Most people use financing to purchase their dream homes, and a top mortgage lender like Quicken Loans can help. The lender has served over two million families and offers various loan options to fit your needs.
What is Quicken Loans?
Quicken Loans is a mortgage lender that helps families buy their dream homes and refinance their existing mortgages. Quicken Loans is a brand under the Rocket Companies umbrella and recently changed its name to Rocket Mortgage. Rocket Mortgage was founded in 1985 by Dan Gilbert. The company launched its website in 1999 and strived to make the mortgage process a little easier for everyone.
How Do Quicken Loans Work?
Quicken Loans offers several loan options for people who need to buy a home or get a refinance. The company has an application process that lets you provide details about the type of home you want so you can get a reasonable quote. Quicken Loans, now Rocket Mortgage, lets borrowers decide on the time and location for the closing.
What Mortgage Loan Products Do Quicken Loans Offer?
Quicken Loans offers several mortgage loan products. Here are some of their top choices.
Conventional Loans
Borrowers can find conventional loans with fixed or variable interest rates and choose a 15-year or 30-year term. A 15-year term gets you out of debt sooner but comes with higher monthly payments. A 30-year mortgage is the opposite, giving you lower monthly payments but keeping you in debt for longer. The minimum down payment is generally 3%-3.5%, and you can get a loan with a minimum credit score of 620. Quicken Loans accepts applicants with debt-to-income ratios as high as 50%. While you can get started with a low down payment, making a 20% down payment can help you avoid mortgage insurance.
FHA Loans
The Federal Housing Administration insures these loans and gives borrowers an opportunity to buy homes even if they don’t have the best credit scores. You can get an FHA loan from Quicken Loans with a credit score as low as 500. You will have to make a 10% down payment if you have a 500 credit score, but borrowers with a 580 credit score or higher only have to make a 3.5% minimum down payment.
If you get an FHA loan from Quicken Loans, you can get financing with a debt-to-income ratio as high as 57%. That’s more generous than other loans and highlights the FHA loan’s nature as a starter loan. You will have to pay a mortgage insurance premium for this loan. It’s a good idea to refinance your way out of this loan once you build up 20% equity in your home to stop paying for mortgage insurance. One downside of these loans is that they carry higher closing costs. You can expect to pay 3% to 6% of the purchase price to cover closing costs.
USDA Loans
You don’t have to make a down payment to get a USDA loan. The U.S. Department of Agriculture backs these loans for rural properties, Your property has to fulfill the eligibility requirements, and you can’t have too much debt. Your total debt-to-income ratio for this type of loan cannot exceed 41%. Quicken Loans has offered USDA loans in the past, but it currently does not offer them.
VA Loan
Qualifying veterans and military spouses can get a home without making down payments. These loans have better benefits, lower interest rates, and more generous credit score requirements than conventional mortgages. That’s because the Department of Veteran Affairs backs these loans, which reduces the lender’s risk. It’s also possible to refinance up to 120% of your home’s value if you already have a VA loan. Quicken Loans has 15-year, 20-year, 25-year, and 30-year VA loan terms available. The VA loan has a funding fee that the VA charges. Borrowers can roll this fee into the loan, and some borrowers can avoid paying this fee.
Jumbo Loan
Jumbo loans are non-conforming loans that let borrowers exceed the loan limits set by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Quicken Loans lets borrowers take out a jumbo loan to buy or refinance a home, with amounts ranging from $647,200 to $2.5 million.
What Other Services Do Quicken Loans Provide?
Quicken Loans doesn’t stop at providing loans. Here are some of the mortgage lender’s additional services.
Mortgage Refinance
You can refinance a mortgage with Quicken Loans. The company posts the requirements for each of its refinances. You can get a cash-out, lower your monthly payments with a longer term, or get out of debt sooner with a shorter term.
Mortgage Calculator
Quicken Loans has several calculators, including the mortgage calculator, that help consumers make better decisions with their finances. The mortgage calculator lets you enter some inputs and discover your estimated monthly payment. You can make adjustments to see how things like getting a 15-year mortgage vs. a 30-year mortgage will impact your budget.
The Pros and Cons of Quicken Loans
Quicken Loans has given loans to over two million families. There are plenty of reasons that many people have done business with Quicken Loans, but the mortgage lender isn’t perfect. These are the pros and cons.
Pros
- Many loan options
- Calculators that can help with planning your budget
- Refinancing is also available
Cons
- Quicken Loans does not offer home equity lines of credit
- High origination fees
- No USDA loans (the lender has offered these loans before and may offer them in the future. Right now, Quicken Loans does not offer USDA loans)
Where Does Quicken Loan Stand Out?
Quicken Loans stands out for its suite of financial products. You can compare various types of mortgages based on your income, credit score, debt-to-income ratio, and other factors. You can borrow up to $2.5 million from Quicken Loans and calculate how a loan will impact your finances with their tools.
How Do You Qualify for Quicken Loans?
Quicken Loans outlines the requirements for each loan on its website. If you have the requirements, you can submit an application and wait to hear back. Quicken Loans will run a hard credit check if you apply for a loan, an event that has a short-term impact on your credit score.
Is Quicken Loans Right for You?
Quicken Loans outlines what it takes to get approved for any of their mortgages, and it offers a lot of great choices. If you want to buy a new home or prefer to get a refinance, this reputable mortgage lender can be right for you. Quicken Loans has several options for people who do not have the best credit score and offer lower rates for people with good credit scores.
How to Get Started with Quicken Loans
You can get started with Quicken Loans by visiting the company’s website and browsing through the loan options. After discovering which loan you want, you can apply for the financial product you seek and want for a loan offer.
