The mortgage and real estate industry is no stranger to disruptors, especially over the past few years as scores of companies have tried to change the way we buy, sell, and obtain a home loan.
One of the latest examples is “Tomo Mortgage” a venture-backed fintech with some big-name founders and investors, including former Zillow employees Greg Schwartz, Carey Armstrong, and Spencer Rascoff.
What’s unique about this mortgage lender is they only originate home purchase loans. No refis. That means they’re completely committed to home buyers.
Like other lenders, they’re attempting to level the playing field between cash buyers and those who need a mortgage, an especially relevant concern in today’s ultra-competitive housing market.
Tomo Mortgage Is a Purchase-Only Lender (No Refis)
- Direct-to-consumer, purchase loan-only mortgage lender
- Founded in 2020, headquartered in New York City
- Currently employs about 85 people
- Started by former Zillow executives Greg Schwartz and Carey Armstrong
- Do NOT charge lender fees and offer both a low rate and closing guarantee
- Will also pair you with a real estate agent for an additional mortgage rate discount
- Say they offer mortgage rates 0.5% below everyone and up to 1% below the big guys
- Named Best Online Mortgage Lender of 2025 by Bankrate
Tomo Exists Because Buying a Home Can Be Terrible
Tomo Mortgage was created because purchasing a property can be a real pain in the neck, and instead of relying on old technologies, they’re going the digital route.
This means you can get started right from their website in minutes, whether by desktop computer or smartphone.
They’re also streamlining the process, simplifying how you can complete tasks, and throwing in a bunch of guarantees along the way.
It all starts with a mortgage pre-approval, which they break down into two options: verified and an underwritten pre-approval.
The verified pre-approval assesses your credit score, income, and debt, and turns around the paperwork in no more than three hours after they receive your information, without a hard pull.
The more robust underwritten pre-approval does all that with a hard credit check and a complete assessment by an underwriter.
The second option takes about 24 hours to complete, once you’ve uploaded all your necessary documents.
Tomo commits to closing on time, and are confident they can do so by moving critical steps earlier in the process.
The Tomo Mortgage Price Match
While all that sounds good, there’s even more to like about Tomo when it comes to their pricing.
For one, they do not charge lender fees, similar to companies like Better Mortgage, Filo Mortgage, and PenFed Mortgage.
So you won’t have to worry about any junk fees like a loan application fee, or underwriting and processing fees.
On top of that, they offer the Tomo Price Match if you happen to find a better mortgage rate elsewhere.
Just provide a valid, comparable Loan Estimate (LE) dated within one business day of submission to Tomo and they’ll lower their rate if need be to match it.
But they’re confident they can offer some of the lowest rates around because they’ve simplified the home loan process and made it more cost-efficient.
Tomo Brokerage Partner Agent
Speaking of pricing, to sweeten the deal even more, they’ll throw in a .125% (eighth) discount in mortgage rate if you use a Tomo Brokerage Partner Agent.
This is essentially their real estate referral network that pairs you with a local real estate agent, which makes a lot of sense because both Schwartz and Armstrong worked on Zillow’s Premier Agent product previously.
In truth, Tomo might be even more similar to Redfin Mortgage, which doesn’t charge fees and has an obvious real estate agent affiliation.
It also plays into the trend of controlling more of the home buying process instead of just the lending piece, or merely the agent portion.
Assuming you don’t already have a real estate agent, you could save some money by going with one of their recommendations.
This is known as “Tomo Perks,” and on a $300,000 loan amount could save you more than $7,000 over the life of the loan.
To get paired up, you simply provide your info to Tomo and they’ll send video profiles for three local real estate experts they love. Then it’s up to you who to pick, if any of them.
For the record, it is possible to take advantage of both the Tomo Price Match and Tomo Perks.
Where Is Tomo Mortgage Available? And What Loan Types Are Offered?
- Currently available in 34 states and the District of Columbia
- Offer home purchase loans only (no refinance loans)
- Fixed-rate mortgages: 15- and 30-year loan terms available
- Adjustable-rate mortgages: 5, 7, and 10-year terms available
- Minimum loan amount of $150,000 and min. credit score of 580 required
- Jumbo loans available with loan amounts up to $3 million
- Single family homes, townhomes, condos, and 2-4 unit properties acceptable
- Now offers FHA and VA loans too!
At the moment, the company is licensed in 34 states, including Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and DC.
Tomo originally only operated in three markets, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and Seattle, before expanding rapidly thanks to their big venture cap backing.
They also only offer home purchase loans, as stated above, though it’s possible they may expand into mortgage refinances in the future.
In terms of loan choice, you can get a conventional mortgage starting with loan amounts of $150,000, or a jumbo loan up to $3 million.
You can also get your hands on an FHA or VA loan, the latter allowing for zero down payment.
A minimum 580 credit score is required, and they offer both 15- and 30-year fixed mortgages, along with adjustable-rate mortgages including a 5, 7, and 10-year option.
While it seems like a limited product menu, something like 90% of home buyers go with the 30-year fixed, and most home loans are conventional.
In addition, they offer down payment assistance to borrowers in Connecticut, and hope to roll out similar programs in other states over time.
Tomo Mortgage Rates
Perhaps their biggest claim to fame is their mortgage rates. They’ve got their mortgage rates on full display on their website, so they’re not hiding anything.
Simply navigate to “Get a rate quote” and you’ll be able to generate a rate quote in seconds by inputting basis loan details, all without having to login or share sensitive information.
From there, it will allow you to fine-tune the rate using a slider to see what it would be if you paid (discount points) or if you elected to receive a rebate (lender credits).
Tomo Mortgage also offers a free float-down option if mortgage rates happen to go down after you lock in your mortgage rate.
They incur a cost of 0.125% to execute a float down, so they’ll lower your rate by the difference.
For example, if rates happen to fall by 0.25% from the time you lock, they’ll lower your rate by 0.125%.
If they go down by 0.375%, you’ll see your rate go down 0.25%.
For every additional 0.125% market decline, they’ll lower your rate another 0.125%.
Just note that only one float down is permitted and it’s only available to borrowers whose closing date is at least seven days away.
Tomo Mortgage Appraisal Coverage
Another potential perk to using Tomo Mortgage is their so-called Tomo Mortgage Appraisal Coverage.
Referred to as a first-of-its-kind coverage, it protects home buyers in the event the home appraisal comes in low.
This can happen from time to time, especially if the housing market is softening (which is arguably happening at the moment).
Typically, a low appraisal would require the home buyer to bring more cash to the closing table to ensure the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) is the same and the mortgage rate doesn’t change. Or worse, the loan can’t be approved.
With Tomo Mortgage Appraisal Coverage, if the appraised value happens to fall short, you are guaranteed to receive the same APR, cash-to-close, and monthly mortgage payment.
In order to qualify, you need to get pre-approved with Tomo and work with a Tomo Mortgage partner real estate agent who will verify the property address before you make an offer.
In addition, you’ll need at least a 10% or higher down payment so there’s a buffer in place.
Tomo Mortgage Reviews
While they’re still a relatively young company, they do have a decent number of customer reviews.
At Zillow, they have a 4.86 out of a possible 5 from 78 reviews, and on Google they have a 4.5/5 from nearly 400 customer reviews.
Tomo Mortgage also has 4.8/5 rating on Bankrate from nearly 200 customer reviews, including a 94% recommend rating.
What separates them from the pack is their promise of no lender fees and mortgage rates well below the national average.
They also offer a couple guarantees, including the price match and appraisal guarantee, and boast an on-time closing rate of 98% versus the industry average of 40%.
While it’s a crowded place, those perks combined with their fresh modern look might be enough to help them stand out.
In summary, Tomo is yet another mortgage/real estate startup looking to shake up the status quo. They are doing so by focusing solely on home purchase loans.
Just be sure to compare their quote to other lenders to ensure they actually are leading the way on pricing, instead of simply taking their word for it!
Tomo Mortgage Pros and Cons
The Good
- Offer a digital, mostly paperless loan experience
- Their mortgage pre-approval is fully underwritten
- Publicize their mortgage rates online (no login required)
- Say their mortgage rates are 0.5% below the average and 1% below the big lenders
- Price match guarantee if you happen to find something better
- Do not charge ANY lender fees
- Home appraisal guarantee
- Excellent customer reviews
The Maybe Not
- Only licensed in 34 states and D.C.
- Only offer home purchase loans (no refis)
- Limited product menu (no seconds, USDA loans, home equity loans/lines)
Before creating this site, I worked as an account executive for a wholesale mortgage lender in Los Angeles. My hands-on experience in the early 2000s inspired me to begin writing about mortgages 19 years ago to help prospective (and existing) home buyers better navigate the home loan process. Follow me on X for hot takes.