Mortgage lender · Bannockburn, IL · LEI 549300W6J23SLH6AR815

Great Lakes Credit Union review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Great Lakes Credit Union earns an F, in the bottom tier of home-equity (HELOC) lenders. It turned down 47.2% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 4th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 1.26 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 4th percentile on pricing. Compared against 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

657Applications2025
37.8%Originatedof applications
47.2%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
8.50%Median ratenational 6.63%
$21MLoan volume10 states

Great Lakes Credit Union at a glance, 2025

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

33.8%Denial rate (all applications)+15.81 pts vs national
47.2%Denial rate (decided applications)+24.64 pts vs national
37.8%Origination rate-20.28 pts vs national
28.3%Withdrawn by applicant
0.2%Closed for incompleteness
8.50%Median interest rate+1.88 pts vs national
1.26Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+1.01 pts vs national
$65,000Median loan amount
$228Median total loan costs
$108kMedian applicant income
67%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the F 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%

4th47.2% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

4th1.26 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

4th28.5%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

96th0.35% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20231,06952335.4%41.1%8.75%$67M
202461529029.8%38.1%9.50%$32M
202565724833.8%47.2%8.50%$21M

What Great Lakes Credit Union 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 33 5% · 42.4% denied
Refinance 12 2% · 41.7% denied
Cash-out refinance 12 2% · 33.3% denied
Home improvement 345 53% · 28.7% denied
Other / HELOC 255 39% · 39.2% denied

By loan type

Conventional 657 100% · 33.8% denied

Also: 451 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 0 manufactured homes, 25 investment properties.

Why Great Lakes Credit Union denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 222 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Credit history 105 47%
Debt-to-income ratio 81 36%
Other 28 13%
Collateral 8 4%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Great Lakes Credit Union

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k64687.5%
$50k – $100k2227949.4%
$100k – $150k1867642.4%
$150k – $250k1346435.4%
Over $250k482330.3%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
25–34571855.0%
35–441305939.2%
45–542026554.9%
55–641415548.1%
65–74944236.4%
Over 7428940.0%

Where Great Lakes Credit Union lends

10 states and 39 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Illinois60121934.1%8.50%#117
California211228.6%8.50%#635
Wisconsin13630.8%8.50%#456
Indiana12916.7%8.94%#527
Arizona5220.0%8.25%#624

Frequently asked questions

Great Lakes Credit Union denied 47.2% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 4th percentile of home-equity (HELOC) lenders.

The most common reason Great Lakes Credit Union gave in 2025 was "credit history", cited on 47.3% 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 Great Lakes Credit Union originated in 2025 was 8.50%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 1.26 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 5% of its applications were for home purchases, 4% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 91% 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 Great Lakes Credit Union. Data sources · Methodology