Freedom Mortgage Review 2024
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Our Take
2.5
Freedom Mortgage services most of the home loans that it originates. But Freedom’s average origination fees are high and it does not display any mortgage rates online. The lender has also been repeatedly fined by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Most likely to appeal to borrowers who want to work with the same lender after closing.
Pros
- Offers conventional and government-backed loans, including USDA loans.
- Originates more VA loans than the average lender reviewed by NerdWallet.
Cons
- Average origination fees are higher than most lenders’, according to the latest federal data.
- Repeatedly fined by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
- No mortgage rates displayed online.
Lender | Min. credit score | Min. down payment | |
|---|---|---|---|
580 | 3% | Visit Lenderat New American Funding at New American Funding | |
620 | 3% | Visit Lenderat NBKC at NBKC | |
580 | 3.5% | Visit Lenderat Rocket Mortgage, LLC at Rocket Mortgage, LLC |
Full Review
Freedom Mortgage is a nonbank lender based in Boca Raton, Florida. Loans are available in all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
🏠 Popular loan types include: Fixed or adjustable rate; conventional; FHA; VA; USDA; rate-and-term or cash-out refinance
🔑 Specialty loan options include: FHA Streamline; IRRRL
Freedom Mortgage advertises multiple benefit programs, including the Freedom Homes agent network for home buyers and sellers and Freedom+, which offers discounts to homeowners. But borrowers don't actually have to work with Freedom to use the programs.
Freedom services most of the loans it makes. It offers loan servicing customers text alerts — dubbed Eagle Eye — that notify you if interest rates drop, info that’s useful for those who want to refinance.
» MORE: How to apply for a mortgage
How we score Freedom Mortgage
Every year, NerdWallet writers and editors use the latest data and independent research to score lenders on an overall rubric, reflecting factors that are most important to mortgage borrowers. Select Why This Category Matters below to learn more.
Freedom Mortgage has a NerdWallet home loans rating of 2.5 stars overall. Here’s a breakdown of this year’s score.
Category | Star rating |
|---|---|
Average mortgage rates and fees | |
Mortgage rate transparency | |
Variety of loan types | |
Customer experience |
- Why This Category Matters
Average mortgage rates and fees (30%)
Our team analyzes federal data to compare mortgage lenders’ origination fees and offered mortgage rates, measuring annual averages across all loan types, as reported by the lenders. The lowest combination of average rates and fees earns the highest star rating in this category. (It’s worth noting that loans considered higher risk, including those such as FHA loans that are easier to qualify for, often have higher interest rates and fees.) Pro tip: In some cases, paying upfront fees may lower a borrower’s mortgage interest rate.
Mortgage rate transparency (25%)
We check how straightforward it is to comparison-shop rates online. NerdWallet’s transparency ratings are higher for lenders that post sample rates on their sites, and highest for sites with self-serve tools that allow shoppers to see what rates might be like for their particular loan. Pro tip: Borrowers who compare customized rate quotes by applying to three or more lenders could save thousands of dollars over the life of their loan.
Variety of loan types (25%)
Finding the right mortgage is different for each borrower. The highest star ratings in this category are awarded to lenders that our research shows offer a wide range of loan types, improving the odds that a borrower will find the best match for their needs: options for purchase and refinance; fixed-rate and adjustable-rate loans; government-backed FHA, VA or USDA loans; renovation or construction loans; and home equity loans or HELOCs.
Customer experience (20%)
How easy is it to interact with this lender? The highest-rated lenders in this category offer features that are convenient and clarifying for borrowers, such as: an online application, multiple customer service options, a helpful mobile app and candid closing timeline communications.
Freedom Mortgage earned bonus points for offering loan options for borrowers with lower credit scores and borrowers purchasing manufactured homes. We deducted points for government actions against Freedom Mortgage.
What borrowers say about Freedom Mortgage
NerdWallet’s lender star ratings assess objective qualities, including rates, fees and loan offerings. To help you understand borrowers’ subjective experiences, NerdWallet has gathered customer satisfaction ratings from J.D. Power and Zillow. We also contacted Freedom Mortgage customer support.
→ Below-average score in J.D. Power’s 2023 U.S. Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study. Mortgage origination covers the initial application through closing day.
Score: 699 out of 1,000. Industry average for origination is 730.
→ Below-average score in J.D. Power’s 2024 U.S. Mortgage Servicer Satisfaction Study. A mortgage servicer handles loan payments.
Score: 599 out of 1,000. Industry average for servicing is 606.
→ Above-average customer rating on Zillow.
Customer rating: 4.81 out of 5, as of the date of publication. Rating reflects more than 1,800 customer reviews.
🤓 Our Nerds say…
Freedom doesn't make it especially easy for prospective borrowers to find information: Sample rates are not available online and the information about its loan offerings is fairly surface level. When we called the customer service number listed on their website, all of the options were for existing accounts. Branches are only in 11 states, there's no online chat and its app is geared toward servicing existing mortgages, not new customers. Your best bet? Click one of the "get started online" buttons on the site. After a few basic home search questions, you'll be prompted to provide contact information so that a Freedom representative can reach out to you.
Freedom Mortgage and consumer trust
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) took action against Freedom in August 2023 for illegally incentivizing referrals from real estate brokers and agents, which the agency says undermined consumer choice. The lender was ordered to pay $1.75 million into the CFPB’s victim relief fund.
In October 2023, the CFPB sued Freedom Mortgage over inaccuracies in its reporting of legally mandated mortgage data. In its press release, the CFPB alleged that Freedom is a "repeat offender" and that the lender violated a 2019 settlement over misrepresentation of borrowers' demographic information which stipulated that Freedom improve its data reporting. In June 2024, the CFPB proposed that Freedom pay a $3.95 million fine and take further actions to ensure data accuracy. Proper reporting of borrower characteristics, like race and ethnicity, helps ensure compliance with fair lending practices.
A lender’s NerdWallet star rating is negatively affected by recent regulatory actions for violations that harmed mortgage customers. When shopping for a mortgage lender, do an online search to see if the company is in the news, and why.
Alternatives to a home loan from Freedom Mortgage
We recommend comparing mortgage rate offers from three or more lenders.
If you're looking for a government-backed loan, AmeriSave does a substantial business in FHA loans, while Veterans United originates the most VA loans in the U.S.
More from NerdWallet
NerdWallet’s overall ratings for mortgage lenders are evaluated based on four major categories: average mortgage rates and origination fees, rate transparency to consumers, variety of loan types (purchase, refinance, fixed and adjustable, for example) and customer experience. Among the factors we consider in these categories are: options to apply for home loans online, typical time to close, mobile app experience, level of detail about mortgage rates on lender websites, and NerdWallet’s own analysis of the rates and fees lenders reported in the latest available Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. These and other items inform detailed rubrics, which generate ratings from 1 star (poor) to 5 stars (excellent). Read more about how we rate mortgage lenders here.
