First Citizens Bank Mortgage Interest Rate and Cost Review

Is First Citizens Bank a cheap or expensive mortgage lender? To help you shop for a mortgage, we compare the interest rates and closing costs charged by First Citizens Bank to those of other lenders for a comparable set of borrowers. Here is our review of First Citizens Bank nationally:

Review ItemFirst Citizens Bank
Interest Ratesimilar to other lenders (+0.04%)
Loan Related Closing Costssimilar to other lenders (-$196)
National Rate and Closing Cost Star Rating(3.5)

On average, First Citizens Bank’s interest rates were similar to those of other lenders (+0.04%). Its loan related closing costs were also similar to those of other lenders, with a difference of -$196. We maintain our independence by not accepting any money from the mortgage lenders we review. To visit First Citizens Bank, check out its website at: https://www.firstcitizens.com.

First Citizens Bank’s Rate Review by City

Mortgage lenders often set different rates in different geographical markets. For our list of the top mortgage lenders by city, click here. In particular, among the cities we track First Citizens Bank was most active in:

  1. Raleigh, NC
  2. Charlotte, NC
  3. Columbia, SC
  4. Simpsonville, SC
  5. Charleston, SC

In addition, First Citizens Bank is our top ranked/best mortgage lender in terms of interest rate and closing costs in:

  1. Orangeburg, SC, for VA mortgages
  2. Goldsboro, NC, for Jumbo mortgages

First Citizens Bank’s Rate Review by Mortgage Type

Mortgage lenders also tend to charge different interest rates and closing costs depending on the type of mortgage. In our data, First Citizens Bank originated Conforming, FHA, Jumbo, USDA and VA mortgages for new home purchases. It also originated Conforming, FHA, Jumbo and VA mortgages for refinances. Its average interest rate and total loan related closing cost difference relative to other lenders for comparable borrowers by mortgages type is as follows.

Purchase/Refinance:
New Purchase MortgagesConformingFHAJumboUSDAVA
Interest Rate Difference+0.06%-0.03%+0.00%-0.01%-0.01%
Loan Related Closing Cost Difference-$116+$9+$18-$5-$7
Cost Adjusted Rate Difference+0.05%-0.03%+0.00%-0.01%-0.01%
National Star Rating(3.5)(3.5)(3.5)(3.5)(3.5)
Refinance MortgagesConformingFHAJumboVA
Interest Rate Difference+0.04%+0.02%+0.01%+0.01%
Loan Related Closing Cost Difference-$369-$27+$28-$52
Cost Adjusted Rate Difference-0.01%+0.01%+0.01%+0.00%
Average Star Rating(3.5)(3.5)(3.5)(3.5)

As a summary, First Citizens Bank is similar to other lenders for Conforming, FHA, Jumbo, USDA and VA purchase mortgages. For refinancing mortgages, First Citizens Bank is similar to other lenders for Conforming, FHA, Jumbo and VA mortgage refinance. Nevertheless, individual circumstances can matter a lot for mortgage rates, and we always recommend shopping among several of our top mortgage lenders in your area before signing.

Other information about First Citizens Bank:

Registered name: First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co
Registered city and state: Raleigh, NC, 27609
Regulator: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
Top holder: FIRST CITIZENS BANCSHARES, INC.

* Source of the data is Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) and is for mortgages originated in the past year. Our comparable mortgages analysis controls for First Citizens Bank’s distribution of loan term (e.g. 30 year vs 15 year), loan-to-value (LTV), debt-to-income (DTI), loan amount, loan program (e.g. Conforming/FHA), loan purpose (e.g. purchase/refinance), and commuting zone. Cost adjusted rates were computed based on each percent of the loan amount in above average loan related closing costs being worth +0.15 of a percentage point in interest rate. Furthermore, the amounts are regularized using a Bayesian approach to control for small samples.