Columbus County
North Carolina · FIPS 37047
According to CFPB HMDA 2024 application volume among U.S. counties, Columbus County ranks #967 of 3,210, and #53 of 100 in North Carolina.
Mortgage lending activity in Columbus County, North Carolina based on lender filings under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Data covers all applications received by HMDA-reporting institutions operating in this county during 2024. Why mortgages get denied walks the denial-reason codes that appear in books like this one.
Local mortgage market. Columbus County, North Carolina saw 1,876 HMDA-reported mortgage applications in 2024. Lenders originated 720 of those loans and denied 543, producing a denial rate of 28.9% and an approval (origination) rate of 38.4%. The average loan amount was $159,611 at an average note rate of 7.29%, with applicants self-reporting average annual income of $38K. 134 distinct institutions reported mortgage activity in this county.
Borrower leverage and affordability signal. The loan-to-income ratio averages 4.2x, meaning typical borrowers took on mortgages of about 4.2 times their annual income. That ratio is a rough affordability signal: higher multiples imply tighter monthly budgets and greater exposure to rate or income shocks. See our methodology for how to read the denial rate against a local applicant pool. This page is informational data reporting, not financial, legal, or mortgage advice.
Lender concentration in Columbus County
In Columbus County, lead originator State Employees' Credit Union funded 13.2% of 720 originated loans, in the middle tercile of U.S. counties (~10.9-16.7% top-1). The top three reporters together hold 23.3% of the book; a local credit union or regional bank still sits beside the national wholesalers.
Counties With Similar Application Volume
Nationwide counties nearest to Columbus County's 1,876 HMDA applications.
Counties With a Similar Average Loan
Nationwide counties nearest to Columbus County's $159,611 average loan (deduped against volume peers).
Lenders active in Columbus County
State Employees' Credit Union funded 95 of the 720 loans originated in Columbus County, 13.2% of the county. 134 lenders reported activity here.
| # | Lender | Originated | Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | State Employees' Credit Union | 95 | 13.2% |
| 2 | Rocket Mortgage | 37 | 5.1% |
| 3 | 21st Mortgage | 36 | 5.0% |
| 4 | First Ciitizens Bank and Trust | 27 | 3.8% |
| 5 | Truist Bank | 24 | 3.3% |
Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) 2024. County FIPS codes per U.S. Census Bureau standards.
Data from FFIEC / CFPB HMDA Snapshot National Loan-Level Dataset (2024). Provided for informational purposes only; does not constitute financial advice for Columbus County borrowers.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Every figure on PlainLender is rendered directly from CFPB HMDA federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This Columbus County page draws directly on CFPB HMDA federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-10. HMDA figures are lender-filed application outcomes for a published reporting year - not creditworthiness scores, rate quotes, Loan Estimates, underwriting decisions, or mortgage advice.