Mortgage lender · Little Rock, AR · LEI 5493000JFVFQFL816N45

Encore Bank review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Encore Bank earns a C, in line with the typical performance of small mortgage lenders. It turned down 19.6% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 20th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.06 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 75th percentile on pricing. Compared against 1,883 small mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

862Applications2025
61.4%Originatedof applications
19.6%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.50%Median ratenational 6.63%
$201MLoan volume31 states

Encore Bank at a glance, 2025

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

15.2%Denial rate (all applications)-2.78 pts vs national
19.6%Denial rate (decided applications)-2.98 pts vs national
61.4%Origination rate+3.34 pts vs national
22.5%Withdrawn by applicant
0.0%Closed for incompleteness
6.50%Median interest rate-0.13 pts vs national
0.06Median rate spread (pts over APOR)-0.19 pts vs national
$285,000Median loan amount
$3,676Median total loan costs
$120kMedian applicant income
80%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the C grade breaks down

Each component is a percentile rank among 1,883 small mortgage lenders. Higher is better. Components the lender does not report are left out and the weights redistributed.

Approval oddsdecision denial rate, weight 45%

20th19.6% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

75th0.06 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

15th22.5%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

74th1.29% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20231,57499512.9%16.5%6.38%$459M
20241,22569617.4%23.0%6.88%$269M
202586252915.2%19.6%6.50%$201M

What Encore Bank 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 685 79% · 17.1% denied
Refinance 125 15% · 4.0% denied
Cash-out refinance 27 3% · 22.2% denied
Home improvement 7 1% · 28.6% denied
Other / HELOC 18 2% · 5.6% denied

By loan type

Conventional 706 82% · 11.8% denied
FHA 116 13% · 39.7% denied
VA 34 4% · 5.9% denied
USDA / RHS 6 1% · 0.0% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 0 manufactured homes, 81 investment properties.

Why Encore Bank denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 131 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 80 61%
Credit history 35 27%
Employment history 6 5%
Collateral 5 4%
Incomplete application 2 2%
Other 1 1%
Insufficient cash 1 1%
Unverifiable information 1 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Encore Bank

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k1062866.7%
$50k – $100k23512528.3%
$100k – $150k1511109.8%
$150k – $250k1601213.1%
Over $250k1661066.9%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 25372235.3%
25–3424114720.8%
35–4423314617.9%
45–541328222.6%
55–641096417.7%
65–74713719.2%
Over 7423160.0%

Where Encore Bank lends

31 states and 130 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Arkansas56737412.7%6.50%#44
Texas1766330.7%6.12%#438
Colorado151113.3%6.50%#452
Missouri15130.0%6.38%#465
North Carolina14107.1%6.88%#577
Florida1390.0%5.99%#855
California7514.3%7.25%#767
South Carolina7614.3%6.69%#586
Illinois530.0%6.13%#778

Frequently asked questions

Encore Bank denied 19.6% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 20th percentile of small mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Encore Bank gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 61.1% 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 Encore Bank originated in 2025 was 6.50%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.06 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 79% of its applications were for home purchases, 18% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 3% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 82% conventional, 13% FHA, 4% 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 Encore Bank. Data sources · Methodology