Best FHA Loan Lenders Of Sep 2023

 Forbes Advisor selected lenders that offer competitive interest rates, low APRs, discounts, or a combination of all these features. The lenders we compiled for this list had a minimum 4-star rating, according to our analysis.
Tips for Comparing FHA Loans
FHA loans can be an excellent mortgage choice for borrowers with low credit scores and with little cash on hand to make a down payment.

 Borrowers who put less than 20% down on an FHA mortgage will pay a mortgage insurance premium, which is usually around 1% of the loan amount. You can pay the MIP upfront or over the life of the loan.

One other thing to know: The FHA requirements are minimums.

 Lenders can make it tougher to get a loan. Many lenders, for example, require a credit score of at least 600; some set an even higher bar of 620.

What’s more, not all lenders offer FHA loans, but you should be able to find out by searching the lender’s website. Once you determine whether a lender issues FHA loans, find out what rates it offers, any lender fees, minimum credit score requirements and the minimum debt-to-income (DTI) ratio. 

These are the nuts and bolts of all FHA mortgages.

After you collect information, you can decide which lenders you want to apply to. If your lender approves your application, it will give you a loan estimate and from there you can see which lenders are offering the lowest rates and fees.

Comparison shopping can help you score a lower interest rate, so be sure to collect as much information as possible. 

You can use a loan estimate from one lender to potentially negotiate a lower rate with another lender.
Forbes Advisor reviewed 12 mortgage lenders that do business both online and in-person throughout the United States. The lenders we reviewed represent some of the largest mortgage lenders by volume, which include banks, credit unions and online lenders.

Our scoring methodology included capturing more than 10 data points, which covered interest rates, lender fees, loan types, discounts, accessibility and borrower requirements.

 The best lenders for FHA borrowers excelled in areas that are historically important for this group including low- to average-credit score requirements, low lender fees and low interest rates.

The following is the weighting assigned to each category:

 Loan costs: 30%
Speed: 20%
Credit requirements: 20%
Loan types offered: 20%
Access and availability: 10%
Specific characteristics taken into consideration within each category include APR, average interest rate, origination fees, minimum credit score requirements, discounts and customer service availability.

We also offered bonus points up to 5% of the score when a lender considers alternative credit data.