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loanDepot mortgage review 2024

E. Napoletano
·Contributor
Updated 9 min read

The Yahoo view: As a behemoth in the mortgage and refinance space, loanDepot prides itself on being a one-stop shop for mortgage, refinance, and HELOC needs. The only drawback here is that they don’t publish interest rates online, making rate comparisons difficult.

With over 6,000 employees working to assist more than 27,000 consumers in all 50 states, loanDepot is a force to be reckoned with. It’s the fifth largest retail mortgage lender in the U.S., funding more than $275 billion in loans since its founding in 2010.

Despite offering a wide array of mortgage and refinance loans plus home equity line of credit (HELOC) options, we have one prevailing frustration that you might share: loanDepot doesn’t publish interest rates for any of its products on its website. To get rates, you’ll need to reach out to the company via a contact form or phone and move into their marketing funnel. Cue the first time we’ll shake our fists at the sky during this review.

In this article:

loandepot

Key benefits

  • If you buy your home with a mellohome-approved real estate agent and close your loan with loanDepot, you could earn a $3,500 cash bonus at closing through the mellohome Grand Slam program.

  • Buying and selling through the Grand Slam program could net you up to $7,000 at closing.

  • First-time home buyers can get an extra $1,000 cash bonus through the program.

  • If you refinance your loan from loanDepot in the future, loanDepot will waive its lender fee through its Lifetime Guarantee program.

Need to know

  • LoanDepot’s customer service rating is below average, according to the 2023 J.D. Power Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study.

  • The company boasts a closing timeline that’s up to 50% faster than other lenders, so be sure to ask what a realistic closing estimate looks like for your loan.

  • This company doesn’t publish its rates online, so you’ll need to reach out for an accurate quote.

Dig deeper: FHA vs. conventional loan — How do they compare?

Mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) are often the gateway to homeownership for many first-time buyers. LoanDepot is a direct FHA mortgage lender and offers several FHA loans for buyers at varying stages.

  • FHA purchase loans, offering 3.5% down payments to buyers with credit scores of at least 580

  • FHA Streamline Refinance, for homeowners with current FHA mortgages looking for a lower interest rate without going through the appraisal process

  • FHA cash-out refinance, for current FHA mortgage holders with equity who want to pull money out of their homes

  • FHA 203k renovation loans, for those in the market for a fixer-upper who want to roll improvements into their FHA loan

LoanDepot doesn’t disclose its fees or rates for any of its FHA products online, which we found frustrating.

Learn more: Best FHA lenders

Home loans from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, or VA loans, are a score for those who qualify. With options for a 0% down payment and often lower rates than non-VA mortgages, buyers can potentially get into a house with lower out-of-pocket costs. LoanDepot is an approved VA lender.

Unfortunately, loanDepot doesn’t offer much information on its VA loan products beyond the typical selling points shared by all VA loans: zero down, low closing costs, competitive interest rates, and less stringent qualifying terms. If you’re considering the company as your lender for a VA loan, get a fee disclosure up-front and ask whether its claim for faster closing times also applies to VA loans.

Despite the glaring lack of consumer-friendly information, here’s what we can tell you about the company’s VA-backed loan volume. It was the 12th largest VA lender in the U.S. in 2023, according to the latest Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data. In 2023, loanDepot originated a fraction of VA home loans compared to Veterans United — a little over 14,000 versus over 109,000. Given that, loanDepot is definitely a company in the VA mortgage mix, but you’ll likely find more prominent lenders in the VA loan market that can offer more transparency.

Dig deeper: Best VA loan lenders

With a boast like “from quote to close in as little as 3 weeks,” loanDepot puts itself out there as a top choice for anyone in the market for a home equity line of credit (HELOC). This could be the case because, unlike many lenders, loanDepot does a soft credit pull rather than a hard one — so it doesn’t hurt your score.

Once you click “check my rate,” you’ll be taken to a form where you’ll share some personal information and your property address. Naturally, this form puts you into their sales funnel, so be prepared for incoming texts or calls. However, you will be able to see your estimated interest rate by step three of the process and determine if loanDepot’s rates are competitive with other potential lenders.

As for rates and fees, loanDepot’s disclosures say that HELOC rates will never exceed 18%, and the origination fee for HELOCs can be up to 5% of your credit line. That origination fee could be steep when stacked against other lenders, so it’s worth doing your research.

We’ve already said it, but loanDepot doesn’t publish mortgage rates on its website. While that seems mind-boggling at a time when online rate shopping is pretty much the rule of thumb for those in the mortgage market, it doesn’t seem to detract from loanDepot’s customer flow.

If you’re drawn in by loanDepot’s offerings and don’t mind a bit of human-to-human connection as you shop for a mortgage, here’s how to get a glimpse of rates on its lending products:

  • Call loanDepot: You can reach a licensed loan officer at (888) 983-3240, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET.

  • Use their contact form: From the main navigation bar on the website, navigate to “About Us” and then “Contact Us” to get to their web form.

Here’s one more thing to keep in mind: The interest rate is only one part of a mortgage product’s total cost. While you’ve got a real, live person from loanDepot on the line, be sure to ask about other costs for closing your preferred mortgage loan, including lender fees.

Dig deeper: Mortgage APR vs. interest rate

To apply for a mortgage with loanDepot, you have two paths: speaking with a loan officer or using the company’s online application system.

Since you’ll need to speak to a loan officer in your state to get an accurate rate quote, the person-to-person route might be the one to set your sights on. What you’ll likely encounter is a more hybrid process, one where you first speak to a loan officer. Then you’ll use their online application system to complete the application process and upload the required documentation.

To the company’s credit, loanDepot has a robust resource library for homebuyers. You’ll find calculators that let you run the numbers for everything from sun, including home purchase, refinance, renting versus buying, and mortgage affordability.

There’s also a hub for first-time home buyers and a “knowledge café” filled with helpful articles about the mortgage and home-buying process. Honestly, it’s less a warm and friendly café than a page with some articles and a search bar so you can type in the topic you want to learn about.

Use Yahoo Finance’s free mortgage payment calculator

Both loanDepot and Newrez offer similar mortgage products, including conventional mortgages and more specialty ones like VA and FHA loans. Newrez offers a 45-day mortgage rate lock option that doesn’t seem to be an option at loanDepot. However, both companies offer some sort of discount or reward for using an affiliated real estate agent; at Newrez, buyers can get a 0.50% rate discount, and at loanDepot, buyers could earn up to $4,500 cash back at closing (terms and conditions apply).

According to J.D. Power, neither lender rates high in the customer service department. Newrez ranks dead last in customer satisfaction among participating lenders, with loanDepot scoring near the middle-low end of lenders. And remarkably, Newrez doesn’t publish its mortgage rates online, either.

Newrez mortgage review

It’s incredible that we have to say this, but AmeriSave is the third lender in this piece that doesn’t publish its mortgage rates online. We’re this close to asking to speak with several managers.

Yet, both companies offer similar purchase and refinance options, including VA and FHA loans. AmeriSave also has USDA loans and buydowns, which loanDepot does not. AmeriSave also has a Lock & Drop program that could save you 1% off your interest rate during the first year — a program that loanDepot doesn’t offer.

AmeriSave mortgage review

LoanDepot has more than 4,100 reviews at TrustPilot, with an overall star rating of 3.8 out of a possible 5. At present, the company is subject to a lawsuit filed in early 2024 due to a data breach affecting more than 16 million of its customers. This lawsuit is still ongoing.

LoanDepot experienced a security breach in early 2024, the result of a ransomware attack. As a result, 16.6 million of the company’s customers had their information stolen, including Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, and other identifying information. The lawsuit is ongoing, but the lender has confirmed that the attack occurred.

LoanDepot doesn’t offer home equity loans but does offer home equity lines of credit, or HELOCs. A home equity loan is a lump-sum loan with fixed payments, whereas a HELOC works more like a credit card; you’re issued a line of credit and can draw on it at will, and your overall credit line replenishes as you make payments toward principal.

This article was edited by Laura Grace Tarpley