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US Treasuries trimmed early losses after a $70 billion auction of new five-year securities lured solid investor demand.The yield on 10-year benchmark Treasuries was up about three basis points following Wednesday's sale, after earlier climbing more than five basis points. READ MORE: Home-refinancing gauge falls to three-month low as rates near 7%The shift came as the US government's offering of five-year notes drew a yield of about 4.071%, slightly below the level seen immediately before the auction. Indirect bidders, a category of investors that includes foreign central banks, took down a record 78% of the debt. "It looks like a solid auction," said Zachary Griffiths, head of investment-grade and macroeconomic strategy at CreditSights Inc. Despite the recent concern about foreign demand for US debt, "it does not appear there has been a mass exodus."The five-year auction spotlights a maturity that's become a sweet spot for many investors because it's less sensitive to monetary and fiscal policies than its shorter- and longer-dated peers. It follows solid demand for a two-year auction on Tuesday and comes ahead of Thursday's $44 billion sale of seven-year notes. Still, that appetite has yet to clearly extend to longer-term debt, which has been dragging after a string of weaker auctions around the globe. A 40-year auction sale in Japan met the weakest demand since July. READ MORE: Trump mulling exit nudges GSE stocks higher, MBS widerBonds that mature over a longer horizon have been hit as investors grow concerned about widening fiscal deficits in some of the world's big economies, including the US. "It's hard to argue with the concern over the fiscal policy," said James Athey, a portfolio manager at Marlborough Investment Management Ltd. "We are likely to oscillate fairly significantly just given the extent of uncertainty and the inflation risks which are still ahead."Last week, the US 30-year yield touched 5.15%, its highest since October 2023. The gap between five and 30-year yields has risen above 90 basis points, around its highest since 2021.On Wednesday, the 30-year yield was higher by about three basis points to 4.98%. The question for some on Wall Street now centers on when those lofty yields start to entice some buyers. In the futures market, a block trade targeting a narrower yield gap between 10- and 30-year bonds stood out. "Bonds actually look attractive now from a yield perspective," said Justin Onuekwusi, chief investment officer at St James Place. He added that he expected continued volatility, citing President Donald Trump's tax bill, trade tariffs and political uncertainty. 

The Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization has made two editions of its reference model, one an update and the other a new version, available for industry use.Its Version 3.6 Reference Model was released in 2023, and in a statement contained in MISMO's 2022 annual report, then-President Seth Appleton called it "foundational to the way market participants exchange information" through "data, systems and technology platforms."As enhancements have been made to this version; at the same time, MISMO also made a new Version 3.6.1 Reference Model available as well. Both have been granted "candidate recommendation" status, which means they have been reviewed by what the group termed as a wide range of organizations and industry participants.Why the reference models have been updated"These new versions include a series of updates and enhancements to support numerous industry processes," said MISMO Acting President Richard Hill in a press release. "Technology professionals also will note that this version is the first ever release by MISMO that is backwards compatible, which means that it can be adopted without negatively impacting previous technology implementations."Hill became MISMO's acting president following the departure of David Coleman, who held the post from March 2023 through September 2024.The new model gives trading partners the ability to distinguish between a credit request used to determine a consumer's buying power versus one being made to determine if they can obtain credit.What has been added to the reference modelsUsers will be able to electronically obtain valuations through the new MISMO Appraisal Procurement Dataset in order to tract reconsiderations of value.The dataset was released for comment in February with the goal of providing a common framework for exchanging transactional appraisal order information using the new terminology being introduced as a part of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Uniform Mortgage Data Program Uniform Appraisal Dataset, MISMO said at the time.Version 3.6.1 also contains specifications for electronic security instruments and home equity line of credit agreements. It has support for these documents in MISMO V3 SMART Doc format, which allows for electronic signing.It also includes support for the origination and underwriting of reverse mortgage loans and specifications for the exchange of housing counseling data with lenders.Updates made to Version 3.6 include an Enhanced Logical Data Dictionary; adding a Unique ID Metrix; plus, support for YAML and JSON Schema files. It is the first update to Version 3.6 since it was released.

A few months ago, Redfin proclaimed that a buyer’s market had finally arrived.It was the first time home sellers didn’t have the upper hand this decade, ostensibly since 2019.That take was based on growing for-sale inventory, which hit a six-year high back in January.There were 3.7 months of for-sale supply on the market to begin 2025, the most since February 2019 and a decent year-over-year rise from 3.3 months in early 2024.Now the real estate brokerage is predicting that home prices will go negative by the fourth quarter as mortgage rates remain elevated.Home Prices Expected to Slip 1% By Year EndRedfin economists said they now expect the median home price to fall from +3% year-over-year to -1% by the fourth quarter.It’s not a massive decline, but it’s not a rosy outlook either given the strong home price appreciation seen since values bottomed around 2012.In fact, other than a brief downturn in 2023, home prices have risen year-over-year since 2012 due to a lack of for-sale inventory.That created one of the longest seller’s markets in recent history, despite mortgage rates that nearly tripled from their all-time lows in less than two years.As for why home prices are expected to dip, it’s simple supply and demand. Basically, more homes for sales and fewer able or willing buyers.Redfin noted that demand has fallen and sales of existing homes slipped 1.1% year-over-year in April to a six-month low.Meanwhile, it’s taking longer for homes to sell, with the typical home taking 40 days to close, up from 35 days a year ago.The result is rising inventory, which increased 16.7% year-over-year to its highest level in five years.At the same time, new listings are up 8.6%. So homes are taking longer to sell, listings are piling up, and even more homes are coming to market at the same time.That all equates to rising supply, lower list prices, and eventual price reductions when homes don’t move as expected.The good news, if you’re a prospective home buyer, is that this gives you more room to negotiate on price and/or ask for seller concessions.You might even be able to get the seller to pay for a mortgage rate buydown to boost affordability.Redfin Thinks Mortgage Rates Are Stuck for the Remainder of 2025Speaking of mortgage rates, Redfin thinks mortgage rates will do absolutely nothing for the rest of the year.Despite all the daily ebbs and flows, they are predicting a 30-year fixed at 6.8% for every single quarter of 2025.Not exactly going out on a limb here, but it’s hard to blame them given all the uncertainty regarding policy.Redfin’s head of economics research Chen Zhao blamed the “stubbornly high” mortgage rates on two main issues: tariffs and government spending.In short, the tariffs, which seem to change by the day, have the ability to increase prices and inflation, which is no friend to mortgage rates.And the rising government deficit, increasing even more due to the big, beautiful bill, leading to a ratings downgrade, can also put pressure on bond prices.If the government has to issue more debt to pay for the bill, bond yields might go up or at least remain elevated for the foreseeable future.Of course, Redfin might be downplaying the odds of a recession, in which case mortgage rates could actually fall.My 2025 mortgage rate prediction called for a 30-year fixed in the high 5s by the fourth quarter.For now, I’m sticking with it because I still believe 2025 will be a tale of two halves.The first half, marred by tariffs, trade wars, tax cuts, uncertainty and stuck mortgage rates.The second half, where we start to see economic fallout and a flight to safety in bonds, which leads to lower mortgage rates.Of course, it might not provide much comfort to home buyers if they’re worried about job security and the future, thereby putting any buying plans on hold. Before creating this site, I worked as an account executive for a wholesale mortgage lender in Los Angeles. My hands-on experience in the early 2000s inspired me to begin writing about mortgages 19 years ago to help prospective (and existing) home buyers better navigate the home loan process. Follow me on X for hot takes.Latest posts by Colin Robertson (see all)

Influential government-related mortgage investor Fannie Mae will be partnering with Palantir, a company involved in introducing more artificial intelligence to financial services, as its regulator and conservator steps up its fight against fraud.Peter Thiel, who owns stakes in Trump administration ally Elon Musk's companies, founded the AI firm that will be helping identify patterns in Fannie's data that are indicative of misrepresentation. Palantir also is part of a broader AI partnership targeting banks.Fannie's Wednesday press conference with the head of its regulator, Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, sheds light on one of the ways he's aiming to protect the soundness of Fannie, one of two large mortgage buyers that Trump could partially privatize while preserving a government guarantee."We need the technology with the sophistication and scale that Palantir brings," said Fannie Mae CEO Priscilla Almodovar during the event at which the government-sponsored enterprise announced it will be adding a new financial crimes detection platform with the technology.Pulte has said he will step up information sharing between Fannie and rival Freddie Mac, which also appears to be focusing more on its systems and recently named fintech executive Neil Sarnak an insider-level senior vice president.The Palantir partnership Fannie has tested could be shared with Freddie later, depending on its outcome.Pulte explained that weeding out misrepresentation is a priority for him and the fiscally minded Trump administration because it has a high price tag when it occurs. Fighting fraud also helps prevent events like the Great Financial Crisis in which a correctly documented ability-to-repay was lacking, he added.Through such efforts, Pulte said he can "make sure that 2008 never happens again, which is my chief responsibility, and will never happen under President Trump," Pulte said.Pulte also indicated he will be going after occupancy fraud regardless of who is involved in a reference to a referral to the Department of Justice in which he alleged Trump foe and New York Attorney General Leticia James engaged in such activity."I think we're going to find a lot of occupancy fraud," he said.Palantir's technology seeks to more proactively identify misrepresentation by analyzing patterns in relationships across the many different parties involved in mortgage transactions using secure technology that protects their privacy, according to Alex Karp, Palantir's co-founder and CEO. Fraudsters target large entities like Fannie Mae with trillions of dollars in assets, Karp noted."What most people misunderstand about the nature of fraud, terrorism and abuse, is that most of the damage is done by the 1% or 2% of professional actors, and they do actually have a way of modeling where they can commit fraud at scale," he said.Fighting fire with fire in countering that effort could deter what are often global bad actors from targeting U.S.-based entities like Fannie Mae.Almodovar said Fannie engaged in a "boot camp" with real loan files in which the technology was able to identify fraud within 10 seconds as opposed to the 60 days it took traditional investigators.

A man films the exterior of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. The FDIC, seeking to replenish deposit reserves as banks fail at the fastest pace in 17 years, today voted to unanimously to have lenders prepay fees through 2012 raising about $45 billion. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg The banking industry demonstrated steady earnings performance in the first quarter despite signs of stress in real estate portfolios, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.FDIC acting Chairman Travis Hill offered a measured outlook for the industry during a Tuesday press conference announcing the quarterly report, noting banks were putting aside slightly more provisions in case of losses even as asset quality was "relatively stable.""Overall, this was generally a very stable quarter," Hill said. "Net income increased for the industry, but this was mostly driven by noninterest income from a small number of large banks."Overall, FDIC-insured banks reported net income of $70.6 billion, a 5.8% increase from the previous quarter. This rise, according to the agency report, was driven by a $5.4 billion boost in noninterest income, helped along by gains in the market and lower realized losses on sales of securities. The industry's interest margins were somewhat squeezed in the three months ended March 31, with net interest income decreasing by $278 million, or roughly 0.2%, as growth in interest income was depressed compared with the rates banks pay depositors for their funds. The industry's net interest margin settled at 3.25%, a rate equal to its average prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Community banks — generally defined by regulators as those with less than $10 billion in assets under their jurisdiction —  drew $6.8 billion in net income. That marks a 10% boost from the fourth quarter. Unlike the broader industry, smaller firms enjoyed higher net interest income.Community bank margin also outperformed, posting a modest NIM increase of two basis points bringing the community bank NIM to 3.46%, the fourth straight quarterly gain for such firms. However, smaller firms still have a ways to go before they surpass their pre-pandemic average NIM of 3.63%.Loans across the industry rose 0.5%, or $62 billion, led by lending to nondepository financial institutions — partially due to changes in how certain loan products are reported — as well as growth in commercial and industrial and multifamily commercial real estate loans. Community bank loans rose 0.8% from the prior quarter and 4.9% from the first quarter of the previous year, supported by growth in nonfarm nonresidential CRE lending and 1-4 family residential mortgage portfolios.Credit quality metrics were mixed. The industry's past-due and nonaccrual loan rate decreased by one basis point to 1.59%, below the pre-pandemic average of 1.94%.Commercial real estate portfolios, however, showed historically elevated signs of stress. CRE delinquencies reached 1.49%, the highest rate since 2014 while multifamily past-due and nonaccrual loan rates rose 88 basis points from the year-ago quarter to 1.47%.The net charge-off rate declined by three basis points to 0.67% and credit card charge-offs stood out at 4.71% in the first quarter, both sitting above their pre-pandemic average.The Deposit Insurance Fund balance increased by $3.8 billion to a total of $140.9 billion, a movement that boosted the reserve ratio three basis points to 1.31%. The FDIC no longer discloses the total assets of institutions on the Problem Bank List, and the number of problem banks was not reported in this release.

A leading title insurer is suing two federal U.S. offices over a new "arbitrary and capricious" reporting rule aimed at preventing money laundering activity that it claims exceeds their authority. Fidelity National Financial and its similarly named title insurance subsidiary filed the lawsuit in a Florida federal district court in May. Named as defendants were the Department of the Treasury and its Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, commonly referred to as FinCEN, housed within the unit. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and FinCEN Director Andrea Gacki were also listed as defendants. Approved in mid 2024 and scheduled to go into effect in December this year, the new law requires title companies and other closing businesses to disclose specific details related to all-cash home purchases made by companies and organizations or trusts. READ MORE: Title underwriters stay profitable in difficult Q1The rule seeks to reduce the risk of money laundering activity from scammers operating anonymously through purchases with no outside loan financing. Historically, fraudsters have eluded regulators by taking advantage of situations when property titles were transferred to a legal entity or trust, allowing them to illicitly commit financial crimes.Jacksonville, Florida-based Fidelity National said that compliance with the rule would cause irreparable harm to business privacy and increase its volume of required disclosure reports by 4,000% annually. The rule goes beyond FinCEN's authority, which typically only requires disclosures when transactions are deemed suspicious, it said. "By demanding wide-ranging and intrusive disclosures, the new rule will impose severe burdens on title insurance companies like plaintiffs and ride roughshod over the privacy interests of parties involved in routine residential real estate transactions," the filing stated. READ MORE: Title insurers' rising premiums ends two-year slideIn 2023, Fidelity National Title, as well as several other similar business subsidiaries fully owned by the parent company, filed over 6,700 reports regarding "suspicious" transactions to comply with the current law. New requirements would increase the number to between 56,000 and 78,000.Among the burdens title companies will be subjected to are "significant compliance costs" on each transaction that will add "massive red tape," the suit said. Plaintiffs argued that the new rule was arbitrary and capricious and "suffers from a host of legal defects," as FinCEN failed to administer a proper cost-benefit analysis. The additional costs to produce the expected number of new reports required total between $427 and $829 per covered transaction. FinCEN estimated the law would increase the volume of disclosures to between 800,000 to 850,000."Millions of perfectly lawful transactions are swept into FinCEN's dragnet," they also claimed. "The mere fact that a type of transaction 'can be' used by 'illicit actors' does not render the entire category of transactions suspicious," the plaintiffs argued, adding that FinCEN did not cite any data before introducing the rule.The other actions taken against FinCENThe lawsuit is at least the second filing this year targeting the new reporting mandate. In April, Texas-based Flowers Title Cos. sued the Treasury Department in an attempt to prevent the rule from taking effect.  In February, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, also introduced legislation to nullify FinCEN's regulation through an act of Congress. Later that same month, Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., put forth a similar bill in the House of Representatives. Legislation, if passed through both chambers and signed by the president, would effectively eliminate the need for the lawsuits to go forward.All-cash purchase transactions surged in the first half of the current decade, leading to a nine-percentage-point increase in sales share  between early 2020 and 2023 in the largest metropolitan areas, according to data from Redfin. The size of the market grew to a record-high of 35.1% from 26.1% over the period, as housing trends skewed to favor cash-rich buyers with capital readily available to compete for offers.     Although the cash-sales share of the market pulled back last year to 32.6% after its 2023 high, the percentage is still above levels in the years preceding the Covid-19 pandemic. However, even with elevated market share, the total number of transactions in 2024 finished at a decade low of approximately 700,000, corresponding to stagnating overall existing-home sales in 2024.  

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump said that the US government would retain guarantees and an oversight role over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac even as he pursues a public offering for the mortgage giants.I am working on TAKING THESE AMAZING COMPANIES PUBLIC, but I want to be clear, the US Government will keep its implicit GUARANTEES, and I will stay strong in my position on overseeing them as President," Trump wrote Tuesday night in a post on his Truth Social platform.The companies, which play a crucial role in the market for mortgage-backed securities, have been under government conservatorship since the 2008 financial crisis. Fannie and Freddie have both returned to steady profitability, with earnings being retained. Shares of both surged last week when Trump said he was considering a public offering.Hedge funds and other investors have called for the government to release the two entities from conservatorship, which could provide a windfall for shareholders — including the government itself.Shares of Fannie Mae climbed about 18% to $12.40 at 8:26 a.m. in premarket trading Wednesday. Freddie Mac rose roughly 18% to $9.Yet critics have argued that any such decision comes with some risks, especially over how much of a government guarantee Fannie and Freddie would still have. Given that both entities are overseen by the government, their bonds are seen as among the safest, bolstering the market for mortgage-backed securities.Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency that oversees Freddie and Fannie, said in February that any effort to release the entities must be "carefully planned" to make sure the housing market remains safe without pressure on mortgage rates.The president's post appeared to reduce the risk that the government, as part of privatizing Fannie and Freddie, would leave the two GSEs without a financial backstop. Had it done so investors who participate in the $9 trillion MBS market for agency mortgage bonds might have demanded higher yields to own the securities, ultimately pushing mortgage rates higher. Mortgage rates could still increase in other privatization scenarios but potentially by smaller amounts."This at least takes off the table one of the scenarios that investors had really worried about," said Tracy Chen, a portfolio manager at Brandywine.--With assistance from Scott Carpenter and Norah Mulinda.(Updates with shares in fifth paragraph.)More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

US home-refinance applications slipped last week to a three-month low as mortgage rates neared 7%.The Mortgage Bankers Association's measure of refinancing dropped 7.1% to 634.1 in the week ended May 23. The contract rate on a 30-year mortgage climbed 6 basis points to 6.98%, according to the data released Wednesday. The rate on five-year adjustable mortgage rose to the highest since January.READ MORE: Home sales cancelled at near-record pace in AprilWhile the group's index of applications for home purchases increased 2.7% last week, demand has cooled since early April when financing costs reached an almost six-month low. Persistent affordability challenges are sidelining many prospective buyers and also encouraging builders to lure house hunters.At the same time, inventory is rising in many areas and starting to help slow the growth of home prices.READ MORE: Mortgage rates keep rising, influenced by DC developmentsMortgage rates follow moves in Treasury yields, which have climbed since early April. A week ago, the yield on the 10-year note reached the highest level since February on concerns the tax bill moving through Congress will cause the nation's deficit to swell.The MBA survey, which has been conducted weekly since 1990, uses responses from mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. The data cover more than 75% of all retail residential mortgage applications in the US.

President Donald Trump said that the US government would retain guarantees and an oversight role over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac even as he pursues a public offering for the mortgage giants."I am working on TAKING THESE AMAZING COMPANIES PUBLIC, but I want to be clear, the US Government will keep its implicit GUARANTEES, and I will stay strong in my position on overseeing them as President," Trump wrote Tuesday night in a post on his Truth Social platform. READ MORE: Trump mulling exit nudges GSE stocks higher, MBS widerThe companies, which play a crucial role in the market for mortgage-backed securities, have been under government conservatorship since the 2008 financial crisis. Fannie and Freddie have both returned to steady profitability, with earnings being retained. Shares of both surged last week when Trump said he was considering a public offering. Hedge funds and other investors have called for the government to release the two entities from conservatorship, which could provide a windfall for shareholders — including the government itself.Shares of Fannie Mae climbed about 18% to $12.40 at 8:26 a.m. in premarket trading Wednesday. Freddie Mac rose roughly 18% to $9.READ MORE: Pulte plans credit score move as legislators back tri-mergeYet critics have argued that any such decision comes with some risks, especially over how much of a government guarantee Fannie and Freddie would still have. Given that both entities are overseen by the government, their bonds are seen as among the safest, bolstering the market for mortgage-backed securities.Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency that oversees Freddie and Fannie, said in February that any effort to release the entities must be "carefully planned" to make sure the housing market remains safe without pressure on mortgage rates.The president's post appeared to reduce the risk that the government, as part of privatizing Fannie and Freddie, would leave the two GSEs without a financial backstop. Had it done so investors who participate in the $9 trillion MBS market for agency mortgage bonds might have demanded higher yields to own the securities, ultimately pushing mortgage rates higher. Mortgage rates could still increase in other privatization scenarios but potentially by smaller amounts. "This at least takes off the table one of the scenarios that investors had really worried about," said Tracy Chen, a portfolio manager at Brandywine.

Today we’ll take a look at the top mortgage lenders in Ohio.Last year, nearly 900 mortgage companies originated about $42 billion in home loans there, a far cry from the $113 billion seen back in 2021.But one company beat the rest despite not being the top-10 overall.Surprisingly, it wasn’t the nation’s top mortgage lender, but rather a depository bank.Read on to see who took the top spot and what other companies did a lot of business in The Buckeye State.Top Mortgage Lenders in Ohio (Overall)RankingCompany Name2024 Loan Volume1.Huntington Bank$2.8 billion2.Rocket Mortgage$2.5 billion3.CrossCountry$2.2 billion4.UWM$1.9 billion5.Union Savings Bank$1.1 billion6.Fifth Third Bank$1.1 billion7.Union Home Mortgage$967 million8.Chase$869 million9.Guaranteed Rate$791 million10.Veterans United$784 millionThe top mortgage lender in Ohio last year was Huntington Bank, a company founded all the way back in 1866.In 2024, the Columbus, Ohio-based company funded $2.8 billion in home loans, per HMDA data from Richey May.For the record, they funded $7.8 billion in 2021 when mortgage rate hit record lows!But it was still more than enough to hold off Rocket Mortgage’s $2.5 billion, the nation’s second largest mortgage lender overall.In third was Cleveland, Ohio-based CrossCountry Mortgage with $2.2 billion funded, followed by the nation’s largest mortgage lender United Wholesale Mortgage, with just $1.9 billion funded.Rounding out the top five was Ohio-based Union Savings Bank with $1.1 billion.Sixth was Cincinnati-based bank Fifth Third with a close $1.1 billion in loan volume, followed by Strongsville, Ohio-based Union Home Mortgage.The rest of the top 10 included Chase, Guaranteed Rate, and Veterans United.Many of the top lenders are Ohio-based, so it seems Ohioans like to keep it local when obtaining a home loan.Top Ohio Mortgage Lenders (for Home Buyers)RankingCompany Name2024 Loan Volume1.CrossCountry$1.9 billion2.Huntington Bank$1.7 billion3.UWM$1.2 billion4.Rocket Mortgage$1.1 billion5.Union Savings Bank$889 million6.Union Home Mortgage$870 million7.Guaranteed Rate$725 million8.Fifth Third Bank$710 million9.Chase$708 million10.NFM$673 millionWhen it came to home purchase lending, CrossCountry Mortgage led the charge with $1.9 billion funded.They were followed by Huntington Bank, UWM, Rocket Mortgage, and Union Savings Bank (also headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio).Places six through 10 went to Union Home Mortgage, Guaranteed Rate, Fifth Third Bank, Chase, and NFM.No big surprises here, with more local companies and big household names making the list.Top Refinance Lenders in Ohio (for Existing Homeowners)RankingCompany Name2024 Loan Volume1.Rocket Mortgage$1.3 billion2.Huntington Bank$939 million3.UWM$649 million4.Freedom Mortgage$357 million5.Fifth Third Bank$289 million6.Pennymac$233 million7.CrossCountry$221 million8.PNC Bank$220 million9.Union Savings Bank$216 million10.Veterans United$174 millionWhen we shift focus to mortgage refinance loans, Rocket Mortgage was king with $1.3 billion funded.Per usual, homeowners are happy to look at non-local options as they go for the lowest rate, or a cash out refinance, as opposed to a familiar face.In second was Huntington Bank with a distant $939 million funded, followed by UWM with $649 million.Freedom Mortgage came in fourth and Fifth Third came in fifth (confusing I know!)The remaining companies in the top 10 included Pennymac, CrossCountry Mortgage, PNC Bank, Union Savings Bank, and Veterans United.All in all, more of the same, Ohio-based mortgage companies and big national brands/banks.Top Mortgage Lenders in CincinnatiRankingCompany Name2024 Loan Volume1.UWM$493 million2.Union Savings Bank$424 million3.Rocket Mortgage$394 million4.Huntington Bank$342 million5.Fifth Third Bank$256 million6.Guaranteed Rate$237 million7.CrossCountry$179 million8.First Community$174 million9.Victory Mortgage$161 million10.LCNB Bank$148 millionTop Mortgage Lenders in ClevelandRankingCompany Name2024 Loan Volume1.CrossCountry$716 million2.Huntington Bank$565 million3.Rocket Mortgage$499 million4.Third Federal$318 million5.UWM$302 million6.Fifth Third Bank$234 million7.Howard Hanna$204 million8.First Federal Savings$193 million9.NVR Mortgage$179 million10.Chase$162 millionTop Mortgage Lenders in Columbus (OH)RankingCompany Name2024 Loan Volume1.Huntington Bank$650 million2.NFM$559 million3.UWM$508 million4.Rocket Mortgage$484 million5.CrossCountry$350 million6.Union Home Mortgage$349 million7.Chase$345 million8.Union Savings Bank$307 million9.M/I Financial$273 million10.Fifth Third Bank$254 millionWho Are the Best Ohio Mortgage Lenders?While the Huntington Bank was Ohio’s largest mortgage lender, its reviews are pretty mixed, with a lot of 3-star ratings across different review websites.It’s difficult to determine if that’s due to mortgage lending or other bank services offered by the company.Regardless, there are other mortgage companies in Ohio with far superior ratings, even if they aren’t as large.For example, CrossCountry Mortgage has an excellent 4.97-star rating on Zillow from a staggering 22,000 customer reviews.Meanwhile, Revolution Mortgage also has a 4.97 rating, Lower has a 4.93-rating, Union Home Mortgage has a 4.89-rating, and Nations Lending has a 4.81 score.The highest rated Ohio-based mortgage company on Zillow is a tie between American Mortgage Service Company and Equity Resources, Inc., both with a 4.98 score.So it’s clear there are plenty of highly-rated Ohio mortgage companies that aren’t necessarily the biggest of the bunch.At the same time, you may also find that working with a mortgage broker or local credit union is the way to go.Regardless of what option you choose, do your research and take your time to ensure you obtain quality service at a competitive price.(photo: tlarrow) Before creating this site, I worked as an account executive for a wholesale mortgage lender in Los Angeles. My hands-on experience in the early 2000s inspired me to begin writing about mortgages 19 years ago to help prospective (and existing) home buyers better navigate the home loan process. Follow me on X for hot takes.Latest posts by Colin Robertson (see all)