Pricing
How F5 pricing works, in plain English.
F5 is a broker, not a bank. That changes where your rate comes from and who pays us. Here is what moves your pricing, what you pay at closing, and why you will not find a rate table on this page.
Soft credit check. No impact to your score.
The honest answer
Why there is no rate table here.
Almost every lender site advertises a single rate. It is a marketing number built on one flawless borrower profile, and it is rarely the rate that borrower actually gets once the file is underwritten.
Your rate is not a number we set. It comes out of live wholesale rate sheets from more than 50 lenders, scored against your specific file, and it moves with the bond market during the day. Publishing one figure for everyone would be the easy thing to do and the wrong thing to tell you.
So we do the other version. We run real pricing on your actual numbers, show you what came back, and let you compare it to anyone else you are talking to.
What actually moves your rate
Seven things decide your pricing.
None of them are guesswork, and all of them are things we can walk through with you before you apply for anything.
- 01
Your credit score
The biggest single lever. Wholesale pricing moves in tiers, so a few points either side of a tier boundary can change your pricing more than most people expect.
- 02
Loan-to-value
How much you are borrowing against what the property is worth. More equity, or a larger down payment, generally prices better and can decide whether mortgage insurance applies.
- 03
Loan program
Conventional, FHA, VA, USDA and jumbo each have their own pricing structure and their own rules. The cheapest program for your neighbor may not be the cheapest one for you.
- 04
Occupancy and property type
Primary residence, second home or investment property. Single family, condo or multi-unit. Each carries its own pricing adjustment.
- 05
Loan amount and term
Conforming, high balance and jumbo price differently, and so do 30, 20 and 15 year terms. The shortest term is not automatically the cheapest outcome for you.
- 06
Points and credits
You can pay points to buy the rate down, or take a lender credit that offsets closing costs. Same loan, different tradeoff. We show you both so it is your call, not a default.
- 07
The market that day
Mortgage pricing follows mortgage-backed securities and can move more than once in a single day. A quote from last week is history, not an offer.
Who pays us
On nearly every loan, the lender pays us.
That is called lender-paid compensation and it is our default. It is why most F5 borrowers pay no broker fee at all.
The part worth reading twice
Our compensation is set in advance. It does not change based on which lender you pick or what rate you end up with, so we cannot earn more by putting you in a higher one. No steering, ever.
Borrower-paid compensation exists as an option in the market, but it is not how we price loans by default and it is not required to work with us.
At the closing table
What you actually pay, by category.
- ✓
Lender fees
Underwriting and processing charged by the wholesale lender funding your loan. These vary lender to lender, which is exactly why we compare them rather than accept the first sheet.
- ✓
Third-party services
Appraisal, credit report, title work, settlement and recording. These are set by the vendor or by your state, not by F5, and we pass them through at cost.
- ✓
Prepaids and escrows
Homeowners insurance, property taxes and per-diem interest. This is not a cost of borrowing. It is your own money going into your own escrow account and bills.
- ✓
Points or credits, if you choose them
Entirely optional, and always your decision. Paying points is a bet on how long you keep the loan, so we walk through the math before you pick.
Compare us line by line. Please.
Every one of these shows up itemized on your Loan Estimate, a standardized federal form. Because it is standardized, you can lay ours next to any other lender's and read them straight across. Match the lock period and the loan amount first, then look hard at section A and lender credits. That is where the real differences usually hide.
The only pricing that means anything is yours.
Tell us about the loan and we will shop it across our wholesale lenders and bring back real options, with the rate, the costs and the tradeoffs in writing. No obligation, and no impact to your credit to see them.
Pricing questions, answered.
Does F5 Mortgage publish its rates?
No, and we would be misleading you if we did. A published rate is built on one ideal borrower profile and is rarely the rate a real person receives. F5 is a broker, so your pricing comes from live wholesale rate sheets across more than 50 lenders, scored against your actual credit, loan-to-value, program, property and loan amount, and it moves with the bond market during the day. We run real pricing on your file instead of advertising a number you probably would not qualify for.
What does it cost to work with F5 Mortgage as a broker?
On nearly every loan we close there is no broker fee to the borrower. F5 is typically compensated by the wholesale lender, which is known as lender-paid compensation and is our default. Borrower-paid compensation exists as an option but is not how we price loans and is not required.
Can a broker steer me into a higher rate to earn more?
Not at F5, and federal rules prohibit it. Our compensation is set in advance and does not change based on which lender you choose or what rate you end up with. We cannot earn more by placing you in a higher rate, so the only deal we are chasing is the best one available to you.
Does getting a quote from F5 affect my credit score?
No. Seeing your options uses a soft credit check with no impact to your score. A hard credit pull only happens if you decide to move forward with an application.
Is a mortgage broker more expensive than going straight to my bank?
Usually it is the opposite. A bank quotes you its own retail rate sheet and that is the only option on the table. A broker works from wholesale pricing across many lenders and puts them in competition for your file, which is a structurally different starting point than a single retail offer.
What fees will I actually pay at closing?
Four categories: lender fees charged by the wholesale lender, third-party services such as appraisal, title and recording, prepaids and escrows for your insurance and property taxes, and optional points or credits if you choose them. All of it appears itemized on your Loan Estimate.
How do I compare an F5 quote to another lender's quote?
Use the Loan Estimate. It is a standardized federal form, so you can put ours next to anyone else's and compare line by line. Make sure the quotes use the same lock period and the same loan amount, then look at section A and lender credits, which is where the real differences usually hide. We encourage this comparison.
What states is F5 Mortgage licensed in?
California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia. F5 Mortgage LLC is NMLS #1938115.
This page explains how mortgage pricing is determined. It is not an advertisement for a specific rate, an offer, or a commitment to lend. Rates, programs and costs vary by credit, loan amount, loan-to-value, occupancy, property type and program, change with market conditions, and are subject to underwriting approval.