PennyMac Mortgage Review 2023

PennyMac at a glance

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in California, PennyMac is one of the largest mortgage lenders in the nation, providing loans to homebuyers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, plus some U.S. territories, including Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

PennyMac mortgage products

Conventional

• PennyMac offers 20- and 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and home refinancing, including cash-out refinancing
• Conventional mortgage requirements include a minimum 3% down payment, a 620 credit score and a debt-to-income (DTI) ratio that is not higher than 45%. There may be exceptions for up to a 50% DTI ratio.

FHA

• If you are after less strict requirements, Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans could help; PennyMac has 20- and 30-year FHA loan options
• FHA refinancing, including streamlined refinancing are available
• You’ll still need a 3.5% minimum down payment and a credit score of 580 or higher

VA

• PennyMac offers three types of Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) loans: purchase, cash-out refinance and streamline refinance
• VA mortgages have relaxed requirements, including 0% down payment

Home equity

• A home equity loan from PennyMac could allow you to borrow a large lump sum of cash at a relatively low rate.

Jumbo

• Jumbo loans allow homebuyers to borrow more than the conforming loan limit in the area. PennyMac provides mortgage loans up to $3 million, but eligibility requirements are stricter.

Special programs

• Investment property loans allow individuals to finance residential property that they plan to flip or rent out.

PennyMac mortgage rates and fees

PennyMac publishes its mortgage rates online but doesn’t share its fees.

PennyMac’s application experience

As you start home shopping, you typically need to have a preapproval,which lets sellers know you can afford the house. PennyMac offers mortgage preapprovals, and once your offer on a home is accepted, you can officially apply for a mortgage.

Online, the “Apply Now” button takes you to a page asking you to login or register with My Home By PennyMac, which is designed to guide you through the application process. This allows you to complete the entire application from whatever device you’re using.

PennyMac’s customer service experience

You can email customer service through your PennyMac login, but if you’d like to talk to a person, you have a couple of options. You could call the customer service center at 800-777-4001 or the sales center at 888-870-6229 during these times:

• Monday-Friday: 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT
• Saturday: 7a.m.to 11a.m. PT

How does PennyMac compare to other lenders?

	PennyMac Mortgage	Mr. Cooper	Ally Bank
Lender rating
Minimum credit score	580 to 620	Not published	620
Minimum down payment	0% to 3.5%	0% to 3.5%	3%
Loan products and programs	Conventional FHA VA Home equity Jumbo	Conventional FHA VA	Conventional Jumbo

How we rated PennyMac 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.

PennyMac’s scorecard: X/5

  Publishes rates online

  Offers standard mortgage products

  Includes detailed product info online

  Shares resources about mortgage lending

  Provides an online application