Mortgage lender · Rochester, NY · LEI 5493006LH4LKHY2EIN26

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

Five Star Bank earns a C, in line with the typical performance of small mortgage lenders. It turned down 12.7% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 38th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.53 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 27th percentile on pricing. Compared against 1,883 small mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

988Applications2025
71.1%Originatedof applications
12.7%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.75%Median ratenational 6.63%
$326MLoan volume2 states

Five Star Bank at a glance, 2025

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

10.6%Denial rate (all applications)-7.35 pts vs national
12.7%Denial rate (decided applications)-9.88 pts vs national
71.1%Origination rate+13.02 pts vs national
14.2%Withdrawn by applicant
2.2%Closed for incompleteness
6.75%Median interest rate+0.13 pts vs national
0.53Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.28 pts vs national
$135,000Median loan amount
$4,030Median total loan costs
$84kMedian applicant income
78%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%

38th12.7% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

27th0.53 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

30th16.4%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

19th2.99% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20231,4371,03215.3%17.2%6.75%$364M
202499372112.4%14.3%6.88%$219M
202598870210.6%12.7%6.75%$326M

What Five Star 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 489 49% · 4.9% denied
Refinance 145 15% · 6.2% denied
Cash-out refinance 23 2% · 4.4% denied
Home improvement 230 23% · 22.6% denied
Other / HELOC 101 10% · 18.8% denied

By loan type

Conventional 924 94% · 10.4% denied
FHA 56 6% · 16.1% denied
VA 7 1% · 0.0% denied
USDA / RHS 1 0% · 0.0% denied

Also: 271 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 18 manufactured homes, 58 investment properties.

Why Five Star Bank denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 105 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 45 43%
Credit history 31 30%
Collateral 24 23%
Unverifiable information 3 3%
Insufficient cash 1 1%
Employment history 1 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Five Star Bank

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k1558428.8%
$50k – $100k41728812.6%
$100k – $150k15711910.5%
$150k – $250k1261026.4%
Over $250k71555.0%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 2535286.5%
25–342161617.8%
35–4422115515.1%
45–5415710615.3%
55–6415410018.3%
65–741268911.7%
Over 74413014.3%

Where Five Star Bank lends

2 states and 26 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
New York98670010.7%6.75%#92

Frequently asked questions

Five Star Bank denied 12.7% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 38th percentile of small mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Five Star Bank gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 42.9% 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 Five Star Bank originated in 2025 was 6.75%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.53 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 49% of its applications were for home purchases, 17% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 34% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 94% conventional, 6% 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 Five Star Bank. Data sources · Methodology