Mortgage lender · Chandler, AZ · LEI 549300249G20MDIDRR27

Southwest Stage Funding review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Southwest Stage Funding earns an F, in the bottom tier of mid-size mortgage lenders. It turned down 18.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 25th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 1.96 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 2nd percentile on pricing. Compared against 581 mid-size mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

12kApplications2025
23.5%Originatedof applications
18.9%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
7.90%Median ratenational 6.63%
$503MLoan volume40 states

Southwest Stage Funding at a glance, 2025

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

9.7%Denial rate (all applications)-8.31 pts vs national
18.9%Denial rate (decided applications)-3.74 pts vs national
23.5%Origination rate-34.51 pts vs national
8.1%Withdrawn by applicant
40.6%Closed for incompleteness
7.90%Median interest rate+1.28 pts vs national
1.96Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+1.71 pts vs national
$155,000Median loan amount
$5,153Median total loan costs
$73kMedian applicant income
98%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the F grade breaks down

Each component is a percentile rank among 581 mid-size mortgage lenders. Higher is better. Components the lender does not report are left out and the weights redistributed.

Approval oddsdecision denial rate, weight 45%

25th18.9% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

2nd1.96 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

2nd48.7%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

17th3.32% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20234,8762,81034.2%35.9%8.05%$471M
20246,3862,24111.4%24.6%8.00%$397M
202511,7012,7529.7%18.9%7.90%$503M

What Southwest Stage Funding 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 11,675 100% · 9.6% denied
Refinance 26 0% · 30.8% denied

By loan type

Conventional 9,188 79% · 9.8% denied
FHA 2,163 18% · 9.4% denied
VA 350 3% · 6.9% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 11,561 manufactured homes, 7 investment properties.

Why Southwest Stage Funding denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 1,132 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 505 45%
Other 177 16%
Collateral 130 11%
Insufficient cash 128 11%
Employment history 110 10%
Credit history 75 7%
Unverifiable information 7 1%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Southwest Stage Funding

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k2,29938631.4%
$50k – $100k6,4151,64616.3%
$100k – $150k2,22258014.6%
$150k – $250k66412914.3%
Over $250k84117.9%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 251,56035917.2%
25–343,91295817.0%
35–442,65764119.9%
45–541,97046621.8%
55–641,21625618.1%
65–743376324.3%
Over 7449937.5%

Where Southwest Stage Funding lends

40 states and 1,541 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Texas2,74474811.1%8.20%#72
South Carolina1,1833368.6%7.75%#50
Alabama8041906.8%8.58%#58
Oklahoma7792119.8%8.00%#43
North Carolina7361607.2%7.11%#108
Florida73319713.8%6.75%#194
Tennessee7151357.6%7.50%#87
Georgia5821357.0%7.50%#138
Arkansas4498810.7%8.00%#58
Mississippi43710711.0%8.35%#44
Kentucky409484.4%8.20%#90
Louisiana3405410.3%8.38%#84
Missouri2935413.3%7.75%#138
Virginia282453.6%6.88%#172
West Virginia272425.9%8.50%#47
New Mexico2446413.5%7.88%#68
Ohio221497.7%8.10%#220
Arizona1042026.0%5.88%#238
Indiana591415.3%8.68%#335
Pennsylvania5668.9%5.88%#476
Illinois4976.1%9.75%#467
Kansas43154.7%7.45%#238
California27214.8%5.56%#604
Colorado26730.8%5.88%#388
Michigan24337.5%8.55%#417
Montana23617.4%8.73%#135
Washington1810.0%6.25%#399
Wisconsin10220.0%9.23%#494
Idaho6133.3%5.25%#306
Wyoming6316.7%7.55%#176
Iowa500.0%#424

Frequently asked questions

Southwest Stage Funding denied 18.9% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 25th percentile of mid-size mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Southwest Stage Funding gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 44.6% 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 Southwest Stage Funding originated in 2025 was 7.90%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 1.96 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 100% of its applications were for home purchases, 0% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 0% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 79% conventional, 18% FHA, 3% 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 Southwest Stage Funding. Data sources · Methodology