BBVA Mortgage Review (2022 Updated)

BBVA Mortgage

Overview: best for low-to-moderate-income borrowers, and maximum financing of the home’s value.

Based in Alabama, BBVA USA is among the top 25 largest commercial banks in the States, providing its services through nearly 650 branches. As a bank, it offers a wide range of products, including checking or saving accounts, and loans for personal purposes, small businesses or corporates, commercial financing. It has been around for more than 50 years, during which has developed innovative ways to meet its customers’ needs: this approach contributed greatly to its growth and reputation.

BBVA operates only in 22 States: AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, ID, KS, LA, MA, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA.

The company realizes that each person has unique circumstances, thus commits to creating opportunities to make you go on with your projects.

BBVA lets you prequalify for a mortgage if you are buying a home through an online form, or getting in touch directly with a specialist by phone to explore your individual options.

Since there are a variety of home loan options, there will be a range of customized rates and terms available. BBVA Mortgage gives you plenty of choices: financing the purchase of your dream house, refinancing an existing mortgage, support for building a house from scratch, or even renovate your current property.

The BBVA website dedicates a comprehensive section about the mortgage topics so that you can learn by yourself what you think needs to be grasped, helping you on the way make a properly informed decision.

What mortgage types are available through BBVA?

There is a long list awaiting you: one of the most significant benefits of the company is that you can find a variety of financing options to suit your needs.

Conventional fixed-term mortgage. You can choose or be given a term of 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 years. At now, you can borrow up to $647,200 in most counties.

ARM (Adjustable-Rate Mortgage): terms and borrowable amounts are the same as the fixed-term loan, but the interest is locked at a lower than usual rate for the first 5,7 or 10 years, then it can fluctuate in both directions.

No or low down payment mortgages: HOME, FHA, VA, Jumbo, and “HomeReady”, discussed afterward.

FHA (Federal Housing Administration) mortgage: easier to qualify for, this is addressed to prospective homebuyers with a low-to-moderate-income, with the upfront PMI financeable. It requires as little as a 3.5% down payment and a 580+ credit score.

VA (Veterans Administered) mortgage. Meant for borrowers currently or past enrolled in the military service, and their wives if eligible. Veterans can benefit from zero down payment from some VA loans. A unique upfront fee is required at closing and a minimum score of 620.

USDA loans. Mortgages tailored to future residents of rural areas, with a $0 down payment, but some fees. Your home must meet certain criteria that can be seen on the USDA website.

Jumbo loans. As the name suggests, these allow you to borrow larger amounts than what you get from a conventional home loan: above $510,400 and up to $5 million. They also come with higher rates and a greater DP. A more specific jumbo loan is BBVA professional mortgage: this is aimed at physicians, dentists attorneys, and public accountants who are granted a low down payment, no PMI, and higher debt-to-income ratios.
Refinancing: you migth be able to obtain a lower rate or choose another term for your current loan.

HOME (Home Ownership Made Easy): if you are a first-time homebuyer, you may be eligible for as low as a 3% down payment and no PMI payment, with up to $3,500 of closing costs contributing from BBVA. Also, there will be no limits of income if your prospective house is located in a low or moderate-income census area. A minimum 640 score is required.

“HomeReady”: ideal for first-time or repeat home buyers, this plan allows a 3%down payment, multiple sources of funding for closing costs and DP (including gift cards, supplemental income, rental income) and possible sharing of closing costs up to $2,500. You must have an eligible income limit, and at least a 620 credit score. It can also work as a refinancing option.

Construction loans: aimed at people who are building their homes from scratch. These are jumbo loans that enable you to secure a rate during the construction period, with flexible options.
Mortgages for non-citizen immigrants: BBVA bank offers a dedicated service to foreign nationals.

Other home-related loans offered by BBVA are:

Home equity lines of credit (HELOC). With such loans, you are borrowing against the value that is in your house. This is possible if there is positive equity, that is to say, the home’s value increased since the time of purchase. APRs are from 3.99% to 10.35%, and possible terms are of 10 or 15 years.
Home equity loans. Rates and terms are fixed only, with rates starting as low as 4.94%.

Renovation loans. These can be used either for the main residence or a secondary house and are jumbo loans (not mortgages) with amounts up to 5 million.

Not all of these products are available in every state, and you will need to speak to one of BBVA’s bankers to know if you are eligible

How much will your mortgage cost from BBVA?

BBVA shows you the daily rates that are applied to regular mortgages: those are reference numbers that act as a starting point to determine your final rate, which depends mainly on your loan amount, credit score, history of payments, and size of annual income.

The bank lets you buy discount points to lock your rate at a lower percentage, for some products, and provided that you have an eligible account with it. BBVA mortgage is definitely transparent about disclosing the interest rates separate from APRs, which instead include necessary fees and other charges such as PMI.

As mentioned, available overall terms are from 10 to 30 years, on which the rate is determined.

BBVA mortgages come with a set of fees, depending mainly on the type of loan you choose: as a banking service, there will be an origination fee, and duties for other things such as home appraisal, owner’s title insurance, tax service, etc.

Closing costs vary from 2% to 5% depending on the loan size, and BBVA gives the chance to pay them either upfront or enrolled in the total loan amount. The bank can offer a $400 closing cost discount when buying or refinancing energy-efficient homes.

By the way, there is also a set of calculators very useful to direct your choice: see your mortgage affordability, monthly payments, estimate closing costs or compare a 15-year vs 30-year loan, and more.

While the minimum credit score claimed is 620, you have still the option to apply with less than that: this is a benefit of getting a mortgage from BBVA, but expect it to be difficult finding a loan available for such condition.

So, here are BBVA mortgages at a glance

Main Types	Purchase, Refinance, FHA, VA, USDA, Jumbo, HELOC/Home Equity Loans
Borrowable amounts	Up to $5 million
Terms	10, 15, 20, 25, 30 years
Minimum down payment	3% for conventional mortgage, $0 for some loans
Fees	yes
Credit score	580+ for FHA, 620+ for conventional
Basic requirements	18+years old, min. annual income depending on the type of mortgage.

Why should you choose BBVA?

There are great advantages of getting a home loan from BBVA, but also a few drawbacks you may want to consider.

Pros

BBVA can meet nearly every home buyer’s need with a flexible overall offer, but is especially suitable to low-to-moderate income borrowers, who will find tailored solutions to finance the fundamental need of buying a house. The low or no down payment option can be a life-saver in some cases, whereas it would be hard to bear such a four to five figures upfront cost. Some loans don’t even require PMI, that is a remarkable cost of the mortgage: this is a rare contingency you will find among lenders.

Cons

You may not be able to find a certain type of mortgage if living in your State, which may leave you upset.

We couldn’t help but mention about complaints of the customer service’s general performance, which is discussed soon; some current customers of the bank are not happy with their account, while there is general satisfaction about the mortgages service.

How do you apply with BBVA?

By completing the first application through the simple online form, you become pre-qualified. It can be completed in about 15 minutes, and you are asked to input your loan amount, how much DP you want to make, the desired interest type, estimated credit score, and a few things about the property. In order to be approved, you need to disclose some important information:

Personal details
SSN
Proof of income, or profit and loss statements if self-employed
Tax returns from the previous 2 years
Outstanding debts, including credit cards, car loans, personal loans, student loans.
A complete list of assets: real estate, saving, car titles, and investments of any kind

In response, you will see how much you are likely to borrow, your estimated rate, term of the mortgage, and other crucial details. If you are ok with your options, you can then proceed to obtain the final approval. The agreement documentation can be processed both online and by paper. Time to be funded will depend uniquely on your circumstances.

BBVA allows you to make repayments in five different ways:

Enrolling in automatic payments
Paying online through an existing BBVA checking account
Sending the installments via email by providing the code-number of the loan
By phone
Directly visiting a branch location of the bank.

About customer service

There is ample support for BBVA clients through all the channels, moreover, the bank has a presence on multiple social media platforms. On the website there is also an information center on existing mortgages: you will find answers about things such as payoffs, your escrow account, homeowners insurance, private mortgage insurance, and more.

Truth to be told, reading among the lines of online customers’ reviews, BBVA seems to just lack desiring general satisfaction. People who already had an account with the bank are the ones who mostly complain of varied issues; the good news here is those are not concerning the mortgage service, which is somewhat relieving. Some people who got home loans are just content about BBVA. However, the customer service seems to be the main weak point of this lender, since many consumers report problems of some sort with it.

BBVA Mortgage: Bottom line

BBVA can be a valuable choice if you have a moderate or low income, where you can benefit from a minimal down payment or even none. It is also for consideration, if you seek more than a traditional mortgage, having special needs like financing the construction of your home and getting benefits as a professional. If trustworthiness is your priority, you will rely on a big-name bank, as well.

Consider other lenders if you can’t do without flawless customer support, and you don’t live in the States where the bank is active.

BBVA mortgage review 2022