Mortgage lender · Laurel, MD · LEI 54930080168VA6Z8UX21

TOWER Federal Credit Union review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

TOWER Federal Credit Union earns a C, in line with the typical performance of home-equity (HELOC) lenders. It turned down 30.4% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 33rd percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.20 points below the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 69th percentile on pricing. Compared against 412 home-equity (HELOC) lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

6.0kApplications2025
60.8%Originatedof applications
30.4%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
7.00%Median ratenational 6.63%
$715MLoan volume48 states

TOWER Federal 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)+9.10 pts vs national
30.4%Denial rate (decided applications)+7.81 pts vs national
60.8%Origination rate+2.74 pts vs national
7.8%Withdrawn by applicant
3.1%Closed for incompleteness
7.00%Median interest rate+0.38 pts vs national
-0.20Median rate spread (pts over APOR)-0.45 pts vs national
$155,000Median loan amount
$4,617Median total loan costs
$174kMedian applicant income
77%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%

33rd30.4% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

69th-0.20 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

59th10.9%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

55th2.98% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
20236,2453,43432.9%36.9%7.00%$506M
20246,0223,44931.0%34.6%7.75%$549M
20255,9523,61727.1%30.4%7.00%$715M

What TOWER Federal 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 1,053 18% · 16.8% denied
Refinance 153 3% · 13.7% denied
Cash-out refinance 1,225 21% · 25.6% denied
Home improvement 2,356 40% · 27.8% denied
Other / HELOC 1,165 20% · 38.4% denied

By loan type

Conventional 5,949 100% · 27.1% denied
VA 3 0% · 0.0% denied

Also: 4,490 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 4 manufactured homes, 21 investment properties.

Why TOWER Federal Credit Union denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 1,612 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 729 45%
Credit history 394 24%
Other 360 22%
Collateral 77 5%
Unverifiable information 25 2%
Employment history 17 1%
Mortgage insurance denied 8 0%
Insufficient cash 2 0%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at TOWER Federal Credit Union

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k1545165.1%
$50k – $100k89742845.1%
$100k – $150k1,28174333.2%
$150k – $250k1,9971,35223.5%
Over $250k1,5531,01823.2%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 25482327.8%
25–3475641932.5%
35–441,7351,06430.7%
45–541,6251,01130.8%
55–641,17773228.9%
65–7444427327.9%
Over 741679532.4%

Where TOWER Federal Credit Union lends

48 states and 538 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
Maryland2,7331,69625.5%7.00%#18
Virginia1,06768124.3%7.00%#69
New Jersey35422329.1%7.00%#146
Pennsylvania33819032.5%7.00%#214
North Carolina17010124.7%7.00%#251
Florida1649134.2%7.00%#408
South Carolina1408726.4%7.00%#215
District of Columbia1116728.8%7.00%#41
Georgia1086030.6%7.00%#326
Illinois1055338.1%7.00%#341
Delaware986120.4%7.00%#86
California924934.8%7.00%#451
New York683142.7%7.00%#306
Colorado412231.7%7.00%#328
Ohio321637.5%7.75%#463
West Virginia311822.6%8.00%#173
Massachusetts301440.0%7.00%#381
Tennessee281628.6%7.50%#495
Arizona252016.0%7.75%#396
Michigan17935.3%7.75%#454
Oregon161037.5%8.50%#312
Missouri15726.7%8.00%#474
Nevada14935.7%7.00%#297
Alabama13738.5%8.00%#442
Washington12725.0%8.50%#437
Connecticut10530.0%7.00%#375
Kentucky10610.0%8.37%#417
Louisiana10550.0%7.75%#377
Texas10530.0%6.25%#956
Indiana9622.2%7.63%#568
Kansas9433.3%8.25%#362
Utah8612.5%8.38%#307
Wisconsin8612.5%7.00%#519
Minnesota7428.6%8.12%#504
New Hampshire7414.3%6.69%#295
Maine5320.0%7.00%#294
Mississippi5260.0%6.00%#346
Montana5240.0%7.00%#230
Oklahoma5240.0%7.88%#490
Rhode Island5340.0%7.00%#252

Frequently asked questions

TOWER Federal Credit Union denied 30.4% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 33rd percentile of home-equity (HELOC) lenders.

The most common reason TOWER Federal Credit Union gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 45.2% 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 TOWER Federal Credit Union originated in 2025 was 7.00%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was -0.20 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 18% of its applications were for home purchases, 23% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 59% 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 TOWER Federal Credit Union. Data sources · Methodology