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Garden State Home Loans Mortgage Review 2024

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At a glance

Garden State Home Loans
NMLS: 409701
Editor's take

Garden State Home Loans doesn’t solely work with borrowers in New Jersey; it also lends in a handful of other states, including Florida, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas. While that limits who can work with this lender, if you’re in one of its operating states, Garden State can be a smart choice if you’re looking for dedicated service — including a loan officer available nights and weekends — and swift closings.

Bankrate Score
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3.6
Rating: 3.6 stars out of 5
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Bankrate Score

Customer Rating
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5.0
Rating: 4.98 stars out of 5

565 ratings

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Loans offered

Conventional, jumbo, FHA, VA, USDA, refinancing and more

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Min. credit score required

640 for conventional loans

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Nationwide availability

Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia

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Min. down payment

3% for conventional loans, 3.5% for FHA loans, none for VA loans or USDA loans

Garden State Home Loans overview

Headquartered in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Garden State Home Loans has funded $5.6 billion in loans since its founding in 2011.

The lender offers preapprovals online, typically in 24 hours or less, and its purchase loans close in an average of 30 days, faster than the industry average and potentially sooner compared to other lenders. If you live in one of the 13 states where this lender does business, it might be a good option.

Pros and cons of Garden State Home Loans

Pros

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    Convenient online chat feature to connect with loan officers

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    Closings on purchases can happen faster than the industry average

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    A+ Better Business Bureau rating

Cons

  • Available primarily on the East Coast

  • Rates only available on sign-up

How Bankrate scored Garden State Home Loans

Affordability: 6.6/10

Garden State Home Loans boasts attractively low rate offers on different kinds of mortgages. The lender charges fees, but you won’t receive all-in cost details specific to your situation unless you share your contact information. Because of Garden State’s lack of transparency on rates and fees, it scored 6.6/10.

Availability: 6.6/10

Garden State Home Loans is based in New Jersey and works with borrowers in several East Coast states and Michigan. The lender offers both conventional loans and government-backed loans (FHA, VA and USDA), as well as jumbo loans for higher-priced properties. In addition, it offers some specialty products for investors like debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) loans and other non-qualified (non-QM) loans. Generally, you’ll need a credit score of at least 640 to be eligible for a conventional loan, but there are also loan options for those with scores as low as 580. Because of Garden State’s somewhat limited geographic footprint, it scored 6.6/10.

Borrower experience: 8.6/10

Since being established in 2011, Garden State Home Loans has funded $5.6 billion in mortgages for tens of thousands of borrowers. The lender is accredited by the Better Business Bureau and has an A+ rating from the organization. You can apply for a preapproval (and your loan) online through the Garden State Home Loans website. You can also track your loan's progress through the lender’s online portal, and ask questions via chat. The lender is available seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET. You can also make an appointment with a loan officer outside those hours, if needed. Based on solid customer service, Garden State received an 8.6/10.

Refinancing with Garden State Home Loans

Garden State Home Loans offers both rate-and-term and cash-out refinancing options for a variety of loan types. 

Learn more: Choose the right kind of refinance

How to apply for a mortgage with Garden State Home Loans

You can apply for a mortgage with Garden State Home Loans online or by phone at 877-830-0943. Here are some tips:

  1. Check your credit report. It’s important to check your credit report before your lender does, in case there are errors that could impact not only whether you get preapproved but also your ability to get the best mortgage rate. Knowing your credit score also helps you decide what type of loan to apply for. If your score is in the very low 600s, for instance, an FHA mortgage might be best for you, as its standards are more lenient than those for conventional loans.

  2. Gather personal and financial documents. With any lender, you must supply documentation about your income, assets and debts. This includes pay stubs and W-2s and account and loan statements.

  3. Provide details about the property. You’ll need to provide the address of the home and submit to an appraisal. (If you’re refinancing, you might or might not need an appraisal.)

Learn more: How to get a mortgage

Garden State Home Loans customer ratings and reviews

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NMLS: 409701

5.0

Rating: 4.98 stars out of 5

565 ratings

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This lender has 3 recent reviews.

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99% of customers would recommend this lender.

of 3 reviews

The consumer reviews posted on Bankrate.com ("Bankrate") are individual, subjective opinions of reviewers, and not of Bankrate. Bankrate does not endorse any of the opinions expressed by reviewers or any responses to reviews.

Bankrate cannot guarantee or verify the accuracy of the opinions shared by individual reviewers, and reserves the right to reject or remove any review, at any time, for any reason at Bankrate’s sole discretion, including but not limited to those that Bankrate deems inappropriate, fraudulent, invalid, irrelevant, or otherwise outside the parameters of the Bankrate Review Guidelines, the Privacy Policy, or the Terms of Use.

In addition to collecting reviews on-site, Bankrate collaborated with third-party Slice MR to survey 750 homeowners nationwide in July 2024. Bankrate and Slice MR collected, averaged and presented responses to nine questions. Users received an incentive for their feedback. Responses are based on individual experiences, and therefore cannot be verified for accuracy. User ratings are unedited and have not been reviewed or approved by lenders, nor do these ratings reflect Bankrate’s own reviews of these lenders.

To help serve you with relevant information, the consumer reviews shown below are limited to only those that this advertiser has received during the past 12 months.

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