Mortgage lender · Brookfield, WI · LEI 549300GRGZDEH4ZGQS06

Waterstone Mortgage review: approval odds, rates and grade (2025)

Waterstone Mortgage earns a C, in line with the typical performance of mid-size mortgage lenders. It turned down 4.7% of the applications it decided on in 2025, which ranks in the 76th percentile for approval odds. Its median loan was priced 0.42 points above the average prime offer rate, ranking in the 27th percentile on pricing. Compared against 581 mid-size mortgage lenders using 2025 HMDA filings.

9.6kApplications2025
73.5%Originatedof applications
4.7%Decision denial ratenational 22.6%
6.63%Median ratenational 6.63%
$2.1BLoan volume48 states

Waterstone Mortgage at a glance, 2025

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

3.6%Denial rate (all applications)-14.35 pts vs national
4.7%Denial rate (decided applications)-17.91 pts vs national
73.5%Origination rate+15.49 pts vs national
20.8%Withdrawn by applicant
1.5%Closed for incompleteness
6.63%Median interest rate0.00 pts vs national
0.42Median rate spread (pts over APOR)+0.16 pts vs national
$275,000Median loan amount
$7,591Median total loan costs
$96kMedian applicant income
95%Median loan-to-value
0High-cost (HOEPA) loans

How the C 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%

76th4.7% denied

Pricingmedian rate spread over APOR, weight 30%

27th0.42 pts

Processwithdrawn + incomplete share, weight 15%

26th22.3%

Closing coststotal loan costs ÷ loan amount, weight 10%

31st2.76% of loan

Trend, 2023–2025

YearApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateDecision denialMedian rateVolume
202310,3307,5534.4%5.6%6.75%$2.1B
202410,7387,8134.5%5.8%6.75%$2.1B
20259,6297,0793.6%4.7%6.63%$2.1B

What Waterstone Mortgage 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 8,436 88% · 3.0% denied
Refinance 783 8% · 7.9% denied
Cash-out refinance 395 4% · 8.9% denied
Home improvement 15 0% · 13.3% denied

By loan type

Conventional 6,301 65% · 3.1% denied
FHA 2,246 23% · 5.6% denied
VA 1,007 10% · 2.6% denied
USDA / RHS 75 1% · 6.7% denied

Also: 0 home-equity lines, 0 reverse mortgages, 455 manufactured homes, 395 investment properties.

Why Waterstone Mortgage denies applications

Primary reason reported for each of the 350 denials in 2025. Lenders can cite up to four reasons; this is the first one listed.

Debt-to-income ratio 112 32%
Collateral 76 22%
Credit history 70 20%
Other 42 12%
Unverifiable information 24 7%
Insufficient cash 20 6%
Employment history 6 2%

How these reasons compare nationally →

Who gets approved at Waterstone Mortgage

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

Applicant incomeApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under $50k67044811.1%
$50k – $100k4,3063,1885.3%
$100k – $150k2,3351,7673.4%
$150k – $250k1,4691,0682.2%
Over $250k6764982.5%
Applicant ageApplicationsOriginatedDecision denial rate
Under 258066365.0%
25–343,0662,3743.2%
35–442,3771,7144.9%
45–541,6271,1526.5%
55–641,0367344.8%
65–745473645.6%
Over 741701058.5%

Where Waterstone Mortgage lends

48 states and 840 counties in 2025. Click a state for the lender's full record there.

StateApplicationsOriginatedDenial rateMedian rateRank in state
New Mexico2,7402,0643.2%6.88%#6
Florida1,1648325.0%6.63%#139
Oklahoma6834931.3%6.50%#50
Texas6154302.4%6.63%#228
Virginia5424025.5%6.63%#109
Arizona5163863.1%6.50%#108
Wisconsin4693951.7%6.63%#92
Idaho4293493.0%6.25%#54
Missouri3222351.9%6.63%#126
Maryland2551953.1%6.50%#137
Minnesota2191615.5%6.88%#134
Kansas1681262.4%6.75%#116
Illinois1641286.1%6.75%#280
New Hampshire1491014.0%6.88%#67
Rhode Island109687.3%6.50%#66
Iowa102920.0%6.50%#150
North Carolina98539.2%6.88%#324
Tennessee86558.1%6.75%#348
Massachusetts814011.1%6.44%#271
West Virginia79532.5%6.63%#105
South Carolina77532.6%6.75%#286
Pennsylvania60423.3%6.63%#458
Ohio55377.3%6.88%#396
California47320.0%6.63%#529
Georgia43279.3%6.88%#455
Indiana37218.1%6.75%#385
New Jersey281214.3%6.56%#415
Colorado27190.0%6.88%#382
Washington27200.0%6.25%#356
Connecticut25190.0%6.75%#273
Nevada22144.6%6.63%#265
Alabama21140.0%7.12%#392
Maine20125.0%6.99%#175
Wyoming201010.0%6.56%#110
Nebraska18160.0%6.87%#216
Michigan171217.7%6.87%#458
Oregon15920.0%7.13%#323
Arkansas12816.7%6.81%#327
Utah1149.1%7.06%#278
Montana1080.0%6.81%#178
District of Columbia870.0%6.49%#201
South Dakota850.0%5.99%#153
Kentucky740.0%6.56%#457
Louisiana640.0%7.00%#418
North Dakota630.0%6.50%#158
Delaware5320.0%6.63%#331
Vermont540.0%6.94%#147

Frequently asked questions

Waterstone Mortgage denied 4.7% of the applications it decided on in 2025. The national figure across all lenders was 22.6%. On approval odds it ranks in the 76th percentile of mid-size mortgage lenders.

The most common reason Waterstone Mortgage gave in 2025 was "debt-to-income ratio", cited on 32.0% 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 Waterstone Mortgage originated in 2025 was 6.63%, and its median rate spread over the average prime offer rate was 0.42 points. Rates on this page are what borrowers actually got, not advertised rates.

In 2025, 88% of its applications were for home purchases, 12% for refinancing (including cash-out), and 0% for home improvement or other purposes. By loan type: 65% conventional, 23% FHA, 10% 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 Waterstone Mortgage. Data sources · Methodology