CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION (Parenthetical) - USD ($)		3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
		Mar. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Assets	[1]	$ 19,241,863,000	$ 27,118,671,000
Liabilities	[1]	15,998,009,000	23,165,378,000
Allowance for credit losses		$ 6,314,000	$ 0
Preferred stock, par value (usd per share)		$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Preferred stock, shares authorized (shares)		100,000,000	100,000,000
Common stock, par value (usd per share)		$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized (shares)		500,000,000	500,000,000
Common stock, shares issued (shares)		185,860,307	187,226,081
Common stock, shares outstanding (shares)		185,860,307	187,226,081
Non-Agency RMBS
Allowance for credit losses		$ 6,000,000	$ 0
Repurchase Agreements
Securities pledged as collateral		8,341,399,000	15,399,244,000
Repurchase Agreements | Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities
Securities pledged as collateral		8,800,000,000	15,400,000,000
Securitized Loans | Non-Agency RMBS
Securities pledged as collateral		522,000,000	598,000,000
Securitized Loans | Loans Held for Investment at Fair Value
Securities pledged as collateral		$ 11,900,000,000	$ 12,100,000,000
Series A Preferred Stock
Preferred stock, dividend rate (percent)		8.00%	8.00%
Preferred stock, shares issued (shares)		5,800,000	5,800,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (shares)		5,800,000	5,800,000
Preferred Stock, liquidation preference		$ 145,000	$ 145,000
Series B Preferred Stock
Preferred stock, dividend rate (percent)		8.00%	8.00%
Preferred stock, shares issued (shares)		13,000,000	13,000,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (shares)		13,000,000	13,000,000
Preferred Stock, liquidation preference		$ 325,000	$ 325,000
Series C Preferred Stock
Preferred stock, dividend rate (percent)		7.75%	7.75%
Preferred stock, shares issued (shares)		10,400,000	10,400,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (shares)		10,400,000	10,400,000
Preferred Stock, liquidation preference		$ 260,000	$ 260,000
Series D Preferred Stock
Preferred stock, dividend rate (percent)		8.00%	8.00%
Preferred stock, shares issued (shares)		8,000,000	8,000,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding (shares)		8,000,000	8,000,000
Preferred Stock, liquidation preference		$ 200,000	$ 200,000
Variable Interest Entities, Primary Beneficiary, Aggregated Disclosure
Assets		12,334,195,000	12,544,744,000
Liabilities		$ 7,777,605,000	$ 8,064,235,000

[1] The Company's consolidated statements of financial condition include assets of consolidated variable interest entities (“VIEs”) that can only be used to settle obligations and liabilities of the VIE for which creditors do not have recourse to the primary beneficiary (Chimera Investment Corporation). As of March 31, 2020, and December 31, 2019, total assets of consolidated VIEs were $12,334,195 and $12,544,744, respectively, and total liabilities of consolidated VIEs were$7,777,605 and $8,064,235, respectively. See Note 8 for further discussion.