At a glance: Cardinal Financial mortgages

Cardinal Financial is a nonbank lender based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Loans are available nationwide. There are a couple of ways to get a Cardinal mortgage:

• On your own: Cardinal’s subsidiary, Sebonic Financial, is an online mortgage lender that issues loans directly to borrowers. 

• Through a mortgage broker: Cardinal is also a wholesale lender, so it sells loans to intermediaries like mortgage brokers — meaning you could get Cardinal mortgage without ever working with the company directly.

Cardinal offers most standard fare, as well as some harder-to-find loans. The FHA 203(h) disaster recovery loan provides up to 100% financing to help you buy or rebuild if your home was damaged or destroyed in a presidentially declared disaster.

Home equity loans and lines of credit (HELOCs) are not available, but Cardinal does offer cash-out refinance loans.

» MORE: How to choose a mortgage lender

Cardinal Financial special offers and discounts

Cardinal tells us down payment and closing cost assistance is available, but few specifics — like the size of the grant or loan — are detailed on its website. The website says you may need to be a first-time home buyer and you must have a low or moderate income to qualify.

What does Cardinal Financial specialize in?

A lender’s experience with your loan type can make a big difference. We looked at the latest federal data from Sebonic Financial, Cardinal's direct-to-consumer division, to identify the types of mortgages the company handles most often. Among all lenders we review, Cardinal handles one of the highest volumes (43%) of FHA loans — just about equal to its amount of conventional loans, at 45%.

How we score Cardinal Financial mortgages

Each year, NerdWallet writers and editors dig into the latest data and independent research on mortgage lending. Then, we rate lenders based on categories that matter most to mortgage borrowers.

Cardinal has a NerdWallet home loans rating of 3.5 stars overall. Here’s a breakdown of this year’s score.

• The Nerdy details: Our rating system, explainedThe Nerdy details: Our rating system, explained

  Ah, so you’re the “read the fine print” type? We got you. Here’s how our scoring rubric works.

  Average mortgage rates and fees (30%)

  We review federal data (as reported by the lenders) and analyze mortgage lenders’ average fees and interest rates across all loan types. Lenders with the lowest average costs get the highest star ratings. Keep in mind: Loans that are easier to qualify for, like FHA loans, usually have higher rates and fees because lenders see them as a higher risk. Pro tip: Paying some fees upfront can sometimes lower your interest rate.

  Mortgage rate transparency (25%)

  We look at how easy it is to compare mortgage rates online. Lenders get higher transparency ratings if they show sample rates on their website. (Not all lenders do!) The best ratings go to lenders that offer interactive tools that let you customize a rate quote on your own.

  Variety of loan types (25%)

  There’s no one-size-fits-all mortgage. Lenders earn top ratings in this category when they offer a large variety of mortgage types. The more variety, the higher their score. A lender earns points for purchase and refinance; fixed and adjustable rates; FHA, VA or USDA loans; renovation or construction loans; and home equity loans or HELOCs.

  Customer experience (20%)

  How easy is it to work with this lender? Top-rated lenders offer helpful features like online applications, multiple ways to get support, a user-friendly mobile app and clear updates about the loan closing timeline.

Cardinal Financial’s average mortgage rates and fees score is based on data from its parent company, Sebonic Financial.

Cardinal Financial Bonus points

Cardinal earned bonus points for offering conventional loans for manufactured homes and providing down payment assistance.

» MORE: How to get the best mortgage rate

Cardinal Financial reputation and customer experience

NerdWallet’s star ratings look at objective factors like rates, fees and loan options. To give you a sense of what the borrower experience is really like, we pulled the latest customer satisfaction score from Zillow and we contacted the lender’s customer support.

Potential concerns about Cardinal Financial

In 2025, Cardinal Financial Company agreed to a class action settlement in New Jersey related to fees on residential mortgage loans, based on a lawsuit filed in 2017. The lawsuit alleges that Cardinal charged “processing fees” or “underwriting fees,” which violates the state’s Residential Mortgage Lending Act. Cardinal denies any wrongdoing.

In the settlement, each authorized claimant will receive a one-time cash payment equal to 55% of the processing fee paid. Cardinal’s NerdWallet star rating was not affected by this settlement.

Cardinal Financial customer service options

Here’s how you can get in touch with Cardinal.

» MORE: How to apply for a mortgage

Alternatives to a Cardinal Financial mortgage

Our biggest tip: Get offers from at least three different mortgage lenders. Comparison shopping can save you thousands of dollars. You can get rate quotes yourself, or work with a mortgage broker to shop around on your behalf.

For a lender that also handles a large volume of FHA loans, consider Carrington.

Pennymac, another nonbank lender, scores highly in our FHA loan rubric.

» MORE: Best mortgage lenders

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