Churchill Mortgage Review 2026
Churchill Mortgage offers a range of home loan options, including conventional and FHA loans, as well as specialized programs for nontraditional borrowers. In addition to standard loans that require a minimum 620 credit score, Churchill’s no-score loan may be a good option for debt-free homebuyers who don’t rely on conventional credit. Churchill’s website is extremely easy to navigate, but the lender doesn’t specify mortgage loan rates online.
See how we reached our verdict below.
- Variety of purchase and refinance loans to choose from
- Mortgage options with low or no credit score
- Transparent about down payment and credit requirements
- You can sign up for rate watch alerts from the website
- Doesn’t specify mortgage rates or fees online
- No HELOCs or home equity loans offered
- Higher average loan costs than many lenders
Churchill Mortgage overview
Churchill Mortgage was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. It offers a range of mortgage options, including conventional, FHA, VA, USDA and jumbo loans, as well as home loan refinancing. Churchill Mortgage also offers a no-credit-score home loan for qualified debt-free homebuyers.
- Areas of service: 48 states (Hawaii and New York excluded) and the District of Columbia
- Digital service: Offers fully online mortgage application via desktop or mobile app
- Headquarters: 1749 Mallory Lane, Suite 100, Brentwood, TN 37027
- Website: ChurchillMortgage.com
Churchill Mortgage rates and fees
Rates
Churchill’s mortgage rates are competitive overall, with the average rate for all loans originated in 2024 coming in at 6.59% APR, according to Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data. This rate is slightly lower than the average interest rate across the company’s loan products in the year prior (2023), which was 6.61%. The slight decrease may reflect cuts to the federal funds rate that occurred over that period.
Churchill Mortgage doesn’t post its mortgage rates online. To find out the rate you’ll pay with Churchill, you need to submit a home loan application with the lender.
Fees
Churchill Mortgage doesn’t offer specific loan costs on its website, but it does say homeowners typically pay from 2% to 5% of the loan amount in closing costs and fees. This means a $250,000 mortgage through Churchill could require closing costs from $5,000 to $12,500.
HMDA data for 2024 home originations from Churchill Mortgage shows that the average loan cost was $8,462, an increase of $410 from 2023, when the average loan cost across all loan products was $8,052. Overall, the 2024 figure is higher than the costs for many other lenders we looked at.
Churchill Mortgage offers a handful of discount programs that can help you save money on a home loan. These include:
- Rate Relief Program: This program lets qualified buyers lock in today’s rate with a rate buydown and pay a discounted mortgage payment for the first two years. The buydown can be paid by the seller or, in the case of a new home under construction, by the builder.
- Rate Secured Program: Churchill Mortgage allows homebuyers to lock in their interest rate for up to 90 days while they shop for a home. If interest rates go up during your rate lock period, it won’t affect you, but if rates go down, Churchill will honor the lower rate automatically.
What types of home loans does Churchill Mortgage offer?
Churchill Mortgage offers a variety of home loans including:
Churchill Mortgage offers conventional home loans for both purchasing and refinancing purposes. Adjustable and fixed-rate loans are available, and borrowers can choose from multiple loan terms.
Borrowers who use a conventional loan can avoid paying private mortgage insurance (PMI) by putting down at least 20% of the purchase price.
Conventional loan qualification requirements
- 3% minimum down payment for primary homes
- 620 minimum credit score
- DTI ratio no higher than 50%
Designed primarily for first-time homebuyers, FHA loans are insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and have lower down payments and more lenient credit requirements. Home prices must fall within FHA loan limits to qualify for this type of mortgage.
FHA loan qualification requirements
- 3.5% minimum down payment
- 580 minimum credit score
- Must occupy home as primary residence
- At least two years of employment history
- DTI ratio ideally no higher than 43%; absolute max of 57%
VA loans, which are backed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, are available from Churchill Mortgage for active-duty military members, veterans and eligible surviving spouses. These loans come with competitive interest rates and limited closing costs. Access to VA home loans is a lifetime benefit that can be used multiple times by eligible individuals.
VA loan qualification requirements
- Typically, no down payment is required
- No need for private mortgage insurance, but there is a VA funding fee
- Home must be used as a primary residence
Churchill Mortgage offers USDA home loans for eligible dwellings that are located in an area of the country deemed “rural” by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Income limits are used to determine eligibility for these loans, and a down payment isn’t required for most purchases.
USDA loan qualification requirements
- Must meet income limits
- Home must be in an eligible rural area
- Home must be a single-family residence
- Must occupy home as the primary residence
Jumbo loans are nonconforming home loans that are not backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac and are offered in amounts that exceed conforming loan limits. For 2026, these limits are set at $832,750 for most areas of the country and $1,249,125 in designated high-cost areas. Because jumbo loans are for larger loan amounts, they typically have more stringent qualification requirements, and their interest rates tend to be higher than those for conforming loans.
Jumbo loan qualification requirements
- Debt-to-income ratio below 43%
- Strong credit score, potentially 700 or higher
This lender also offers no-score home loans for potential homebuyers without a credit score due to their lack of credit history. No-score home loans from Churchill Mortgage can be conventional loans, FHA loans, VA loans or USDA loans, and these loans undergo a manual underwriting process. Down payment requirements vary depending on the type of loan.
No-score home loan qualification requirements
- For applicants with no credit score
- Must be able to provide documentation for approximately four alternative credit timelines
- Recommended mortgage payment is no more than 25% of take-home pay
Churchill Mortgage home loan qualifications
| Credit score minimum |
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| DTI ratio
Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio compares your monthly gross income to your monthly debt payments.
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| Down payment minimum |
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Don’t know your credit score? Get your free score on LendingTree Spring today.
In 2024, Churchill Mortgage was more likely to approve home loan applicants who met specific criteria. For example:
- The average loan-to-value (LTV) ratio for approved applicants was 81% across all loan types.
- While approximately 52.5% of approved applicants had a debt-to-income (DTI) ratio below 40%, 32.5% had a DTI ratio exceeding 43%.
- The total approval rate for applicants was 94.3% in 2024, with only 5.7% of applicants being denied. This compares favorably to total loan approval rates from many other top lenders, including BMO Harris Bank (58.4%) and Wells Fargo (65.6%).
You may be able to boost your approval odds with this lender by:
- Paying down debt: More than half of borrowers who used this lender had a DTI ratio below 40%.
- Increasing your credit score: Conventional mortgages from this lender require a minimum credit score of 620; with a lower credit score or even no credit score, you may qualify for other loan types, like a VA or USDA home loan.
How to apply for a Churchill Mortgage home loan
1. Choose your loan type
Visit the Churchill Mortgage website and select “Buy a Home” or “Refinance.” If you’re looking to purchase a home, the site provides information on Churchill’s offerings, including conventional mortgages and government-backed loans such as FHA and VA loans.
2. Submit a loan application to get preapproved
Preapproval for a mortgage is an in-depth review of your finances, including a hard credit check, to verify your creditworthiness and determine how much you can afford to borrow.
Churchill Mortgage does things a little differently from some other lenders. To apply for preapproval, you must submit a full loan application. You can then choose to join Churchill’s Certified Home Buyer program, which provides preapproval with up-front underwriting, or you can choose a standard preapproval. Unlike a standard preapproval, the Certified Home Buyer program includes an underwriter’s review of your finances before you make an offer.
With many lenders, the step before preapproval is receiving a prequalification letter, which offers a general estimate of how much home a buyer can afford.
However, Churchill Mortgage doesn’t prequalify potential borrowers. It moves directly to the preapproval stage.
3. Lock your rate while you shop
Once you’re preapproved or become a Certified Home Buyer, you can use Churchill’s Rate Secured program, which helps you lock in an interest rate and plan your budget. Through this program, rates can be locked for up to 90 days. If you find a home and make an offer within that window, underwriting begins. After your loan is approved, you can schedule your closing.
Find out more about how to apply for a home loan.
- Identification
- Tax documents
- Bank statement
- Pay stubs
- Debt and asset statements
- Gift letters (if you’re using gifted funds)
Is it safe to get prequalified with Churchill Mortgage?
In most cases, a prequalification letter is a soft inquiry and doesn’t impact your credit score. However, Churchill Mortgage doesn’t offer prequalification letters. Instead, you can apply for loan preapproval, which will result in a hard inquiry on your credit. When this happens, it may result in a temporary drop in your score.
Churchill Mortgage customer service experience
You can apply for a home loan at one of the lender’s physical locations (available in every state except Hawaii and New York), on the company website or through the Churchill Mortgage mobile app.
Churchill Mortgage can be reached from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT Monday through Friday. The company also offers chatbot customer service on its website, and you contact them by email.
- Email: [email protected]
- Phone: 888-562-6200
How does Churchill Mortgage compare to other lenders?
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| LendingTree’s rating |
Expert review from LendingTree.
Back to our Churchill Mortgage summary |
Expert review from LendingTree.
Read our Churchill Mortgage vs. AmeriSave comparison |
Expert review from LendingTree.
Read our Churchill Mortgage vs. Wintrust comparison |
| Minimum credit score | No credit score, 620 for conventional loans and 580 for FHA loans | 500 | Not specified |
| Minimum down payment | 0% to 3.5% | 0% to 3.5% | 0% to 3.5% |
| Rate spread
Rate spread is the difference between the average prime offer rate (APOR) — the lowest APR a bank is likely to offer any private customer — and the average annual percentage rate (APR) the lender offered to mortgage customers in 2024. The higher the number, the more expensive the loan.
| 0.30% | 2.63% | N/A |
| Loan products and programs |
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| Better for: | Churchill Mortgage is best for borrowers who want a broad selection of loan types, including no-score mortgages for consumers who don’t have a credit score. | AmeriSave Mortgage is designed for borrowers who prefer a fully digital mortgage experience and are comfortable with not having the option to visit a physical location. | Wintrust Mortgage operates 65 lending offices and has over 200 bank branch locations across the nation. This makes the lender a good choice for borrowers who want an in-person, customized loan experience. |
Churchill Mortgage vs. AmeriSave Mortgage
While Churchill Mortgage offers the option for an in-person or online mortgage experience, AmeriSave Mortgage is a fully digital mortgage lender with no physical locations for customers to visit. As a result, borrowers will complete the entire loan process online, including uploading loan documentation directly to the AmeriSave website. AmeriSave offers a variety of loan types, including conventional mortgages, FHA loans, and VA loans, as well as home equity lines of credit (HELOCs).
Read more in our full AmeriSave Mortgage review.
Churchill Mortgage vs. Wintrust Mortgage
Wintrust Mortgage is a traditional mortgage lender that offers a range of loan options, including conventional loans, FHA loans, VA loans, USDA loans, refinance loans, jumbo loans and more. Unlike Churchill Mortgage, Wintrust Mortgage offers home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), which let borrowers tap into their home’s growing value. Wintrust boasts over 200 community bank locations nationwide, making it relatively easy to find a branch and work with a local lending expert to facilitate the mortgage process.
Read more in our full Wintrust Mortgage review.
How LendingTree rated Churchill Mortgage
LendingTree’s mortgage lender rating is based on a five-point scoring system that factors in several features, including digital application processes, available loan products and the accessibility of product and lending information.
LendingTree’s editorial team calculates each rating based on a review of information available on the lender’s website. Lenders receive a half-point on the “offers standard mortgage products” criterion if they offer only two of the three standard loan programs (conventional, FHA and VA). In some cases, additional information was provided by a lender representative.
Churchill’s scorecard:
❌ Publishes rates online
✅ Offers standard mortgage products
✅ Includes detailed product info online
✅ Shares resources about mortgage lending
✅ Provides an online application
Frequently asked questions
Churchill Mortgage offers a robust mobile app that lets applicants complete the entire mortgage process on their smartphones or other mobile devices. This app enables users to submit loan documentation, receive notifications, and track the mortgage process from start to finish. Potential customers can also use the Churchill Mortgage website to submit a loan application and navigate the home loan process via web browser.
Churchill Mortgage is a legitimate home loan provider with mostly positive reviews from past users on sites like TrustPilot and Zillow. In addition, although not accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the company has an A-plus rating on the platform.
You can view more info about Churchill Mortgage’s state licenses and registrations through the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System and Registry (NMLS) website.
Yes, as with any preapproval process, applying for a home loan with Churchill Mortgage will result in a hard inquiry on your credit report, which may temporarily impact your credit score by lowering it by a few points. The good news? Your home loan can help improve your credit score over time, provided you make your monthly mortgage payments on or before the due date.
Churchill Mortgage has a 4.8 (out of 5) rating on Trustpilot, based on more than 600 customer reviews. That rating places it in the “Excellent” category, indicating that, on the whole, Churchill Mortgage customers who have left reviews were very satisfied with their experience. In particular, reviewers highlighted exceptional customer service provided by their loan officers and a seamless, stress-free home loan process.
Some previous customers complained on TrustPilot that the company sold their loans quickly to what they considered to be substandard mortgage companies. It is worth noting that selling mortgages is a common practice for lenders.
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