Mortgage lender · Winchester, OH · LEI 54930065TMWOWFAXBL88

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

First State Bank earns a B, better than most home-equity (HELOC) lenders. It turned down 21.1% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 60th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.29 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 38th percentile on pricing. Compared against 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

541Applications2025
70.1%Originatedof applications
21.1%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
7.50%Median ratenational 6.63%
$54MLoan volume5 states

First State Bank at a glance, 2025

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

19.0%Denial rate (all applications)+1.06 pts vs national
21.1%Denial rate (decided applications)-1.48 pts vs national
70.1%Origination rate+12.03 pts vs national
9.8%Withdrawn by applicant
0.0%Closed for incompleteness
7.50%Median interest rate+0.88 pts vs national
0.29Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.04 pts vs national
$105,000Median loan amount
$2,529Median total loan costs
$84kMedian applicant income
68%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the B grade breaks down

Each component is a percentile rank among 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders. Higher is better. Components the lender does not report are left out and the weights redistributed.

Approval oddsdecision denial rate, weight 45%

60th21.1% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

38th0.29 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

66th9.8%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

70th2.41% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
202347435612.0%13.5%7.75%$48M
202457342713.4%14.9%7.75%$209M
202554137919.0%21.1%7.50%$54M

What First State 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 176 33% · 12.5% denied
Refinance 30 6% · 6.7% denied
Cash-out refinance 142 26% · 25.4% denied
Home improvement 100 18% · 23.0% denied
Other / HELOC 93 17% · 21.5% denied

By loan type

Conventional 541 100% · 19.0% denied

Also: 295 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 66 manufactured homes, 43 investment properties.

Why First State Bank denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 103 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 42 41%
Credit history 35 34%
Other 16 16%
Collateral 7 7%
Insufficient cash 2 2%
Employment history 1 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at First State Bank

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k994940.5%
$50k – $100k19814020.6%
$100k – $150k1058116.3%
$150k – $250k786313.7%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 25281920.8%
25–34906718.6%
35–441007520.2%
45–541148419.1%
55–64996329.7%
65–74603917.0%
Over 74281820.8%

Where First State Bank lends

5 states and 37 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Ohio49435218.2%7.50%#138
Kentucky382329.0%7.50%#289
West Virginia5220.0%10.61%#320

Frequently asked questions

First State Bank denied 21.1% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 60th percentile of home-equity (HELOC) lenders.

The most common reason First State Bank gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 40.8% 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 First State Bank originated in 2025 was 7.50%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.29 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 33% of its applications were for home purchases, 32% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 36% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 100% conventional, 0% FHA, 0% 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 First State Bank. Data sources · Methodology