Borrowings- Warehouse lines of credit (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		Mar. 31, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Other secured borrowings(1)	[1]	$ 180,918	$ 245,827
Warehouse facility A
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Other secured borrowings(1)		52,407	83,393
Fair Value of Assets Transfered and Accounted for as Secured Borrowings		$ 61,670	$ 99,340
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Effective Rate		8.77%	8.95%
Warehouse facility B
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Other secured borrowings(1)		$ 56,180	$ 76,717
Fair Value of Assets Transfered and Accounted for as Secured Borrowings		$ 60,820	$ 88,251
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Effective Rate		7.97%	8.21%
Warehouse LOC | Reverse mortgage loans
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Other secured borrowings(1)		$ 108,587	$ 160,110
Fair Value of Assets Transfered and Accounted for as Secured Borrowings		$ 122,490	$ 187,591
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Effective Rate		8.36%	8.60%

[1] Ellington Financial Inc.'s Consolidated Balance Sheets include assets and liabilities of variable interest entities it has consolidated. See Note 12 for additional details on Ellington Financial Inc.'s consolidated variable interest entities.