Mortgage lender · Redwood City, CA · LEI 549300QNPOF1WCRKLZ94

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

San Mateo Credit Union earns a C, in line with the typical performance of home-equity (HELOC) lenders. It turned down 32.5% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 27th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.34 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 30th percentile on pricing. Compared against 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

654Applications2025
56.1%Originatedof applications
32.5%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
7.75%Median ratenational 6.63%
$143MLoan volume1 states

San Mateo Credit Union at a glance, 2025

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

27.1%Denial rate (all applications)+9.08 pts vs national
32.5%Denial rate (decided applications)+9.89 pts vs national
56.1%Origination rate-1.91 pts vs national
16.7%Withdrawn by applicant
0.0%Closed for incompleteness
7.75%Median interest rate+1.13 pts vs national
0.34Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.09 pts vs national
$255,000Median loan amount
$1,477Median total loan costs
$180kMedian applicant income
53%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the C 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%

27th32.5% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

30th0.34 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

28th16.7%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

93rd0.58% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
202332316324.5%32.1%6.63%$80M
202430217815.2%20.1%6.50%$102M
202565436727.1%32.5%7.75%$143M

What San Mateo 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 123 19% · 18.7% denied
Refinance 101 15% · 19.8% denied
Cash-out refinance 309 47% · 17.8% denied
Other / HELOC 121 19% · 65.3% denied

By loan type

Conventional 654 100% · 27.1% denied

Also: 338 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 0 manufactured homes, 30 investment properties.

Why San Mateo Credit Union denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 177 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Other 72 41%
Debt-to-income ratio 65 37%
Credit history 20 11%
Collateral 12 7%
Unverifiable information 4 2%
Insufficient cash 2 1%
Employment history 1 1%
Incomplete application 1 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at San Mateo Credit Union

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
$50k – $100k64687.2%
$100k – $150k631079.6%
$150k – $250k882267.7%
Over $250k1334345.7%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
25–34310100.0%
35–4459196.7%
45–5453197.1%
55–64680100.0%
65–7432191.7%
Over 7429193.8%

Where San Mateo Credit Union lends

1 states and 35 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
California65436727.1%7.75%#219

Frequently asked questions

San Mateo Credit Union denied 32.5% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 27th percentile of home-equity (HELOC) lenders.

The most common reason San Mateo Credit Union gave in 2025 was "other", cited on 40.7% 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 San Mateo Credit Union originated in 2025 was 7.75%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.34 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 19% of its applications were for home purchases, 63% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 19% 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 San Mateo Credit Union. Data sources · Methodology