Show HN: I built a dashboard to compare mortgage rates across 120 credit unions

Buying a home or refinancing a mortgage is tough enough without confusing ads from banks and big lenders. Credit unions can offer competitive rates compared to big banks because they’re member-owned, non-profit institutions. They focus on serving their members, not maximizing profits for shareholders.

But without big budgets and marketing departments, credit union rates aren’t always easy to find or compare. That’s why we built a daily-updated comparison of mortgage rates from over 120 credit unions across the United States.

Why build this dashboard?

When we bought our home, the big bank I’d been using for years tried to sell me on a mortgage with 7% APR. Turns out a local credit union was offering 5.5% for the exact same mortgage.

What surprised me most wasn’t that there were cheaper options, but that two mortgages can be exactly the same product, just with different packaging.

In the USA, the government buys almost all mortgages, requiring them to be standardized. So why the price difference? As explored in this Bloomberg Odd Lots episode about credit card rates, higher rates are mostly to pay for advertising and marketing. Big banks have marketing departments that non-profit credit unions don’t have.

That “exclusive” inbox offer from Chase or Wells Fargo isn’t generosity. It’s a bet that you won’t shop around. My goal with this tool is simple: help people realize they have options and potentially save thousands of dollars a year.

How the dashboard works

It’s a little involved! 😅

1. Rates are collected throughout the day from the websites of approximately 120 credit unions.
2. National benchmarks come from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, aka FRED: 30-Year Fixed benchmark (15Y). These update weekly.
3. Credit union eligibility data is manually curated from individual institution websites.

Some rates (around a dozen) are hidden by default because they’re statistical outliers: likely errors or ultra-specialized products. Toggle “Show outliers” in the filters if you want to see them anyway.

Found an error? Email blog@finfam.app.

Next Steps: Make Decisions, Get Quotes

Our dashboard can only take you so far. Your actual rate depends on: credit score, down payment (20%+ is ideal), property type (primary residence gets best rates), and whether you pay points for a lower rate (always compare APR).

Next step: Get quotes from multiple lenders by using the rate table above to contact institutions.

Protip: Before submitting to any credit checks, protect your privacy with optoutprescreen.com, another free and regulated service I wish I’d known about sooner.

Still not sure about buying or refinancing? Check out these interactive guides:

• Should I refinance my mortgage or invest in the market?
• Rent vs Buy calculator

FinFam is built around collaborative financial planning, including community-authored, spreadsheet-powered guides, like those above. Read more in our docs.

Questions or Feedback?

Have questions about these rates or suggestions for improving this tool? Reach out to us at blog@finfam.app.

Don’t see your favorite CU here? As long as it has a website with a public rates page and clear eligibility requirements, we’d be happy to add it!

Disclaimers

These rates are informational only and don’t represent rate locks. Your actual rate will vary. Contact lenders with the links in the rate table to get your personalized quotes. FinFam has no institutional affiliation and receives no referral fees, nor provides any guarantees.

Shoutout /r/dataisbeautiful for the encouragement. And big thanks to Asheesh Laroia for his guidance on the matter of mortgages. See his spreadsheet-friendly take on the data.