Is a home purchase in the Palmetto State on your mind? If so, you should have many choices to consider. South Carolina has just over 2.3 million housing units and a homeownership rate of about 70.1%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey.
South Carolina’s median housing value is approximately $268,500, which is considerably less than the national median price of $350,300. Certain areas of South Carolina have higher housing prices, while lower housing prices can be found in other areas.
U.S. News conducted an in-depth review of leading direct mortgage lenders. Research was based on program availability and customer satisfaction ratings. Because each consumer has different needs, the top finishers in several key areas were chosen.
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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.
Best for low APR
New American Funding is a mortgage lender offering a variety of home loan options to homebuyers and homeowners nationwide except for Hawaii. The company, founded in 2003 and based in Tustin, California, has originated $64.2 billion in mortgages to date.
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.
Chase, one of the world’s largest banks, was founded in 1799 in New York and offers fixed-rate, refinance and other mortgage loans.
The average mortgage rate in South Carolina is currently 5.05% for the 30-year fixed loan term.
Here are the interest rates offered to South Carolina residents looking to buy or refinance a home as of 03/07/2023:
- 30-year fixed purchase: 5.05%
- 30-year fixed refi: 6.66%
- 15-year fixed purchase: 4.88%
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The 30-year mortgage rate continued to climb past 7% this week, reaching the highest point in four months. Mortgage rates rose further for most other long-term home loan products, including VA loans, FHA loans and jumbo loans.
Mortgage interest rates are 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. Mortgage rates are widely expected to fall throughout the course of 2023, but this recent surge comes just ahead of the busy spring homebuying season. Here are the current mortgage rates, without discount points unless otherwise noted, as of March 9:
- 30-year fixed: 7.16% (up from 7.07% a week ago).
- 20-year fixed: 6.97% (down from 7.02% a week ago).
- 15-year fixed: 6.29% (equivalent to 6.29% a week ago).
- 10-year fixed: 6.32% (down from 6.43% a week ago).
- 5/1 ARM: 5.8% (up from 5.68% a week ago).
- 7/1 ARM: 5.93% (up from 5.84% a week ago).
- 10/1 ARM: 6.18% (up from 6.09% a week ago).
- 30-year jumbo loans: 7.26% (up from 7.12% a week ago).
- 30-year FHA loans: 6.27% with 0.05 point (up from 6.2% a week ago).
- VA purchase loans: 6.48% with 0.05 point (up from 6.32% a week ago).
SC Housing offers homeownership assistance programs to help eligible South Carolina homebuyers afford a home. These programs offer down payment and closing cost loans, and reduced mortgage insurance on certain loan types.
- Available to: Eligible South Carolina homebuyers.
- Income limits: Vary by county (see income limits).
- First-time homebuyers only? Yes, for nontargeted counties.
- Benefits: Low- to moderate-income borrowers may qualify for a competitive fixed-interest-rate mortgage
loan. Down payment and/or closing cost assistance of up to $8,000 may be available, in the form of a 10- or 20-year forgivable second mortgage with no monthly payments and a 0% interest rate.
- Available to: Eligible South Carolina homebuyers.
- Income limits: Vary by county (see income limits).
- First-time homebuyers only? Yes, for nontargeted counties (see list of counties).
- Benefits: This federal tax credit may reduce your income tax liability each year by an amount equal to 50% of the mortgage interest paid or $2,000, whichever is less.
- Available to: Eligible South Carolina homebuyers.
- Income limits: Vary by county (see income limits). The maximum borrower income limit for a conventional loan is 80% of area median income as determined by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
- First-time homebuyers only? No.
- Minimum credit score: 640.
- Benefits: The program offers conventional mortgage options with no sales price limits, forgivable down payment assistance of 3%, 4% or 5% of the loan amount, and reduced mortgage insurance coverage (18%).
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 South Carolina Mortgage Lenders of 2023
Advertising Disclosure: Some of the loan offers on this site are from companies
who are advertising clients of U.S. News. Advertising considerations may impact
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.
