Chase Mortgage Loan Review 2024

Chase offers a wide range of home loan products with annual percentage rates (APRs) that tend to be lower than the market average. As of March 2023, the APR on their loans ranged anywhere from just over 6% to 8%, depending on the area and loan type.

Chase also has a “Closing Guarantee,” promising an on-time closing in three weeks—after submitting all the required documents—or you’ll get $5,000. This guarantee doesn’t apply if you’re refinancing.

Both Chase’s purchase loans and refinancing rates are updated daily, making it easy for you to calculate your potential monthly payments.

Home Purchase Loan Options

Chase offers the following mortgage products.

• Chase DreaMaker℠ mortgage. It has down payment options as low as 3% and lower monthly payments with a 30-year fixed rate. However, you’ll have to meet income requirements to qualify for this loan. You can also receive $500 after completing an education course. DreaMaker mortgages are only available if you are buying or want to do a no cash-out refinance of a primary home for a 30-year fixed-rate term.
• FHA loan. A government-insured mortgage that offers down payments as low as 3.5%. Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans come with a 15-, 20-, 25- or 30-year term and have a fixed interest rate. While there are no specific income requirements to qualify, you’ll have to pay monthly mortgage insurance for the duration of the loan and a mortgage insurance premium at closing.
• VA loan. You must be a veteran, active duty service member or a member of the National Guard or Reserve to qualify. A mortgage from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has low or zero down payment options and no monthly mortgage insurance requirement. VA loans are available with 10-, 15-, 20-, 25- or 30-year terms. A Certificate of Eligibility from the VA is required to document eligibility. Restrictions and limitations apply.
• Standard Agency mortgage. These loans only require a minimum 3% down payment and may be a good option if you have a higher credit score. You’ll need a minimum score of 680 to qualify, and at least one borrower on the loan must be a first-time homebuyer. Homebuyer education requirements may apply.
• Jumbo loan. Chase provides loans above FHFA limits up to $9.5 million. For loan amounts greater than $3 million—or $2 million for investment properties—you must meet post-closing asset requirements to qualify. Loans up to 80% of a home’s value are available on a purchase or refinance with no cash back, subject to the property type, a required minimum credit score and a minimum amount of monthly reserves.

Chase also offers discounts and grants to qualified borrowers. For instance, through its Relationship Pricing Program, jumbo loan borrowers with a minimum of $500,000 in eligible Chase and JPMorgan deposit accounts and/or wealth management accounts get a 0.125% discount off the standard interest rate. Participating customers with more than $1 million can get a 0.25% discount.

Chase also offers a $2,500 or $5,000 grant for DreaMaker, Standard Agency, FHA and VA loans if you’re buying a home in 6,700 minority neighborhoods nationwide. You might also be eligible for an additional $500 by completing a certified education course and getting a DreaMaker mortgage loan.

The grant can be applied towards discount points, closing costs or lowering your down payment, dependent on the loan product’s requirements. The $500 will be applied at closing—first to points on the loan, if any, then to Chase fees and then to non-Chase fees.

3 Refinancing Paths

Chase has three paths for customers interested in refinancing their mortgage loan:

• Pay loan off sooner. For example, refinancing from a 30-year mortgage to a 15-year mortgage. With this option, your payments will likely increase, but you’ll own your home outright sooner and save on interest payments in the long run.
• Lower monthly payments. Spreading your loan out over a longer period can reduce your monthly payment, although with more interest paid over the lifespan of your loan.
• Take out equity. If you have owned your home for a while and built up sizable equity, you can withdraw some (or all) of that to fund major expenditures.

Refinancing Loan Options

• Cash-out refinance. Chase’s cash-out refinance option lets you pay off your current mortgage and create a new one, while also allowing you to keep part of your home’s equity as cash to pay for home improvements or other significant expenses.
• Fixed-rate refinance. A fixed-rate refi offers a consistent interest rate for as long as you have the loan, instead of a rate that adjusts or floats with the market. This means your mortgage payment will be consistent, but the fixed-rate loan will have a higher interest rate.
• Adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) refinance. An ARM offers a lower interest rate for a set period of time, which equals a lower monthly payment. An ARM refi has an interest rate that stays the same for a set period of time, then changes to a variable rate that adjusts periodically. For example, Chase offers a 7/6 ARM with an introductory interest rate for the first seven years and then resets every six months after that for the life of the loan.
• Alternative loan. In addition to FHA and VA loan options should you want to refinance, Chase also offers 15- and 20-year mortgage products. If you want to pay off your mortgage faster, then you may want to consider refinancing for a shorter term. However, because you’ll be paying off your loan over a shorter period of time, your monthly payments will likely be higher.

Credit Score

Chase does not explicitly state the minimum credit score to be eligible for any of its loan products, but a spokesperson said they prefer a score of at least 620. Chase does note on its website that “FICO credit scores between 580 and 669” are considered to be fair while “credit scores below 580 are deemed poor.”

Credit History

Chase lets you check your credit score for free and review your report for mistakes. You should contact the credit bureaus to correct any errors.

Debt-to-Income (DTI) Ratio

Chase will verify your income during the application process, and calculate your DTI ratio by dividing your monthly debt payments to your monthly gross income.

The industry standard is to have a DTI less than 43% in order for a mortgage to meet certain government-backed standards. 

However, if your DTI is higher than 43%, you may still be eligible for a mortgage if another person (a spouse, relative or someone who lives in the home) co-signs with you. Chase will ask you for the co-applicant’s information during the application process.

Down Payment

The bank says a down payment on a conventional loan less than 20% will require private mortgage insurance (PMI). It estimates that the annual cost of PMI is about 1% of your outstanding mortgage balance. You can request to have PMI eliminated once your outstanding loan balance reaches 80% of the original loan amount.

However, as noted earlier, some loan products may require smaller down payments, such as only a 3% to 5% or no money down. The minimum down payment is 3%, unless it is a VA loan, which doesn’t require a downpayment.

Income/Work History

Traditional banks prefer to lend to borrowers with steady income. They usually require you to have been at your current job for at least two years. You can also expect more strict income requirements if you are applying for a jumbo loan.

Closing costs are what you’ll pay before the home purchase or refi is complete. Some of these fees will be paid upfront or built into the mortgage balance, while others will be due at closing. You will receive a closing disclosure (CD) a few days before close that outlines all of the costs and fees you’ll need to pay.

The common closing costs that Chase lists include:

• Appraisal fee for the assessment of the home’s market value
• Attorney fees for lawyers to prepare and record documents
• Discount points, which is when a lender allows you to purchase mortgage points upfront to lower your interest rate; for each discount point you buy, you’ll have to pay 1% of the loan amount upfront
• Origination fee for the loan processing and administration costs; in most cases, this fee equals up to 1% of the loan amount
• Rate lock fee, which is charged by some lenders to guarantee your interest rate until closing
• Recording fee paid to city or county to record your deed and mortgage documents
• Underwriting fee for the cost of reviewing and vetting your application
• Title fees to verify there are no tax liens on the property and for title insurance to protect you if a problem is discovered

For jumbo loans specifically, Chase offers $500 off of the processing fee for Chase Private Clients with combined assets of $150,000 to $499,999 in eligible Chase deposit and/or JPMorgan Wealth Management accounts or waiver of the entire processing fee (up to $1,150 for most loans) for eligible accounts with at least $500,000.

This discount applies to the full spectrum of residential mortgage loans, including fixed- and adjustable-rate products for jumbo and conforming mortgages.

Chase Mortgage Offers and Discounts

Chase offers a discount of 0.125% for friends and family members of Chase employees, as well as a 0.50% discount for current customers.

Chase also offers down payment assistance programs and works with some companies to offer other mortgage benefits to high-net-worth employees.

You can begin the application process online from the mortgage section of the Chase website. The “Start online” button at the bottom of the page will take you to a secure page. There, you’ll be asked whether you have an application in progress and are a current Chase customer; you will be required to log in if you are.

If you already have Chase accounts, some of the application information will be prefilled based on the personal info the bank has on file for you. If not, you’ll be asked to fill in the information for the loan application. This will be used to verify your identity, pull your credit report and contact you.

After you have submitted this, you will then have to speak to a home lending advisor to complete the application process.

Chase has a MyHome digital dashboard for you to upload documents securely. You can also sign the mortgage application and disclosures using e-signatures.

The documents you’ll need to complete your application include:

• Your most recent month’s pay stub
• W-2 forms showing the last two years of your employment
• Bank and investment account statements from the last three months
• Your home purchase contract signed by you and the seller
• A completed and signed Form 4506-C; provided by your HLA, it gives Chase authorization to access your tax return
• If you are self-employed or you get paid any commissions, Chase will need your most recent two years of tax returns, signed
• If you own your own business, it will need the most recent two years of personal tax returns and any business returns (e.g., 1120, 1120S, Schedule K-1/1065)

Chase encourages you to prequalify for a mortgage. Getting prequalified can give you a good sense of how much house you can afford, as well as flag any roadblocks you might hit in the process of getting approved for a mortgage. That way, you can fix any issues before applying.

It is important when applying for a mortgage loan to select a product and amount that is right for you and your budget. Having an application denied is not the end of the world, even though it might feel that way.

If your application is denied by Chase, the bank says:

• Call. The lender is legally required to tell you why you weren’t approved. Any information you can get will be invaluable.
• Review your credit. If your application was denied because of your credit rating, it’s important to take action now to begin improving your score. On the flip side, if there were errors in your credit report, submit a dispute through all three credit reporting agencies.
• Wait. Sometimes the timing of your application might have been the issue. For example the length of time on your current job, a recent bankruptcy, or a large and unexpected expense that messed with your DTI. In this case, your lender can give you a timeframe for when you can reapply.

Between January 2020 and February 2023, there were 896 complaints filed against Chase in the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau’s Consumer Complaints database. Some complaints cite troubles during the payment process as well as issues at closing. However, all complaints were responded to in a timely manner.

Chase has an A rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), but its reviews on the site are overwhelmingly negative. Chase is rated 1.12 out of 5 stars by BBB users. There have been 1,654 complaints closed in the past 12 months, and 4,281 in the last three years. That said, the majority of the complaints are about the bank’s customer service with regard to personal checking and business accounts, as well as credit cards—not mortgages.

If getting a mortgage loan from a traditional financial institution like Chase doesn’t suit your needs or credit profile, there are other options to consider.

1. Credit Unions

Credit unions like Navy Federal or PenFed are not-for-profit institutions that provide loan products and services just like traditional banks. However, when compared with banks, credit unions charge, on average, lower interest rates for mortgage loans, according to Q4 2022 data from the National Credit Union Administration.

2. Community Banks

Community banks are smaller financial institutions, by asset size, that only operate in certain locations or geographic areas. They prioritize building a relationship with their local community, meaning they might be more willing to make home loans to a borrower that a big bank would reject. However, they tend to not be as technologically advanced as their larger counterparts.

3. Online Banks

Online mortgage lenders provide financial services through websites and mobile apps, leveraging computer algorithms to make for a faster approval process. The money they save on no brick-and-mortar locations translates into lower interest rates and fees for customers. They’re also more willing to work with borrowers that don’t have stellar credit histories, although they will charge a higher interest rate and/or require a larger down payment in exchange.

We graded Chase based on features that have a meaningful impact on the cost of a mortgage and a borrower’s experience, including interest rates, loan options, accessibility, closing time and customer service.

We award bonus points if a lender offers a specialty rate discount or mortgage product, a home equity product or maintains a fully online mortgage application process.

Our scoring method is broken down as follows:

• Interest rate. 20%
• Loan options. 20%
• Time to close. 20%
• Accessibility. 20%
• Customer service experience. 20%
• Bonus points. Up to 25 points

We chose to focus on these core elements to bring forward lenders that offer the most competitive rates while also providing a satisfactory customer experience accessible to borrowers of all financial backgrounds. We believe this scoring system best reflects consumers’ top priorities when comparison shopping for mortgage lenders.

To learn more about our rating and review methodology and editorial process, check out our guide on How Forbes Advisor Reviews Mortgage Lenders.