Mortgage lender · San Jose, CA · LEI 549300A4ZI1DF2OO1B51

Meriwest review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Meriwest earns a B, better than most home-equity (HELOC) lenders. It turned down 27.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 41st percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.79 points below the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 83rd percentile on pricing. Compared against 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

751Applications2025
68.0%Originatedof applications
27.9%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.39%Median ratenational 6.63%
$185MLoan volume6 states

Meriwest at a glance, 2025

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

26.4%Denial rate (all applications)+8.38 pts vs national
27.9%Denial rate (decided applications)+5.30 pts vs national
68.0%Origination rate+10.01 pts vs national
5.5%Withdrawn by applicant
0.0%Closed for incompleteness
6.39%Median interest rate-0.24 pts vs national
-0.79Median rate spread (pts over APOR)-1.04 pts vs national
$305,000Median loan amount
$5,667Median total loan costs
$179kMedian applicant income
54%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the B 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%

41st27.9% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

83rd-0.79 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

87th5.5%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

81st1.86% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
202341125036.3%37.3%8.00%$47M
202445027534.7%36.2%7.70%$62M
202575151126.4%27.9%6.39%$185M

What Meriwest 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 110 15% · 5.5% denied
Refinance 69 9% · 26.1% denied
Cash-out refinance 16 2% · 6.3% denied
Home improvement 354 47% · 27.1% denied
Other / HELOC 202 27% · 38.1% denied

By loan type

Conventional 751 100% · 26.4% denied

Also: 528 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 1 manufactured homes, 81 investment properties.

Why Meriwest denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 198 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 135 68%
Other 39 20%
Credit history 21 11%
Employment history 1 1%
Collateral 1 1%
Unverifiable information 1 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Meriwest

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k36584.4%
$50k – $100k1358334.7%
$100k – $150k1248726.3%
$150k – $250k23216625.2%
Over $250k22016917.9%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
25–34473420.5%
35–4414610126.3%
45–5418812728.7%
55–6417911930.4%
65–741117231.4%
Over 74795821.6%

Where Meriwest lends

6 states and 46 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
California72749726.3%6.39%#202
Arizona14921.4%6.80%#465

Frequently asked questions

Meriwest denied 27.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 41st percentile of home-equity (HELOC) lenders.

The most common reason Meriwest gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 68.2% 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 Meriwest originated in 2025 was 6.39%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was -0.79 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 15% of its applications were for home purchases, 11% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 74% 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 Meriwest. Data sources · Methodology