Mortgage lender · Merced, CA · LEI 549300Y37WHI3S8KVE74

Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union earns a B, better than most small mortgage lenders. It turned down 8.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 53rd percentile for approval odds. Compared against 1,883 small mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

146Applications2025
81.5%Originatedof applications
8.9%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
Median ratenational 6.63%
$19MLoan volume1 states

Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union at a glance, 2025

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

8.2%Denial rate (all applications)-9.76 pts vs national
8.9%Denial rate (decided applications)-13.70 pts vs national
81.5%Origination rate+23.48 pts vs national
4.1%Withdrawn by applicant
3.4%Closed for incompleteness
Median interest rate
Median rate spread (pts over APOR)
$115,000Median loan amount
Median total loan costs
$106kMedian applicant income
58%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the B 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%

53rd8.9% denied

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

70th7.5%

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20231501317.3%7.7%$20M
202415813210.8%11.1%$15M
20251461198.2%8.9%$19M

What Merced School Employees Federal 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 23 16% · 4.4% denied
Refinance 3 2% · 0.0% denied
Cash-out refinance 31 21% · 9.7% denied
Home improvement 53 36% · 5.7% denied
Other / HELOC 36 25% · 13.9% denied

By loan type

Conventional 146 100% · 8.2% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 1 manufactured homes, 6 investment properties.

Why Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 12 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 10 83%
Credit history 1 8%
Other 1 8%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
$50k – $100k544012.2%
$100k – $150k48442.2%
$150k – $250k20165.6%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
35–4434296.1%
45–5436283.2%
55–64312513.8%
65–74211810.0%

Where Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union lends

1 states and 1 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
California1461198.2%#396

Frequently asked questions

Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union denied 8.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 53rd percentile of small mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 83.3% of its denials. Lenders report up to four reasons per denial to the CFPB; the full breakdown is on this page.

In 2025, 16% of its applications were for home purchases, 23% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 61% 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 Merced School Employees Federal Credit Union. Data sources · Methodology