Best mortgage lenders in California for 2026

California is the nation's largest state by population — and one of the least affordable when it comes to housing.

A dearth of housing in the state has driven up the cost of homeownership; it has the third-highest median listing home price in the country at $742,305, beaten by Hawaii and Massachusetts, according to Realtor.com's State Affordability report card. Meanwhile, luxury Bay Area buyers — among others in high-priced areas— contributed to a new record-high national median price in June, per Redfin.

CNBC Select reviewed dozens of mortgage lenders to put together a list that addresses the diverse needs of California homebuyers. Beyond our usual criteria — which account for customer service record, loan selection and more — we judged lenders on how well they meet the needs of California homebuyers and homeowners, and on their service history in the state.

We also considered whether they were California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA)-approved lenders. With this distinction, lenders can coordinate state assistance for borrowers taking out mortgages.

To learn more about how we made our selections, check out our methodology.

Who's this for? If you're looking for affordability, Better Mortgage is a great lender to consider. It consistently offers mortgages at below-average rates.

Standout benefits: Better's average time to close is 19 days, half the national average. Plus, Better has a rate-match guarantee, meaning if you find a lender that quotes you a lower rate, Better will match it or give you $100 (terms apply).

Who's this for? San Diego-based Guild Mortgage has several low-down-payment loans and home-buying assistance options that could help you if you don't have much saved. For example, its 1% down allows low- to moderate-income earners with credit scores of 620 or higher to put that amount down on a home — Guild will provide an extra 2% to bring the homebuyer's equity up to 3% total.

Standout benefits: Guild also offers several mortgage options with minimum credit score requirements below 620, making it a good choice for people with low credit as well. It also offers down payment assistance programs and specialty products such as physician and bridge loans.

Who's this for? If you're buying a multi-million dollar home in California, Chase is a great option. It has underwritten loans of up to $9.5 million — much larger than those of other lenders.

Standout benefits: With the Chase Relationship Pricing Program, existing customers with deposit and investment accounts valued between $150,000 and $999,999 can receive a 0.125% rate discount, and those with accounts valued at $1 million or more can receive a 0.25% rate discount. Plus, if you have more than one new or existing account, you can stack these benefits to get a rate discount of up to 1%.

Who's this for? If you're a veteran or an active-duty service member, consider The Federal Savings Bank. It specializes in various types of loans designed for veterans.

As a CalHFA-approved lender — a distinction not all VA lenders hold — the Federal Savings Bank can help eligible California homebuyers qualify for a CalHFA VA loan. Benefits of this loan type include a junior loan of up to 3% of the home's price for first-time homebuyers, which can be used for the down payment or closing costs.

At the time of publication, other major VA loan providers — including Veterans United and Navy Federal Credit Union — were not listed as CalHFA-approved lenders on the agency's website, which is why we prefer this lender option for veteran Californians.

Standout benefits: The Federal Savings Bank also offers a personal loan called the Smart Loan, designed to help homebuyers finance home remodels, real estate agent fees, and other expenses that arise during the homebuying and homeownership experience.

Who's this for? If you're building an ADU or renovating your home, New American Funding is a great choice. NAF has a variety of construction loans and focuses on ADUs in addition to more traditional construction and renovation products.

Standout benefits: New American offers a 14-day close guarantee, which is shorter than the national average.

What is a CalHFA-approved lender?

California Housing Finance Administration (CalHFA)-approved lenders are licensed by the state to offer certain types of homebuying assistance for different loan types.

These lenders undergo training to help homebuyers find state assistance programs that fit their needs and submit the information required to apply for them, among other things.

Through these lenders, the state provides junior loans to help fund down payments and closing costs and offers lower rates on some loan products.

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At CNBC Select, our mission is to deliver high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice to our readers, enabling them to make informed financial decisions. Every mortgage review and list is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of mortgage products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content independently of our commercial team and any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on maintaining high journalistic standards and ethics.

To determine the best mortgage lenders, CNBC Select analyzed dozens of U.S. banks, credit unions and other financial institutions. We focused on the following features:

Loan offerings: We weighed lenders more heavily if they offered jumbo mortgages, specialty loans aimed at low-income borrowers and government-backed FHA, VA and USDA loans. We also considered whether a lender provided types of home loans that may be especially attractive to California homebuyers and owners:

• Low-down-payment options for those who may struggle to buy a starter home in high-price areas.
• Options for veterans, as California has one of the highest veteran populations in the country.
• High-value jumbo loans for the state's expensive listings and construction-to-permanent loans that homeowners may want to use for ADUs. 

Down payment: We noted when lenders had specialty loans with lower minimum down payments or offered down payment assistance. 

Credit score: Most lenders require a 620 FICO score to secure a conventional mortgage. We noted whether a lender had options for borrowers with poor credit.

Closing times: We gave more weight to lenders with shorter-than-average closing times or that guaranteed an on-time closing.

Fees: The mortgage process includes origination, application and underwriting fees, as well as charges for appraisals, title insurance, attorneys and other closing costs. When possible, we noted if a lender had lower fees, discounts or waived certain fees.

Application process: We considered whether lenders offered an online pre-approval and application process, as well as whether they had physical branches for an in-person experience. 

Customer service: We gave more weight to lenders that scored highly on J.D. Power's mortgage origination and servicing surveys, as well as those who were rated highly by the Better Business Bureau. We also noted if they had robust customer service phone hours and a website with an online chat feature and educational resources.

California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) approval: We gave preference to CalHFA-approved lenders. This means the lender has met CalHFA's extensive qualifying criteria to lend state-backed loans and received training from the agency. These lenders are eligible to provide CalHFA loans, which make it easier for Californians to become homeowners.

Local ties: We noted where lenders have local ties to the Golden State, including whether they are headquartered there, have retail locations there and assist charities and communities there. 

We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.

Based on those criteria, our picks for the best mortgage lenders in California are:

• Best for low rates: Better Mortgage
• Best for low-down-payment mortgage: Guild Mortgage
• Best for large jumbo loans: Chase Bank
• Best for VA loan borrowers: The Federal Savings Bank
• Best for construction or ADU loans: New American Funding

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