Newrez Mortgage Review 2025
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- 50+ mortgage lenders reviewed and rated by our team of experts.
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- Objective, comprehensive star rating system assessing 120+ categories and 5,000+ data points.
- Governed by NerdWallet's strict guidelines for editorial integrity.
Our Take
3.5
In addition to pretty robust standard offerings, Newrez has loan options for borrowers who have unusual finances or nontraditional income. But there's limited info about these offerings online, plus Newrez doesn't post sample mortgage rates — even for common loan types. Most likely to appeal to borrowers who'd benefit from flexible qualification guidelines.
Pros
- Offers loans for borrowers who've faced financial challenges or credit events, as well as self-employed borrowers.
- Below-average mortgage rates, according to the latest federal data.
- Government-backed loans made up half its 2024 lending, per federal data.
Cons
- Doesn’t post mortgage rates online.
- Online chat is buried deep in the site.
- Higher-than-average origination fees compared to other lenders NerdWallet reviews.
Full Review
At a glance: Newrez mortgage options
Newrez is a nonbank lender based in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania. Loans are available nationwide.
In addition to government-backed loans, which are a specialty for the lender, Newrez offers a few types of non-QM loans. These have more flexible underwriting standards, which can be helpful for certain borrowers (for example, folks with nontraditional sources of income).
🏠 Common mortgages • Fixed or adjustable rate • Conventional • FHA • VA • Jumbo • Rate-and-term refinance
🔑 Specialty loans • Investment property • Renovation • Self-employed • Non-QM • USDA
💵 Home equity • Cash-out refinance • HELOC • Home equity loan
» MORE: How to choose a mortgage lender
Newrez special offers and discounts
Newrez has a couple of options for borrowers hoping to save some money.
Newrez offers home buyers a closing cost credit of up to $1,000.
Home buyers or sellers who work with a Newrez-affiliated real estate agent can earn cash back, though the program isn't available everywhere. Buyers can receive a closing credit of 0.5% of the home's sale price, while sellers get their agent's commission reduced by one percentage point. (If you're buying and selling, you can get both.)
If closing is delayed by the lender, Newrez will refund up to $5,000 of your earnest money deposit.
What does Newrez specialize in?
A lender’s experience with your loan type can make a big difference. We looked at the latest federal data to find the types of mortgages Newrez handles most often.
Newrez stands out for its large proportion of government-backed loans. FHA and VA loans combined made up 50% of its 2024 originations.
How we score Newrez
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.
Newrez has a NerdWallet home loans rating of 3.5 stars overall. Here’s a breakdown of this year’s score.
Category | Star rating |
|---|---|
Average mortgage rates and fees | |
Mortgage rate transparency | |
Variety of loan types | |
Customer experience | |
Overall star rating |
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.
Newrez 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 scores from J.D. Power and Zillow and we contacted the lender’s customer support.
2024 J.D. Power U.S. Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study
692
out of 1,000
Below-average satisfaction score: average = 727.
Mortgage origination covers the application through closing.
2025 J.D. Power U.S. Mortgage Servicing Satisfaction Study
539
out of 1,000
Below-average satisfaction score: average = 596.
A mortgage servicer handles loan payments.
Zillow Mortgage Lender Customer Rating
4.95
out of 5
Excellent rating as of the date of publication. Rating reflects more than 6,000 customer reviews.
Newrez customer service options
Here’s how you can get in touch with Newrez.
Ways to reach Newrez
Physical branches . . . . . . 🚫 Phone support . . . . . . . . . ✅ Mobile app . . . . . . . . . . . . ✅ Online chat (bot) . . . . . . . ✅ Online chat (human) . . . . ✅
🤓 Our Nerds say... you gotta dig for that chat
Kate Wood, lead writer/lending spokesperson
Newrez has a pretty robust chat experience, with a chatbot dubbed "Rezi" that's perfectly comfortable answering natural language questions. You can also ask to speak with an actual person during east coast business hours. But — and this is a pretty big but, IMO — you can only find the chat on the Newrez contact page. And you can only find the contact page in the site footer. The "Help Center" in the main navigation takes you to a totally different page that's oriented toward existing customers. There's a secure chat available there, but it requires logging in.
» MORE: How to apply for a mortgage
Alternatives to Newrez
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.
New American Funding is another nonbank lender that offers flexible lending options for borrowers with nontraditional income or credit challenges. Rate is a large nonbank lender that has non-QM loans.
More from NerdWallet
NerdWallet’s overall ratings for mortgage lenders are evaluated based on four major categories: average mortgage rates and origination fees, rate transparency to consumers, variety of loan types (purchase, refinance, fixed and adjustable, for example) and customer experience. Among the factors we consider in these categories are: options to apply for home loans online, typical time to close, mobile app experience, level of detail about mortgage rates on lender websites, and NerdWallet’s own analysis of the rates and fees lenders reported in the latest available Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. These and other items inform detailed rubrics, which generate ratings from 1 star (poor) to 5 stars (excellent). Read more about how we rate mortgage lenders here.
