California Mortgage Rates & Home Loans

What moves California mortgage rates

The rate you actually get on a California home loan depends on your credit tier, down payment and loan-to-value, loan program, occupancy, and whether you buy points or take a lender credit, not just the headline number. Because California prices push so many loans above the conforming limit, jumbo pricing plays an outsized role here, and it varies sharply between lenders. As a California mortgage broker we price your exact scenario across multiple lenders and show the rate near par next to a lower rate bought down with points, so the trade-off is visible. The live California mortgage rates below update from our pricing engine for a sample statewide scenario.

Prop 13 and your property taxes

California's defining property-tax rule is Proposition 13: your base tax is generally about 1% of assessed value, and that assessed value can rise only a limited amount each year, roughly 2%, until the property changes hands, at which point it resets to the new purchase price. This means two neighbors in identical homes can pay very different taxes depending on when they bought. For a buyer, it means your tax is largely predictable once you know your purchase price, and we build that realistic figure into your qualification so the payment holds up.

Prop 19 and transferring your tax base

Proposition 19 changed the rules for carrying a low Prop 13 assessment with you. Homeowners who are 55 or older, or who are disabled or lost a home to wildfire or disaster, can generally transfer their existing tax base to a replacement home anywhere in California, within limits, which can make a move far more affordable than the sticker price suggests. It also tightened the rules on inherited property. If either applies to you, it can change the math on your next purchase, and we will factor it in.

Mello-Roos and special assessments

Many newer California communities sit in a Mello-Roos Community Facilities District, which adds a special assessment on top of your base property tax to fund schools, roads, and infrastructure. It can meaningfully raise the effective payment and is easy to miss when comparing homes, so we flag it before you are under contract and build the real number into your estimate.

Jumbo, self-employed, and non-QM

With California prices, the majority of purchases in coastal metros are jumbo, and a large share of buyers are self-employed, own businesses, or earn equity compensation. We price jumbo across many lenders, and we work extensively with bank-statement loans for the self-employed and other non-QM options for borrowers whose income does not fit a standard box. This is exactly the kind of file a single bank turns away and a broker places. See our jumbo loans and DSCR / investor loans.

Los Angeles Mortgage Rates & Broker · LA County & the Southland

A Los Angeles mortgage broker for one of the most expensive, most diverse markets in the country. Strong on jumbo, self-employed and entertainment-industry income, condos, and buyers whose finances do not fit a standard bank box. See Los Angeles mortgage rates and guidance →

San Diego Mortgage Rates & Broker · San Diego County & the coast

San Diego mortgage rates in a high-priced coastal market with heavy military demand. We handle VA loans around the Navy and Marine bases, jumbo purchases, and first-time buyers stretching into an expensive market. See San Diego mortgage rates and guidance →

San Jose Mortgage Rates & Broker · Silicon Valley & the South Bay

A San Jose mortgage broker for the priciest metro in America, where nearly every purchase is jumbo and much of the income is equity compensation. We count RSUs and stock the way strong lenders do. See San Jose mortgage rates and guidance →

Sacramento Mortgage Rates & Broker · The Capital region & Central Valley

Sacramento mortgage rates in California's most attainable major metro, a magnet for Bay Area transplants. Strong on first-time buyers, move-up families, new construction, and Mello-Roos guidance. See Sacramento mortgage rates and guidance →