Mortgage lender · Batesville, AR · LEI 5493004EVKOLRF3JI477

The Citizens Bank review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

The Citizens Bank earns a D, weaker than most investment-property lenders. It turned down 13.3% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 17th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 2.24 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 8th percentile on pricing. Compared against 220 investment-property lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

184Applications2025
80.4%Originatedof applications
13.3%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
8.00%Median ratenational 6.63%
$28MLoan volume2 states

The Citizens Bank at a glance, 2025

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

12.5%Denial rate (all applications)-5.48 pts vs national
13.3%Denial rate (decided applications)-9.30 pts vs national
80.4%Origination rate+22.40 pts vs national
6.0%Withdrawn by applicant
0.0%Closed for incompleteness
8.00%Median interest rate+1.38 pts vs national
2.24Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+1.98 pts vs national
$105,000Median loan amount
$1,809Median total loan costs
$88kMedian applicant income
80%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the D grade breaks down

Each component is a percentile rank among 220 investment-property lenders. Higher is better. Components the lender does not report are left out and the weights redistributed.

Approval oddsdecision denial rate, weight 45%

17th13.3% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

8th2.24 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

48th6.0%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

82nd1.72% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
202318513118.9%20.8%8.50%$36M
202418313714.2%15.9%9.00%$56M
202518414812.5%13.3%8.00%$28M

What The Citizens Bank 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 111 60% · 10.8% denied
Refinance 42 23% · 14.3% denied
Home improvement 18 10% · 5.6% denied
Other / HELOC 13 7% · 30.8% denied

By loan type

Conventional 184 100% · 12.5% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 10 manufactured homes, 110 investment properties.

Why The Citizens Bank denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 23 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Credit history 15 65%
Debt-to-income ratio 4 17%
Insufficient cash 2 9%
Unverifiable information 1 4%
Collateral 1 4%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at The Citizens Bank

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
$50k – $100k463315.0%
$100k – $150k201615.8%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
35–44201138.9%
45–54221610.5%
55–64312323.3%

Where The Citizens Bank lends

2 states and 28 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Arkansas18314712.6%8.00%#120

Frequently asked questions

The Citizens Bank denied 13.3% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 17th percentile of investment-property lenders.

The most common reason The Citizens Bank gave in 2025 was "credit history", cited on 65.2% 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 The Citizens Bank originated in 2025 was 8.00%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 2.24 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 60% of its applications were for home purchases, 23% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 17% 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 The Citizens Bank. Data sources · Methodology