Mortgage lender · Vienna, VA · LEI 549300WHVRE44NRBU558

City Lending review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

City Lending earns an F, in the bottom tier of mid-size mortgage lenders. It turned down 24.6% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 14th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.95 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 6th percentile on pricing. Compared against 581 mid-size mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

1.6kApplications2025
63.2%Originatedof applications
24.6%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
7.25%Median ratenational 6.63%
$279MLoan volume28 states

City Lending at a glance, 2025

Every figure is from the lender's own HMDA filing. "vs national" compares with all lenders combined.

21.2%Denial rate (all applications)+3.25 pts vs national
24.6%Denial rate (decided applications)+2.04 pts vs national
63.2%Origination rate+5.20 pts vs national
11.4%Withdrawn by applicant
2.4%Closed for incompleteness
7.25%Median interest rate+0.63 pts vs national
0.95Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.69 pts vs national
$295,000Median loan amount
$14,508Median total loan costs
$90kMedian applicant income
97%Median loan-to-value
1High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the F grade breaks down

Each component is a percentile rank among 581 mid-size mortgage lenders. Higher is better. Components the lender does not report are left out and the weights redistributed.

Approval oddsdecision denial rate, weight 45%

14th24.6% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

6th0.95 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

65th13.8%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

5th4.92% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20231,4869566.9%9.7%7.25%$319M
20241,9351,41414.0%16.0%7.13%$446M
20251,55098021.2%24.6%7.25%$279M

What City Lending lends

Applications by purpose and loan type in 2025, with the denial rate for each. A lender's mix explains a lot of its headline rate: HELOCs and FHA loans are denied far more often than conventional purchase loans.

By loan purpose

Home purchase 1,328 86% · 18.8% denied
Refinance 112 7% · 35.7% denied
Cash-out refinance 109 7% · 35.8% denied
Home improvement 1 0% · 0.0% denied

By loan type

Conventional 795 51% · 23.1% denied
FHA 736 47% · 19.3% denied
VA 15 1% · 20.0% denied
USDA / RHS 4 0% · 0.0% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 37 manufactured homes, 464 investment properties.

Why City Lending denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 329 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Other 111 34%
Incomplete application 66 20%
Collateral 59 18%
Credit history 31 9%
Employment history 25 8%
Unverifiable information 20 6%
Debt-to-income ratio 17 5%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at City Lending

Decision denial rate by applicant profile. Groups with fewer than 20 applications are omitted.

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k1458533.1%
$50k – $100k49729925.5%
$100k – $150k27116924.1%
$150k – $250k1176728.7%
Over $250k653522.2%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 2546034617.4%
25–3428216529.7%
35–4437122623.8%
45–5427816426.8%
55–641186034.8%
65–74291247.8%

Where City Lending lends

28 states and 233 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Maryland42827720.6%7.13%#102
Virginia35120423.4%6.99%#143
Florida22114817.2%6.75%#352
North Carolina1579717.8%7.75%#264
Texas1248621.8%7.50%#506
California433025.6%7.75%#541
Washington301823.3%7.50%#348
Arizona25208.0%7.75%#400
Tennessee231617.4%7.50%#514
Oregon191036.8%7.13%#298
Indiana181327.8%8.00%#469
South Carolina15726.7%7.13%#490
Illinois141121.4%8.19%#641
Utah13438.5%7.50%#268
Connecticut12716.7%7.50%#356
Pennsylvania8537.5%9.00%#717
Michigan7428.6%7.00%#552
New Jersey7328.6%8.19%#569
Puerto Rico7328.6%6.25%#58
West Virginia7514.3%7.44%#282
District of Columbia6316.7%6.50%#228
Delaware5240.0%7.63%#328

Frequently asked questions

City Lending denied 24.6% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 14th percentile of mid-size mortgage lenders.

The most common reason City Lending gave in 2025 was "other", cited on 33.7% of its denials. Lenders report up to four reasons per denial to the CFPB; the full breakdown is on this page.

The median interest rate on loans City Lending originated in 2025 was 7.25%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.95 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 86% of its applications were for home purchases, 14% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 0% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 51% conventional, 47% FHA, 1% VA.

Every figure on this page comes from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) Loan/Application Register published by the CFPB, which lenders are required by federal law to file. We add the grade and the comparisons; we do not add facts.

About this data. HMDA data is published once a year by the CFPB. The current release covers applications acted on in calendar year 2025. Figures describe applications the lender acted on, including loans it later sold. Interest rates and costs are medians on originated loans only; some depository institutions are exempt from reporting pricing fields, which is why a few cells read "—". MortgageGrades is not affiliated with City Lending. Data sources · Methodology