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Business Insider's personal finance team compared Truist to the best mortgage lenders and found it to be an industry leader.
Truist is an extremely affordable mortgage lender for first-time and low-income homebuyers. It offers a variety of low down payment mortgage options, including a 0% down loan with no private mortgage insurance through its Community Homeownership Incentive Program. But it doesn't rank very highly in customer satisfaction.
Overview of Truist Mortgage
Formed from SunTrust and BB&T Merger
Truist was formed in 2019 as the result of a merger between SunTrust and BB&T, two banks that operated largely in the southern part of the U.S. In addition to mortgages, Truist Bank offers a variety of financial services, including personal banking, credit cards, auto loans, personal loans, and investing.
Lending Area
Truist doesn't lend in Arizona, Alaska, or Hawaii.
Truist Mortgage Products and Services
Home Purchase Loans
This lender has both conventional and government-backed mortgages that allow down payments as low as 0%, 3%, or 3.5%. If you don't meet the requirements for a low down payment option, you'll need to put at least 5% down.
Its conventional options include both conforming loans and jumbo loans.
Truist requires borrowers to have a credit score of at least 620 on its conventional loans, but may approve borrowers with no credit score using non-traditional credit (such as rent payment history) depending on the loan.
Refinancing Options
You can get a rate-and-term or cash-out refinance with this lender if you're looking to replace your current mortgage with a new loan.
Jumbo Loans
Truist offers jumbo loans for loan amounts up to $3 million. A jumbo loan is a mortgage that exceeds the conforming loan limit, which is $766,550 in 2024.
FHA, VA, and USDA Loans
Truist has the three main types of government-backed mortgages:
- FHA loans: A good option for first-time and low-income borrowers that allow 3.5% down payments and have less stringent credit guidelines
- VA loans: A zero-down mortgage for veterans and military members who meet minimum service requirements
- USDA loans: Allow 0% down payments for low-to-middle income borrowers in eligible rural and suburban areas
Affordable Mortgage Options
Borrowers who qualify for Truist's Community Homeownership Incentive Program mortgage may be able to put no money down with no mortgage insurance.
Your loan officer may also be able to help you find affordable mortgage programs or HFA loans in your state, which often come with down payment assistance.
HELOCs
Truist offers HELOCs to borrowers in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
Construction Loans
If you want to build a home, you could use a construction-to-permanent mortgage from Truist to finance its construction. With these types of construction loans, you'll have a single closing, which can help limit your costs. When the construction is completed and you're ready to move in, the loan converts to a regular mortgage.
Doctor Loans
Doctor loans or physician mortgages are a type of home loan geared toward early-career medical professionals with student loan debt who don't have enough saved for a large down payment.
Truist's doctor loans are available to both physicians and dentists.
Truist Mortgage Customer Service and Support
Truist's customer service is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. ET and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET on Saturdays.
Truist Mortgage Interest Rates and Fees
In our review of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data, we found that Truist's mortgage rates were slightly lower than average.
Truist displays a handful of sample rates on its website. You can also see how these rates change when one discount point is added. Discount points enable you to lower your interest rate by paying for the points upfront at closing.
If you want a customized rate, you'll need to create an account and start an application or call and speak to a loan officer.
In 2022, the average borrower getting a conforming mortgage from this lender paid $2,117 in origination charges, according to HMDA data. This is on the low end compared to other lenders.
Truist Mortgage Overall Lender Rating
Loan Types: 4.5 out of 5
Truist is a strong mortgage lender with a wide range of loans to choose from. This includes basic options like conventional and government-backed mortgages, more niche types like doctor mortgages and construction loans, plus HELOCs.
Affordability: 5 out of 5
We think Truist is an extremely affordable lender with multiple low down payment mortgage options. Borrowers without a credit score may also be able to use non-traditional credit (such as rent payment history) to qualify with this lender. And its rates and fees tend to be on the low end.
Customer Satisfaction: 3 out of 5
In J.D. Power's most recent U.S. Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study, Truist ranked right around the study average in customer satisfaction. Some previous borrowers have also complained about the lender's customer service in online reviews.
Trustworthiness: 5 out of 5
Truist currently has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. BBB grades are based on honesty in advertising, transparency about its business practices, and effectiveness in responding to customer complaints.
Truist has no recent public controversies.
Truist Mortgage Pros and Cons
Pros
- Wide variety of loan options
- Get a CHIP mortgage with 0% or 3% down with no PMI
- Low average rates and fees
Community Homeownership Incentive Program Offers Affordable Mortgages
One of Truist's standout features is its Community Homeownership Incentive Program. CHIP allows down payments of 0% or 3% without having to pay for PMI. However, it's only available in 17 states and Washington, D.C.
Cons
- Can't see personalized rates online
- Ranks average in customer satisfaction
Doesn't Stand Out in Customer Service
Truist ranked around the industry average in J.D. Power's 2023 Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study, which measures customer satisfaction. We also saw some online reviews suggesting that some borrowers have issues with this lender's customer service.
Truist Mortgage Customer Reviews and Ratings
Business Insider looked at positive and negative customer reviews, online forums, BBB complaints, and other sources to understand what borrowers think about Truist Mortgage.
Some Borrowers Report an Unhelpful Customer Service Experience With Truist
We saw a number of complaints about Truist Mortgage's customer service, saying they were unhelpful or difficult to get ahold of.
This doesn't necessarily mean you'll have a bad experience with Truist. You might want to consider getting preapproved with this lender and using that to get a sense of what their customer service and mortgage experience is like.
How to Apply for a Truist Mortgage
Application Process
If you're interested in getting a mortgage with Truist, you can apply online or get started over the phone. This lender also has some physical branches with loan officers if you prefer to apply in person, but only in some, mostly southern, states.
Required Documentation
When applying for a mortgage, you'll need to provide certain documentation showing your income and assets. Truist's online application lets you link your bank accounts so it can pull certain information automatically, cutting down on the amount of documentation you'll need to track down yourself.
Compare Truist to Other Mortgage Lenders
Truist vs. Guild Mortgage
Truist and Guild Mortgage both stand out for their ample mortgage offerings and affordability. Both accept alternative forms of credit on some of their loans for borrowers with no score.
For borrowers in eligible areas who meet income limits, Truist offers its Community Homeownership Incentive Program mortgages, which allow down payments as low as 0% with no mortgage insurance requirement. And it offers 3% down options with mortgage insurance for those who qualify.
Guild has 0% down, 1% down, and 3% down mortgage options, and it might ultimately be a better pick for borrowers seeking low down payment loans, since its programs are more widely available and come with down payment assistance.
Truist vs. Carrington Mortgage Services
Truist has a few more mortgage offerings than Carrington Mortgage Services, but credit-challenged buyers may find more affordability with Carrington, which was our top pick in our guide to the best low credit score mortgage lenders.
While Truist has its Community Homeownership Incentive Program mortgage, Carrington offers a Carrington Flexible Advantage mortgage, which features no mortgage insurance, flexible credit requirements, and a minimum credit score of 550. Some of its other mortgage options allow scores as low as 500.
Carrington Mortgage Services Review
Truist Mortgage FAQs
Yes. In 2019, the banks SunTrust and BB&T merged to form Truist.
Truist's average mortgage rates are on the low end compared to other lenders, according to HMDA data.
Yes, Truist Bank is a legitimate bank and mortgage lender headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Truist offers conventional and government-backed mortgages, HELOCs, construction loans, and doctor mortgages.
Yes. Truist is the eighth largest bank in the U.S. and it has an A+ rating from the BBB.
Truist requires at least a 620 credit score on its conventional loans.
Truist ranked average in J.D. Power's latest satisfaction study, which measures customer satisfaction. We also saw some complaints about its customer service from previous borrowers. But that doesn't necessarily mean you'll have a bad experience with this lender.
You can apply for a Truist mortgage online, over the phone, or in person.
The main pros of Truist Mortgage are that it offers a variety of affordable mortgage options and has relatively low average rates and fees. The main con is that it doesn't rank very highly in customer satisfaction.
You should get quotes from both larger lenders like Truist as well as smaller, local lenders or banks to compare offers and make sure you're getting the best deal.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed Truist Mortgage
For our review of Truist, we used our methodology for reviewing mortgage lenders.
We look at four factors — loan types, affordability, customer satisfaction, and trustworthiness — and give each a rating between 1 and 5, then we average these individual ratings for the overall lender rating. Lenders get higher ratings if they offer a large number of loan types with affordable features, have positive customer reviews, and don't have any recent public controversies.
Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are 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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