Mortgage lender · Bakersfield, CA · LEI 254900VHUBSJJKOMBF27

Golden Empire Mortgage review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Golden Empire Mortgage earns a B, better than most mid-size mortgage lenders. It turned down 6.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 62nd percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.22 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 56th percentile on pricing. Compared against 581 mid-size mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

5.6kApplications2025
74.1%Originatedof applications
6.9%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.38%Median ratenational 6.63%
$1.6BLoan volume16 states

Golden Empire Mortgage at a glance, 2025

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

5.6%Denial rate (all applications)-12.34 pts vs national
6.9%Denial rate (decided applications)-15.68 pts vs national
74.1%Origination rate+16.08 pts vs national
18.1%Withdrawn by applicant
0.3%Closed for incompleteness
6.38%Median interest rate-0.25 pts vs national
0.22Median rate spread (pts over APOR)-0.03 pts vs national
$365,000Median loan amount
$11,097Median total loan costs
$123kMedian applicant income
96%Median loan-to-value
9High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the B 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%

62nd6.9% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

56th0.22 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

42nd18.5%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

23rd3.04% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20233,0372,1337.2%9.1%6.50%$745M
20244,9393,5726.4%8.0%6.50%$1.3B
20255,6054,1545.6%6.9%6.38%$1.6B

What Golden Empire Mortgage 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 4,645 83% · 5.4% denied
Refinance 490 9% · 5.9% denied
Cash-out refinance 453 8% · 8.4% denied
Other / HELOC 17 0% · 0.0% denied

By loan type

Conventional 3,584 64% · 6.2% denied
FHA 1,682 30% · 4.7% denied
VA 332 6% · 3.6% denied
USDA / RHS 7 0% · 28.6% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 20 reverse mortgages, 96 manufactured homes, 388 investment properties.

Why Golden Empire Mortgage denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 316 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Insufficient cash 64 20%
Other 61 19%
Collateral 55 17%
Debt-to-income ratio 51 16%
Incomplete application 42 13%
Unverifiable information 23 7%
Credit history 18 6%
Employment history 2 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Golden Empire Mortgage

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k142899.9%
$50k – $100k1,6581,2485.6%
$100k – $150k1,7541,3277.1%
$150k – $250k1,3079786.6%
Over $250k5984249.1%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 253362626.3%
25–341,8631,4374.8%
35–441,5911,1647.2%
45–548816358.6%
55–6455739411.0%
65–742821937.1%
Over 7486606.3%

Where Golden Empire Mortgage lends

16 states and 171 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
California4,7573,5275.4%6.25%#41
Colorado3412695.6%6.38%#136
Texas15810510.1%6.63%#460
Oregon132996.1%6.63%#151
Nevada785710.3%6.38%#165
Missouri46318.7%6.88%#351
Illinois19105.3%6.69%#602
Washington18155.6%6.75%#400
Arizona16150.0%6.75%#439
Florida13715.4%6.38%#853
Indiana1179.1%6.88%#536
Idaho640.0%6.93%#308
Ohio6416.7%7.63%#694

Frequently asked questions

Golden Empire Mortgage denied 6.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 62nd percentile of mid-size mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Golden Empire Mortgage gave in 2025 was "insufficient cash", cited on 20.3% 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 Golden Empire Mortgage originated in 2025 was 6.38%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.22 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 83% of its applications were for home purchases, 17% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 0% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 64% conventional, 30% FHA, 6% 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 Golden Empire Mortgage. Data sources · Methodology