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Independent research · California

California Mortgage & Lending Intelligence

A source-backed view of California mortgage-market activity, CalHFA housing-finance programs, and DFPI CRMLA report evidence. This is not a ranking, recommendation, or Trust Score. There is no current live California mortgage-license roster in this snapshot.

Local catalog pages remain at /local-lenders/california. Those pages are not this official-source intelligence snapshot.

Snapshot metrics

1,014,489

Universe · HMDA applications

2025 HMDA applications for properties located in California. Not a count of California-licensed mortgage companies.

569,218

Current · HMDA originations

2025 HMDA originations, property location California.

1,414

Observations · CalHFA directory rows

CalHFA directory rows, not unique companies and not licenses.

58

Geography · Counties in HMDA geography

All 58 California counties in the HMDA geography.

2025

As-of · HMDA vintage

HMDA reporting vintage. CalHFA directory retrieved 2026-09-03.

Market findings

  • 2025 HMDA recorded 1,014,489 applications, 569,218 originations, and 175,802 denials for properties located in California (17.33% denial rate). That is not a license count.
  • Purchase applications are 37.41% of the file and refinance applications are 38.29%. Conventional applications are 83.87%.
  • All 58 California counties are represented in this HMDA geography.
  • CalHFA’s approved-lender HTML directory lists 1,414 branch rows and 193 distinct company names. A directory row is not a unique company and is not a California license.
  • According to the 2024 CRMLA annual report… 389 licensees and 5,104 branches as of 2024-12-31. That report is not a September 2026 live roster.

2025 California mortgage market

HMDA is a mortgage-application filing extract for properties located in California. It is not a California license roster, not a quality ranking, and the denial rate does not prove discrimination.

1,014,489

Applications

HMDA 2025, properties in California.

569,218

Originations

175,802

Denials

17.33%

Denial rate

Denials ÷ applications in this extract.

Trace this number
Source
Committed HMDA California partition data/hmda/by-state/CA/county_market_summary.csv. Properties located in California. Not a second national download.
Source date
HMDA 2025
Denominator
1,014,489 applications
Calculation
denials / applications * 100, rounded to 2 decimals
Reporting grain
State overlay from 58 county rows
Coverage
ACQUIRED_CURRENT_SNAPSHOT
Caveat
HMDA is a mortgage-application filing extract for properties located in California. It is not a California license roster, not a quality ranking, and the denial rate does not prove discrimination.

Applications compared with originations and denials

Applications1,014,489
Originations569,218
Denials175,802

Loan purpose (applications)

Purchase applications379,539
Refinance applications388,399

Loan type (applications)

Conventional (83.87%)850,885
FHA (10.92%)110,803
VA (5.15%)52,213
USDA / other (0.06%)588

County market table

All official California counties in the HMDA geography, sorted alphabetically. No California county routes are published from this page.

2025 HMDA activity for all 58 California counties. Denial rate is not a quality ranking. County names are not links.
CountyApplicationsOriginationsDenialsDenial ratePurchase %Refinance %
Alameda38,16321,9415,92615.53%36.88%41.17%
Alpine62311320.97%40.32%33.87%
Amador1,58090127717.53%40.19%35.32%
Butte5,9603,4081,01216.98%47.85%30.92%
Calaveras2,3091,29940017.32%44.39%33.09%
Colusa4692639420.04%35.82%34.54%
Contra Costa34,55719,9265,70116.50%35.62%39.29%
Del Norte69034712618.26%44.93%35.65%
El Dorado8,1034,7691,31316.20%40.29%34.64%
Fresno25,78614,1015,24920.36%41.07%33.55%
Glenn68736713519.65%42.36%34.06%
Humboldt2,4981,39737414.97%46.60%35.71%

County is the HMDA property-location county. This table is not a county page and is not a ranking.

California housing finance programs

CalHFA does not accept applications directly. A CalHFA-approved lender originates the loan. 2026 CalHFA income limits for first mortgages and subordinate mortgages effective 2026-06-30. County eligibility is not borrower eligibility.

MyHome Assistance Program

Deferred-payment junior loan

  • Headline maximum / formula: Government/FHA first mortgages: up to the lesser of 3.5% of purchase price or appraised value. Conventional first mortgages: up to the lesser of 3% of purchase price or appraised value.
  • Eligibility: First-time homebuyer; occupy as primary residence; homebuyer education; meet program income limits. Non-occupant co-borrowers not allowed.
  • Status: Documented on official CalHFA program page; not a guarantee of funds.
  • Source date: 2026-09-03 official page retrieval

Official source

California Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan

Down payment and/or closing-cost assistance used with the Dream For All Conventional first mortgage

  • Headline maximum / formula: Up to 20% of appraised value/sales price, not to exceed $150,000
  • Eligibility: At least one borrower first-generation homebuyer; at least one borrower current California resident; all borrowers first-time homebuyers; household income within county program limits. Voucher via randomized drawing, not first-come-first-served.
  • Status: Voucher-based. Official update 2026-05-20: next round of DFA vouchers released. Not a statement that all Californians qualify or that funds are guaranteed.
  • Source date: 2026-05-20 program update on official Dream For All page; page retrieved 2026-09-03

Official source

CalHFA Conventional / FHA / VA / USDA first mortgages and CalPLUS overlays

First-mortgage product family originated by approved lenders

  • Headline maximum / formula: Subject to conforming/high-balance and insurer/GSE limits current to the rate sheet; not restated here as a single dollar cap.
  • Eligibility: Must meet CalHFA, lender, and mortgage-insurer requirements; occupy as primary residence; homebuyer education.
  • Status: Documented on official loan-programs index. Conventional refinance FAQ last revised May 2026.
  • Source date: 2026-09-03 official page retrieval; Conventional FAQ last revised May 2026

Official source

Disaster Rebuilding Assistance Program

CalHFA disaster rebuilding assistance (lender enrollment announced)

  • Headline maximum / formula: See official bulletin; not restated as an invented cap.
  • Eligibility: Program-specific; income limits for this program effective 2026-08-03.
  • Status: Program Bulletin #2026-08. Not described here as universally open.
  • Source date: Program Bulletin 2026-08 / eNews 2026-08-03

Official source

Program terms change. Monetary figures carry the official source clock. County income limits are not a promise that a borrower qualifies.

CalHFA approved-lender directory

CalHFA approved/participating lender is not a California license and is not a TrustHub endorsement. Directory row is not a unique company. No name-only NMLS attachment.

1,414

Directory rows

CALHFA_APPROVED_LENDER_DIRECTORY_ROW

193

Distinct company names

1,388

California-address rows

1,341 / 1,414

Phones / addresses

Facility contact from CalHFA directory. Not an endorsement.

Trace this number
Source
https://www.calhfa.ca.gov/apps/approvedlenders/
Source date
2026-09-03 retrieval of live official HTML directory
Denominator
1,414 directory rows
Calculation
HTML table rows after the header. Distinct names are case-normalized display names.
Reporting grain
CALHFA_APPROVED_LENDER_DIRECTORY_ROW
Coverage
ACQUIRED
Caveat
CalHFA approved/participating lender is not a California license and is not a TrustHub endorsement. Directory row is not a unique company. No name-only NMLS attachment.

Verify current authority on NMLS Consumer Access or DFPI DOCQNET. Those systems were not scraped for this page.

2024 CRMLA annual report

Point-in-time annual-report denominator as of December 31, 2024, published October 2025. Not the current September 2026 live CRMLA license roster.

389

Licensees

As of 2024-12-31

5,104

Branches

217,438

Loans originated (report)

$105.2 billion originated (official report headline)

3,353

Completed foreclosures (report)

Trace this number
Source
https://dfpi.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/AnnualReport_2024_CRMLA.pdf
Source date
2024-12-31
Denominator
CRMLA 2024 annual-report statewide totals
Calculation
Official headline counts extracted from the October 2025 PDF.
Reporting grain
annual report
Coverage
ACQUIRED_DATED_SNAPSHOT
Caveat
Point-in-time annual-report denominator as of December 31, 2024, published October 2025. Not the current September 2026 live CRMLA license roster.

Regulator / credential matrix

DRE MLO endorsement is not a CRMLA company license. An HMDA reporter is not a California licensee. An NMLS ID is not proof of current California authority by itself.

What each California mortgage credential proves and does not prove.
CredentialWhat it isRegulatorWhat it provesWhat it does not prove
CRMLA company licenseCalifornia Residential Mortgage Lending Act license to make or service residential mortgage loans in CaliforniaDFPIThe company held CRMLA authority as of the evidence clockBank charter, DRE MLO endorsement, HMDA reporter status, or CalHFA participation
California Financing Law entityCFL lender/broker/PACE administrator license — overlapping consumer-finance authority, not the CRMLA mortgage rosterDFPICFL authority as of that report clockCRMLA mortgage-lender license
DRE real-estate licenseCalifornia Department of Real Estate licenseCalifornia DREReal-estate licensingCRMLA company license
DRE MLO endorsementMortgage loan originator endorsement on a DRE licenseCalifornia DRE / NMLS displayIndividual MLO endorsement pathCRMLA company license
NMLS IDNationwide Multistate Licensing System identifierNMLS (system of record display; not a California regulator)A stable identifier when source-nativeCurrent California authority by itself
HMDA reporterInstitution that filed HMDA loan/application records for California property locationCFPB / FFIEC HMDAReported application/origination activity in this vintageCalifornia mortgage license
CalHFA participating lenderAppears on CalHFA approved-lender directory for one or more programsCalHFAProgram-participation listing as of directory retrievalLicense, endorsement, or TrustHub recommendation

CFPB California mortgage complaints

Complaint is not a violation. Raw complaint count is not a quality ranking and is not exposure-normalized.

71,120

Mortgage complaint rows with state = CA

Official CFPB API overlay. Not a complaint index.

Trace this number
Source
https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/consumer-complaints/
Source date
2026-09-03T18:44:10Z
Denominator
CFPB mortgage product rows with state CA
Calculation
hits.total from the public CFPB complaint search API
Reporting grain
statewide product overlay
Coverage
ACQUIRED_CURRENT_SNAPSHOT
Caveat
Complaint is not a violation. Raw complaint count is not a quality ranking and is not exposure-normalized.
  • Loan modification,collection,foreclosure: 22,279
  • Trouble during payment process: 14,064
  • Loan servicing, payments, escrow account: 11,193
  • Struggling to pay mortgage: 9,908
  • Applying for a mortgage or refinancing an existing mortgage: 4,100
  • Application, originator, mortgage broker: 2,927

HMDA application volume (not a license ranking)

Largest by HMDA application volume in this California property-location dataset. HMDA reporter is not a California licensee.

HMDA reporterApplicationsOriginations
United Wholesale Mortgage, LLCEXACT_LEI_MAPPED79,26057,281
Rocket Mortgage, LLCEXACT_LEI_MAPPED59,47142,202
Guaranteed Rate, Inc.EXACT_LEI_MAPPED40,19017,758
U.S. Bank National AssociationEXACT_LEI_MAPPED32,48416,135
JPMorgan Chase Bank, National AssociationEXACT_LEI_MAPPED22,04814,032
Better Mortgage CorporationEXACT_LEI_MAPPED21,6016,742
HMDA reporter (LEI 5493001N…)EXACT_LEI_UNMAPPED19,19414,224
Fairway Independent Mortgage CorporationEXACT_LEI_MAPPED18,75410,749
Newrez LLCEXACT_LEI_MAPPED17,0005,772
PennyMac Loan Services, LLCEXACT_LEI_MAPPED16,6459,983
HMDA reporter (LEI 5493001G…)EXACT_LEI_UNMAPPED15,8303,015
Wells Fargo Bank, National AssociationEXACT_LEI_MAPPED15,8269,616
Navy Federal Credit UnionEXACT_LEI_MAPPED15,4766,361
Freedom Mortgage CorporationEXACT_LEI_MAPPED14,7539,599
CMG Mortgage, Inc.EXACT_LEI_MAPPED12,7918,432

Evidence depth

FamilyAgencyAs ofRows / countIdentityLimitations
HMDACFPB / FFIEC HMDAHMDA 20251,014,489 applications / 58 countiesHMDA LEI for reporters; county FIPS for geographyHMDA is a mortgage-application filing extract for properties located in California. It is not a California license roster, not a quality ranking, and the denial rate does not prove discrimination.
CalHFA programsCalifornia Housing Finance AgencyOfficial CalHFA pages retrieved 2026-09-03; Dream For All update 2026-05-20; income limits 2026-06-304Official program nameProgram terms change. Monetary figures carry the official source clock. County income limits are not a promise that a borrower qualifies.
CalHFA approved lendersCalifornia Housing Finance Agency2026-09-03 retrieval of live official HTML directory1,414 rows / 193 distinct namesREVIEW_REQUIRED name + address; no source-native NMLSCalHFA approved/participating lender is not a California license and is not a TrustHub endorsement. Directory row is not a unique company. No name-only NMLS attachment.
DFPI CRMLA annual reportCalifornia Department of Financial Protection and Innovation2024-12-31389 licensees / 5,104 branchesReport aggregate onlyPoint-in-time annual-report denominator as of December 31, 2024, published October 2025. Not the current September 2026 live CRMLA license roster.
Current DFPI / NMLS rosterDFPI / NMLSUnknownUnknown / not acquirednone in this snapshotMissing live roster is unknown, not zero. Do not display a fake current license count.
DRE MLOCalifornia Department of Real EstateUnknownUnknown / not acquiredDRE license number; MLO endorsement is not CRMLADRE real-estate license plus MLO endorsement is a different credential path from a CRMLA company license. No person-level MLO directory is published.
DFPI enforcementDFPIUnknownUnknown / not acquiredexact docket / NMLS only if acquiredNo official structured statewide DFPI mortgage enforcement CSV was acquired. Missing is unknown, not zero. Name-only attachment is unsafe.
CFPB complaintsConsumer Financial Protection Bureau2026-09-03T18:44:10Z71,120CFPB company names in the national snapshot; this overlay is statewideComplaint is not a violation. Raw complaint count is not a quality ranking and is not exposure-normalized.
State foreclosure / servicing sourcen/aUnknownUnknown / not acquirednoneCRMLA 2024 annual report includes a completed-foreclosure count as a report metric. That is not a county foreclosure portal and is not a live distress dataset.

What we do not know

  • No current complete CRMLA company or branch bulk roster was acquired.
  • NMLS Consumer Access remains search-only (Cloudflare). Not bypassed.
  • DOCQNET remains search-only. Not scraped.
  • No person-level DRE MLO universe is published.
  • Exact NMLS identity is not source-native on CalHFA directory rows.
  • No structured DFPI mortgage enforcement CSV was acquired in the easy-win pass.
  • No dedicated statewide foreclosure dataset was acquired.
  • Company-level complaint exposure denominators are not computed.
  • The 36-county product slice under data/hmda/california/ is a major-county panel; this page uses the full 58-county by-state partition.

Missing is unknown, not zero. Current CRMLA bulk roster is SOURCE_NOT_ACQUIRED. DFPI enforcement corpus is not required to publish this page. Statewide foreclosure dataset is not required.