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Newrez: Overall Lender Rating
| Feature | Insider rating (out of 5) |
| Loan types | 4 |
| Affordability | 3.5 |
| Customer satisfaction | 3.4 |
| Trustworthiness | 5 |
| Total | 3.98 |
Newrez: Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
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Newrez Interest Rates and Fees
Newrez doesn't provide sample interest rates on its website. If you want to know what rate you might pay with this lender, you'll need to talk to a loan officer over the phone or start an application online to get a quote.
In addition to your interest rate, you'll also want to pay attention to what fees a lender charges for the service of originating and underwriting your loan. Newrez doesn't list its fees online, but Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data shows that conventional loan borrowers who got a purchase loan with the lender in 2021 paid an average of $2,284 in origination charges. How much you'll pay depends on where you're located and the type and size of the loan you get.
Compare Newrez to Other Mortgage Lenders
Newrez vs. Freedom Mortgage
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Types of mortgages Conforming, FHA, VA, non-QM | Types of mortgages Conforming, jumbo, FHA, VA, USDA |
Standout feature Smart Series mortgages | Standout feature Accepts low credit scores |
| Get started | Get started |
If your credit isn't great and you're looking for a government-backed loan, Freedom Mortgage is a great choice. Freedom accepts scores as low as 550 on its VA and FHA loans. But it ranked low on J.D. Power's 2022 Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study.
On the other hand, Newrez could be the better choice if you're in the market for a more unique type of mortgage with flexible requirements. Newrez wasn't included in J.D. Power's annual study, but it has average customer ratings on WalletHub.
Newrez vs. Rocket Mortgage
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Types of mortgages Conforming, FHA, VA, non-QM | Types of mortgages Conforming, jumbo, FHA, VA |
Standout feature Smart Series mortgages | Standout feature Customer service |
| Get started | Get started |
Rocket Mortgage is our favorite lender for refinancing and is a good choice for those who want a simple, convenient online borrowing process. It earned the No. 1 spot in J.D. Power's 2022 study, so borrowers can expect a positive customer service experience.
But Rocket Mortgage's offerings are fairly basic, with no flexible credit requirements or options for alternative methods of approval. If you need something like a bank statement loan or have a recent bankruptcy, Newrez is the better choice.
How Newrez Mortgages Work
Newrez is an online-only lender that's available in all 50 states and Washington, DC. You can get started with this lender over the phone or online.
Newrez offers conforming, FHA, VA, and non-QM loans, which include its three Smart Series mortgages:
- SmartSelf loans let self-employed borrowers use bank statements or assets in lieu of traditional W-2s to show income.
- SmartEdge loans enable borrowers with recent negative events on their credit reports to get a mortgage sooner than they could with a conforming loan.
- SmartVest loans are for real estate investors. They require less documentation and let borrowers leverage equity in current real estate investments or cash flow from the property being purchased to qualify.
Is Newrez Trustworthy?
Newrez has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. The BBB measures trustworthiness based on response to customer complaints, honesty in advertising, and transparency about business practices. Newrez has no recent public scandals.
On WalletHub, Newrez has a 3.4 out of 5-star rating, based on 3,366 online customer reviews.
Newrez FAQ
Yes, Newrez is a real mortgage lender. Out of the 25 largest lenders by number of loans originated, Newrez was the 16th largest mortgage lender in 2021, according to a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau analysis of HMDA data.
Newrez is owned by Rithm Capital, a real estate investment trust. Newrez was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Pennsylvania.
If you originally got your mortgage with a different lender but recently received a notice saying that your loan has been transferred to Newrez, this means that your original lender has sold the loan's servicing rights to Newrez.
This is fairly common with mortgages, and all it means is that instead of making monthly payments to your original lender, you'll make payments to Newrez. Make sure to follow all the instructions on the letter you received and pay attention to when your first payment to Newrez is due.
If you want to avoid this scenario in the future, ask your mortgage lender when you start your application if it services the loans it originates. Rocket Mortgage, for example, services most of the loans it originates, meaning customers who get their mortgage from Rocket Mortgage will likely continue to make payments to and work with that same lender for the life of their loan.
Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards.
Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.
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