The fourth largest home builder in the country, NVR, also operates its own financing division called “NVR Mortgage.”
This allows them to complete more of the home buying process in-house, as opposed to relying on third-party lenders.
They exist exclusively to serve home buyers who work with Ryan Homes, NVHomes, and Heartland Homes.
Ideally, this means they’re laser-focused on helping home buyers get to the finish line without any unnecessary costs or delays.
Read on to learn more about their history, processes, rates/fees, and customer reviews.
NVR Mortgage Fast Facts
- Wholly-owned subsidiary of NVR, Inc., a top-5 home builder
- Parent company is publicly traded (NYSE: NVR)
- Founded in 1991, headquartered in Reston, VA
- Serve Ryan Homes, NVHomes and Heartland Homes customers exclusively
- Only offer home purchase loans (no refis)
- Funded $6.3 billion in homes last year
- Most active in the states of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia
- Licensed to lend in 15 states and D.C. with branch office locations in 14 states
- Also operates NVR Settlement Services
NVR Mortgage Finance, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of parent company NVR, Inc., a home builder based out of Reston, Virginia.
The lender got its start in the early 1990s, while the home builder’s roots stretch back to the mid-1900s.
They operate three distinct brands, including Heartland Homes, NVHomes, and Ryan Homes.
At last glance, they were the fourth largest home builder in the United States, behind PulteGroup, Lennar, and D.R. Horton.
The parent company, which was founded in 1948 in Pittsburgh, PA, is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol NVR. It is currently valued at around $18 billion.
NVR Mortgage says its “sole focus is to serve the needs of NVR homebuyers.” And apparently that’s what they’ve been doing.
Last year, the company funded a sizable $6.3 billion in home loans, with a large portion originated in the states of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
They serve home buyers in 35 metropolitan areas across fifteen states and Washington, D.C., primarily along the Rust Belt and East Coast.
Those states include Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, per the NMLS.
Aside from offering mortgage loans via NVR Mortgage, the company also operates NVR Settlement Services, which provides title insurance to home buyers.
How to Get Started with NVR
Since they serve only home buyers, you’d first browse the inventory of new homes offered by one of their associated builders.
Their sales office would then connect you with a loan officer to discuss loan pricing, eligibility, and perhaps generate a mortgage pre-qualification.
Once you speak with a loan officer and are ready to move forward, they will provide you with a personalized link to complete the digital loan application from your preferred device.
It’s powered by ICE Mortgage Technology, a cloud-based platform that allows borrowers to apply for a home loan electronically.
Their paperless process allows you to connect bank accounts for easy asset verification and upload necessary documents from a computer or smartphone on the fly.
Applicants can also check loan status 24/7 and message their lending team whenever they have questions.
Technology aside, NVR prides itself on human touch. They’ve got branch offices in 14 states where they have home building operations if you’re interested in face-to-face interaction.
And because they are integrated with their home builder parent company, the process should be quick and streamlined.
Available Loan Programs
- Home purchase loans
- Conforming loans
- Jumbo loans
- FHA loans
- VA loans
- USDA loans
- Down Payment Assistance (DPA) loans
- Fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgage options
- Temporary and permanent rate buydowns
NVR Mortgage offers a wide variety of loan programs to suit most home buyers.
This includes conforming loans, jumbo loans, FHA loans, VA loans, USDA loans, and down payment assistance (DPA) loans.
However, they only appear to offer home purchase loans to the buyers of their newly-constructed properties.
No mortgage refinances or second mortgages are offered, including home equity loans/lines.
But if you’re a home buyer, you should have ample options, whether it’s a zero-down loan via the VA or USDA, or a 3% down conforming loan from Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
Same goes for those purchasing a particularly expensive home thanks to their jumbo loan options.
And as mentioned, they can provide down payment assistance if you don’t have the necessary down payment funds.
Both fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgage options are available, including the popular 7/1 ARM.
With regard to interest rates, they offer both temporary and permanent rate buydowns, including the 2-1 buydown.
It offers a mortgage rate 2% below the note rate in year one, and 1% below in year two.
This can help bridge the gap while mortgage rates remain at their highest levels in nearly 25 years.
NVR Mortgage Rates
Like a lot of mortgage lenders, NVR does not post their daily mortgage rates online. So we don’t know how competitive they are relative to other options.
The same goes for their lender fees, which are not listed on their website. This means it’s imperative to get quotes from other lenders, banks, credit unions, and mortgage brokers.
Having other quotes in hand always helps when it comes to negotiating. And this way NVR will know you don’t absolutely need to use them.
When you do compare rates, be sure to look at the mortgage APR, which factors in the closing costs and mortgage rate.
One perk to using a home builder’s lender is their ability to offer big mortgage rate buydowns, either permanently or temporarily.
So they may actually be unbeatable on price if they offer special financing that the other guys can’t.
Either way, shop your loan as you would anything else.
NVR Mortgage Reviews
On Google, they’ve got a 4.9/5-star rating from over 400 customer reviews at their two Charlotte locations, which is clearly excellent.
Similar ratings can be found at other nearby locations, including Raleigh, NC and Richmond, VA.
Other scattered reviews can be found on multiple websites, but don’t offer a lot of depth given the small sample size.
Over at the Better Business Bureau (BBB), they have a 1.38/5 score based on customer reviews. However, it’s only from less than 50 reviews.
The good news is they have an ‘A+’ rating with the BBB, which is based on complaint history.
To that end, there are more than 250 complaints over the past three years, though their high letter grade rating may mean they respond and resolve them in a timely manner.
As with all in-house home builder lenders, you should gather outside mortgage rate quotes to see how they stack up.
While it can be convenient to use affiliated companies for both the home purchase and the financing, you could be doing yourself a disservice by not shopping around.
A lot of gripes are often from home buyers who didn’t take the time to explore outside lender options, leading them to feel trapped.
To sum things up, always look beyond the builder’s lender, but if they offer a good combination of rate, fees, and service, they could be the best choice.
This is especially true if they can offer a big mortgage rate buydown others can’t.
Read more: Should I use the home builder’s lender or an outside lender?
NVR Mortgage Pros and Cons
The Good
- Can apply online or via smartphone (or visit a branch)
- Digital mortgage application and paperless process
- Access to their settlement company for one-stop shopping
- Plenty of loan programs to choose from including mortgage rate buydowns
- Lots of good reviews from past customers
- A+ BBB rating
- Free online mortgage calculator
The Maybe Not
- Lots of BBB complaints and some mixed reviews
- Not licensed in all states
- Only offers home purchase loans
- Do not service loans after closing