Mortgage lender · Houston, TX · LEI 549300Z54IIB4Q3AKI90

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

Smart Financial Credit Union earns a D, weaker than most small mortgage lenders. It turned down 41.1% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 3rd percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.34 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 42nd percentile on pricing. Compared against 1,883 small mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

370Applications2025
48.4%Originatedof applications
41.1%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.50%Median ratenational 6.63%
$41MLoan volume1 states

Smart Financial Credit Union at a glance, 2025

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

34.9%Denial rate (all applications)+16.88 pts vs national
41.1%Denial rate (decided applications)+18.49 pts vs national
48.4%Origination rate-9.65 pts vs national
14.3%Withdrawn by applicant
0.8%Closed for incompleteness
6.50%Median interest rate-0.13 pts vs national
0.34Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.09 pts vs national
$105,000Median loan amount
$4,709Median total loan costs
$123kMedian applicant income
63%Median loan-to-value
1High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the D 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%

3rd41.1% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

42nd0.34 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

35th15.1%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

7th4.48% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
202353417341.6%56.1%6.00%$23M
202438619731.6%38.1%6.99%$33M
202537017934.9%41.1%6.50%$41M

What Smart Financial 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 56 15% · 7.1% denied
Refinance 24 6% · 16.7% denied
Cash-out refinance 158 43% · 69.0% denied
Home improvement 32 9% · 6.3% denied
Other / HELOC 100 27% · 10.0% denied

By loan type

Conventional 369 100% · 35.0% denied
FHA 1 0% · 0.0% denied

Also: 101 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 0 manufactured homes, 3 investment properties.

Why Smart Financial Credit Union denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 129 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 62 48%
Incomplete application 33 26%
Credit history 19 15%
Collateral 8 6%
Unverifiable information 4 3%
Other 3 2%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Smart Financial Credit Union

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k241242.9%
$50k – $100k1164752.0%
$100k – $150k883645.2%
$150k – $250k915032.9%
Over $250k503420.9%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
25–34331538.5%
35–441095141.4%
45–541095339.8%
55–64603145.6%
65–74412138.9%

Where Smart Financial Credit Union lends

1 states and 17 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Texas37017934.9%6.50%#312

Frequently asked questions

Smart Financial Credit Union denied 41.1% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 3rd percentile of small mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Smart Financial Credit Union gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 48.1% 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 Smart Financial Credit Union originated in 2025 was 6.50%, 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, 15% of its applications were for home purchases, 49% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 36% 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 Smart Financial Credit Union. Data sources · Methodology