The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has named Guild Mortgage a 2023 Top Guaranteed Rural Housing Lender in the Loan Origination category. San Diego-based Guild, a mortgage lending company originating and servicing residential loans since 1960, is the second largest originator of USDA loans nationally.
Guild provides special financing opportunities to homebuyers who live in or would like to purchase a primary residence in rural areas as defined by the USDA. These loans, also known as Rural Development loans, are designed to assist rural families and individuals with low-to-average income for their area. To facilitate homeownership for rural Americans, the USDA, through these loans, provides 100% financing with reduced mortgage insurance premiums and below-market mortgage rates.
“One of the many advantages of this government-backed loan is that it requires no down payment, which can help low-to-moderate income homebuyers overcome one of the most common hurdles to purchasing a home,” says David Battany, executive vice president of capital markets, Guild Mortgage. “While these loans are designed to assist homebuyers in rural areas, the USDA considers most of the country, including some suburban areas, as qualified rural areas.”
Speaking to the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs in September 2022, Battany urged policymakers to advance rural housing lending by addressing workflow, technology and loan products: “Although small relative to the scale of the multi-trillion-dollar mortgage market, rural housing loans are meaningful lifelines to economic security for the individuals they help and the communities they bolster.”
