How lenders are ranked

1. Who fits

A lender appears in your comparison only if all of these are true: it offers your loan type and term; it lends in the property’s state; it accepts the property type, area (rural rules) and lot size; your credit score and experience fall in a tier it lends to; the loan is within its minimum and maximum; for a refinance, it can pay off your current loan; and your cash and liquid assets cover the down payment, about 2 points, a $2,000 lender fee, $3,000 for title and three months of interest at 12%. Lenders whose pricing hasn’t been confirmed in the last 30 days are left out.

2. Loan amount

For fix and flip and construction loans, the maximum loan is the lowest of: the lender’s purchase (or land) LTC times the purchase price plus 100% of the rehab or construction budget; its maximum LTC times total cost; and its maximum loan-to-ARV times the ARV. Rural properties at lenders that reduce leverage get that lender’s reduction. Bridge loans use the lender’s LTV for a purchase, refinance or cash-out refinance. If you enter the loan amount you need, it’s capped at the maximum. Amounts round down to the nearest $5,000.

3. Total cost

Total cost = interest over your hold period (or the lender’s minimum-interest period if longer) + origination points + exit points + lender fees. Lenders with Dutch interest charge interest on the full loan; for the others we assume interest on the purchase portion plus half the rehab or construction budget, the average outstanding if draws are spread evenly. See the Dutch interest calculator.

4. Order and labels

Lenders are labeled Lender A, B, C… by lowest total cost. You can sort by highest loan or lowest total cost. Each card also shows the lender’s confirmation rate (deals confirmed ÷ deals sent through this site, with timeouts counted as not confirmed), days to close, and the track record the lender reports.

5. What we don’t do

Lenders can’t pay to appear, rank higher or be labeled differently.