Are you considering buying a home in Alaska? You’re not the only one. Alaska is an adventurous place to buy a home with almost 320,000 housing units and a homeownership rate of 66%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2018 American Community Survey.
Alaska’s median housing value is $276,100, which is slightly above the national median of $229,700. Even so, home values vary by region. Some areas have higher priced homes, while other areas have lower housing costs.
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AmeriSave Mortgage Corp. is an online lender that has been in business since 2002. It was one of the first to offer an offsite digital mortgage experience for customers. The company says it has financed more than 664,000 borrowers since it began operating. With headquarters in Atlanta, AmeriSave services loans in 49 states and Washington, D.C.
Pentagon Federal Credit Union, widely known as PenFed, offers borrowers access to many types of mortgages: conventional, adjustable rate, jumbo and Department of Veterans Affairs, plus refinancing loans and home equity lines of credit. The financial institution, which serves 2.8 million members, was established in 1935 and is based in McLean, Virginia.
PNC Bank is one of the largest banks in the United States, serving more than 9 million customers in all 50 states. A full-service mortgage lender, PNC offers most mortgage loan product types.
Bank of America serves roughly 67 million customers in all 50 states. The lender offers conventional, Federal Housing Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs and jumbo loans as well as home equity lines of credit and mortgage refinancing.
Guaranteed Rate, founded in 2000 and based in Chicago, offers mortgage options including conventional loans, FHA loans, jumbo loans and interest-only loans to customers in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Borrowers can take advantage of specialized loan products and Guaranteed Rate’s online application, documentation and loan payment options.
Wells Fargo offers a variety of mortgage products nationwide. Options include conventional, government-backed and jumbo loans. You can also refinance an existing mortgage with Wells Fargo.
SoFi is an online lender founded in 2011 and headquartered in San Francisco that offers fixed-rate mortgages. Refinance, jumbo and home equity loans are also available.
Best for customer service
Rocket Mortgage, the largest mortgage lender in the nation, was founded in 1985. The Detroit-based company is best known for its fully digital experience of buying or refinancing a home. Rocket Mortgage changed its name from Quicken Loans in the summer of 2021.
Best for online application and approval
Homefinity launched in 2018 as the online lending division of Fairway Independent Mortgage. It offers a variety of mortgage products, including conventional mortgages, FHA and VA mortgages, and mortgage refinancing.
Alliant Credit Union is a not-for-profit financial cooperative that serves customers in all 50 states. Alliant offers products such as conventional, jumbo, refinancing and home equity line of credit loans, but specific mortgage products may not be available in certain states.
The average mortgage rate in Alaska is currently 7.43% for the 30-year fixed loan term.
Here are the interest rates offered to Alaska residents looking to buy or refinance a home as of 11/01/2022:
- 30-year fixed purchase: 7.43%
- 30-year fixed refi: 7%
- 15-year fixed purchase: 6.4%
- 15-year fixed refi: 6.45%
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Mortgage rates rose this week, with the average 30-year fixed rate jumping to 6.73% from 6.55% a week ago. Most fixed and adjustable rates are trending higher as the Federal Reserve tightens its monetary policy in response to mixed economic signals.
Mortgage interest rates are nearly twice as high as they were at the beginning of 2022, which continues to have a tangible impact on mortgage affordability and consumer housing sentiment. However, mortgage rates are widely expected to fall throughout the course of 2023. Here are the current mortgage rates, without discount points unless otherwise noted, as of Feb. 16:
- 30-year fixed: 6.73% (up from 6.55% a week ago).
- 20-year fixed: 6.77% (up from 6.62% a week ago).
- 15-year fixed: 6.02% (up from 5.75% a week ago).
- 10-year fixed: 5.97% (up from 5.77% a week ago).
- 5/1 ARM: 5.43% (up from 5.38% a week ago).
- 7/1 ARM: 5.7% (down from 5.81% a week ago).
- 10/1 ARM: 5.9% (up from 5.87% a week ago).
- 30-year jumbo loans: 6.78% (up from 6.59% a week ago).
- 30-year FHA loans: 5.98% with 0.06 point (up from 5.75% a week ago).
- VA purchase loans: 6.08% with 0.05 point (up from 5.86% a week ago).
Alaska homebuyers can get interest rate reductions as well as help with down payments and closing costs from these Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (AHFC) programs.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers who have not owned a primary residence in the last three years, unless the house is within a targeted area or if the homebuyer is a qualified veteran, along with other conditions such as acquisition cost limits.
- Income limits: Vary by area and household size (see income limits for non-targeted areas and targeted areas).
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: Lower interest rates to eligible homebuyers.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers who have not owned a primary residence in the last three years.
- Income limits: None.
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: Reduced interest rate for qualified homebuyers.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers purchasing a primary residence who have not owned a primary residence in the last three years and do not own other residential property within 50 miles of the home being purchased.
- Income limits: Vary by area and household size (see income limits).
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: Interest rate reduction of 0.5% or 1%, depending on family income, on the first $180,000 of the loan amount.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers purchasing a manufactured home in a mobile home park or on land, not on a permanent foundation.
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: Ability to finance this particular type of home.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers occupying the purchased property within 60 days of loan closing.
- Income limits: None.
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: Competitive interest rate.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers with a minimum credit score of 640 purchasing an owner-occupied residence.
- Income limits: None.
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: Closing cost or down payment assistance of up to 4% of the initial principal balance of the loan, depending on credit qualifications.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers who are qualified veterans.
- Income limits: Vary by area and household size (see income limits).
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: A 1% interest rate reduction on the first $50,000 of the loan amount.
- Available to: Eligible Alaska homebuyers buying an energy-efficient property or improving the energy efficiency of an existing property they’re purchasing.
- First-time homebuyers only?: No.
- Benefits: An interest rate reduction of up to 0.750% based on energy efficiency standards on the first $200,000 of the loan amount.
U.S. News selects the Best Loan Companies by evaluating affordability, borrower eligibility criteria and customer service. Those with the highest overall scores are considered the best lenders.
To calculate each score, we use data about the lender and its loan offerings, giving greater weight to factors that matter most to borrowers. For mortgage lenders, we take into account each company’s customer service ratings, interest rates, loan product availability, minimum down payment, minimum FICO score and online features.
The weight each scoring factor receives is based on a nationwide survey on what borrowers look for in a lender.
To receive a rating, lenders must offer qualifying loans nationwide and have a good reputation within the industry. Read more about our methodology.
To recap, here are the picks:
Best Alaska Mortgage Lenders of 2023
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where offers appear on the site but do not affect any editorial decisions,
such as which loan products we write about and how we evaluate them. This site
does not include all loan companies or all loan offers available in the marketplace.
