Major mortgage lenders in california

Thanks to new data, it’s time to take a fresh look at the best mortgage lenders in California in 2022.

The Golden State is by far the largest mortgage market, accounting for approximately 16% of the total market.

Nowhere else comes close, including heavyweights like Florida and Texas, with around 8% market share. or New York by about 5%.

As you might expect, big family names make this list, and several are also on the top ten list nationwide.

Let’s take a look at who topped the ranking, breaking it down by home equity financing and mortgage refinancing.

Top 10 California Mortgage Lenders (Overall)

In 2021, Rocket Mortgage, formerly Quicken Loans, is the largest mortgage lender in California, according to HMDA data from Richey May.

But in 2022, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM for short) took the top spot with $34.9 billion in financing.

This isn’t a huge surprise because they’ve also been the largest mortgage lender nationally for a couple of quarters now as well.

The Pontiac, Michigan company managed to capture a 6.5% market share in California, despite only working with mortgage broker partners.

They easily beat crosstown rivals Rocket Mortgage by nearly $10 billion, which has relegated to fifth place.

In second place was San Francisco-based Wells Fargo with $30.4 billion, followed by the now-defunct First Republic Bank with $27 billion.

This is also quite impressive given the fact that UWM only works with mortgage brokers, as opposed to operating the direct consumer channel.

In fourth place was Chase, which, incidentally, acquired First Republic Bank. Talk about merging at the top!

They’ve been a big player in the mortgage business for years since acquiring Washington Mutual over the housing crisis in 2008.

Also in the top 10 were Bank of America, US Bank, Loan Bank, Citi, and Union Bank.

For the record, Union Bank has been acquired by the Bank of the United States, hence more consolidation!

Speaking of banks, seven of the 10 largest mortgage lenders in California were depository banks, and the rest were non-banks.

In all, more than $500 billion in home loans originated in the state last year, down from about $1 trillion the year before.

So about 40% of the mortgage volume in California came from these 10 companies.

Major California Mortgage Lenders (For Home Purchases)

Now let’s take a look at the best mortgage lenders in the Golden State, who captured about 60% of the market in 2022 with declining ref.

This list varies slightly because some lenders specialize in financing home purchases, while others cater to existing homeowners looking to refinance.

At the top of this list was UWM with $22.4 billion, their second year holding the honor. Once again they beat Wells Fargo with $19.1 billion, while First Republic moved up to third place with $15.5 billion.

First Republic increased their mortgage lending a bit in 2022, and that’s probably what ultimately ended them.

Chase is fourth with $12.8 billion, while Rocket Mortgage is fifth with $10.9 billion.

Also in the top ten were Bank of America, US Bank, Citi, Loan Depot, and Guaranteed Rate.

The only lender on this list that wasn’t on the main list was Guaranteed Rate, replacing Union Bank.

Going forward, lenders will want to focus on this part of the market if mortgage rates remain inflated compared to their recent lows.

Simply put, it is difficult to muster the refinancing business when many homeowners have flat rates in the 2-4% range and the going rate is 6-7%.

Top California Mortgage Lenders (For Refinance Loans)

Now let’s talk about ref, which was all the rage in 2021, but has since slipped due to unprecedented increases in mortgage rates.

In this category, Rocket Mortgage escaped the competition with a staggering $78.3 billion in loan origination in 2021.

But a year later, the picture is much different. They’ve only funded $12.7 billion from ref, which puts them in first place.

However, their crosstown rival UWM came in a very close second with $12.5 billion in refinancing loans.

Depository banks Chase and Wells Fargo topped third and fourth with $11.3 billion and $10.3 billion, while First Republic Bank jumped to fifth with $9.5 billion.

Again, this may be why they no longer exist – a lot of extremely cheap mortgages were handed out to wealthy clients.

Bank of America, US Bank, LoanDepot, Union Bank and Homepoint rounded out spots six through ten, which was very different from the year before when names like Nationstar (Mr. Cooper) and Freedom Mortgage came out.

Citibank wasn’t anywhere near when it came to reconsideration, despite being the largest homebuying lender in California. They just did $2.4 billion in refinancings.

Top Mortgage Lenders in Los Angeles

Top Mortgage Lenders in San Diego

Top Mortgage Lenders in San Jose

Top mortgage lenders in san francisco

Does size matter when it comes to getting a mortgage?

As I always think about these lists of top lenders, does size really matter?

Does anything mean that your bank or lender is huge and bigger than others?

While this may be up for debate, as some would argue that a large organization might be more reliable, efficient, or even cheaper, the opposite can also be said.

Ultimately, it’s nice to know the big players, but your personality may be better suited to a local credit union or mortgage broker.

The mortgage lender you choose does not have to be the largest to provide exceptional service and competitive rates.

Conversely, you might find a household name that offers all of those things mentioned above.

At the end of the day, getting a home loan is important and you should shop accordingly.

This means a lot of research and multiple quotes before you make your final decision.