertised benefits are subject to lender guidelines, borrower qualifications, and transaction terms, and apply only to eligible residential properties located in California. Incentives, credits, and rewards are not guaranteed, vary by transaction, and may require representation by a participating real estate professional. Nothing on this site is a commitment to lend. All programs, terms, and availability are subject to change without notice.
See also our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Talk to Us
Call (866) 374-4040 or check your eligibility online. There is no obligation and no credit pull to find out where you stand.