Mortgage lender · Kalamazoo, MI · LEI 549300MG52SOKOHXJM80

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

Kalsee Credit Union earns an A, placing it in the top fifth of home-equity (HELOC) lenders. It turned down 5.0% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 98th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.28 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 39th percentile on pricing. Compared against 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

299Applications2025
87.0%Originatedof applications
5.0%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.63%Median ratenational 6.63%
$25MLoan volume2 states

Kalsee Credit Union at a glance, 2025

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

4.7%Denial rate (all applications)-13.30 pts vs national
5.0%Denial rate (decided applications)-17.57 pts vs national
87.0%Origination rate+28.93 pts vs national
5.4%Withdrawn by applicant
1.3%Closed for incompleteness
6.63%Median interest rate0.00 pts vs national
0.28Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.02 pts vs national
$65,000Median loan amount
$3,518Median total loan costs
$80kMedian applicant income
61%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the A 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%

98th5.0% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

39th0.28 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

82nd6.7%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

10th5.41% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20231611358.7%9.3%7.50%$7.8M
20241851569.2%9.7%7.74%$12M
20252992604.7%5.0%6.63%$25M

What Kalsee 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 60 20% · 8.3% denied
Refinance 17 6% · 0.0% denied
Cash-out refinance 24 8% · 12.5% denied
Home improvement 103 34% · 1.9% denied
Other / HELOC 95 32% · 4.2% denied

By loan type

Conventional 297 99% · 4.4% denied
USDA / RHS 2 1% · 50.0% denied

Also: 152 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 1 manufactured homes, 4 investment properties.

Why Kalsee Credit Union denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 14 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Credit history 5 36%
Debt-to-income ratio 5 36%
Collateral 4 29%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Kalsee Credit Union

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k624810.9%
$50k – $100k1231045.4%
$100k – $150k69690.0%
$150k – $250k33310.0%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
25–34382712.5%
35–4456473.8%
45–5463581.7%
55–6465606.3%
65–7452474.1%
Over 7423195.0%

Where Kalsee Credit Union lends

2 states and 13 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Michigan2832583.2%6.63%#177

Frequently asked questions

Kalsee Credit Union denied 5.0% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 98th percentile of home-equity (HELOC) lenders.

The most common reason Kalsee Credit Union gave in 2025 was "credit history", cited on 35.7% 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 Kalsee Credit Union originated in 2025 was 6.63%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.28 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 20% of its applications were for home purchases, 14% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 66% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 99% 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 Kalsee Credit Union. Data sources · Methodology