No bank publishes its physician loan rates, and that is not a dodge. These loans are priced one borrower at a time by a bank that keeps the loan and collects your payments itself, so there is no public number to quote.
What you can know ahead of time is how the price gets built and what actually changes it. That is worth more than a number that would be wrong by the time you read it.
Why You Cannot Look Up a Number
Most mortgages get sold. The bank writes your loan, then sells it to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, who bundle it with thousands of others and sell shares to investors. Because that resale happens in the open every day, everyone can see roughly what a conventional mortgage should cost. That is why you can look up a conventional rate anywhere.
A physician loan does not get sold. The bank keeps it, funds it with the money its own customers have on deposit, and takes the risk if you stop paying. So the price is that bank’s own decision. It depends on what the money costs them, how badly they want to grow this program right now, and how much they want you as a long-term customer.
Two banks can quote the same doctor on the same day and land half a percentage point apart, for reasons that have nothing to do with the doctor.
Expect to Pay a Little More, and Know What You Get for It
A physician loan usually costs a little more than a comparable conventional loan. Not always, and the gap moves around, but plan for it.
The reason is simple. The bank is taking on more risk: you are putting less money down, there is no mortgage insurance protecting the bank if you default, and it is willing to overlook a large student loan balance that another lender would count against you. It charges for that.
The way to judge it is against what you would otherwise be paying. A quarter of a percentage point on a $600,000 loan runs about $1,500 a year, every year you keep the loan. Mortgage insurance on that same loan could be $3,000 to $7,000 a year, but it goes away once you own 20% of the house outright.
So you are weighing a smaller cost that lasts against a bigger one that ends. Which is cheaper depends on how long you keep the loan, and only you can answer that.
What Actually Changes Your Rate
Roughly in order of how much they matter:
Your credit score. The biggest thing you control. Banks price in steps, and the steps usually fall at 720, 740 and 760. Sitting three points under one of those numbers costs you real money for no reason, so check your score before you apply, not after.
How much you put down. More money down usually earns a better rate, even on a program that does not require any. Putting nothing down is priced as the riskiest version of the loan.
How big the loan is. Very small loans and very large ones both tend to cost a little more than the sizes a bank writes most often.
Fixed or adjustable. An adjustable rate mortgage, where your rate is locked for a set number of years and can change after that, will almost always start lower than a 30 year fixed. Whether that is a good deal depends on how long you will keep it and how far the rate is allowed to climb later, which is covered in how to read the caps.
Banking with them. Many of these programs shave a small amount off the rate if you keep a checking account there or set up automatic payments. It is usually worth asking, because it is rarely offered.
Paying cash up front. You can pay money at closing to lower your rate for the life of the loan. Lenders call this buying points. The math is simple: divide what the points cost by what they save you each month, and that is how many months you have to stay in the loan before you come out ahead.
Holding Your Rate While You Close
When a lender locks your rate, they promise it will not move for a set stretch of time, usually 30 to 60 days. Longer is sometimes available for a fee.
This matters more for doctors than for most buyers. If you are closing months before your job starts, a 90 or 120 day wait can outlast a normal lock. Ask how long the lock runs and what an extension costs before you are in a hurry.
Some lenders will also let you take a lower rate if the market drops while you are locked. Not all of them do, and it usually costs something, but it is worth asking about when rates are falling.
Comparing Quotes Without Getting Fooled
Three rules.
Compare on the same day. Rates move. A quote from Tuesday against one from Friday is not a comparison.
Look at the APR, not just the rate. APR rolls most of the lender’s fees into one percentage, so you can see the real cost side by side. A low rate with heavy fees and a higher rate with none often end up in the same place.
Get it in writing. Every lender has to hand you a Loan Estimate within three business days of your application. It is a standard government form, identical from lender to lender, designed so you can lay two of them next to each other. A number said out loud on the phone is not a quote.
On the Loan Estimate, turn to page 2 and read section A. That is what the lender is charging you, and it is usually where the real difference between two banks is hiding. More on that in closing costs and cash to close.
The Thing That Matters More Than the Rate
For most doctors finishing training, the rate is not what decides this. Getting approved is.
If one lender counts your student loan payment as zero and another counts it as $2,800 a month, that difference can be the whole ballgame. It can change how much house you qualify for, or whether you qualify at all. How lenders count student loans shows how big the gap gets.
Find the lenders who will actually approve you on terms that work. Then argue about the rate among those.
Where to Go From Here
Check your credit score before you apply. Ask every lender the same four questions: what is the rate, what is the APR, how long will you hold it, and do I get a discount for banking with you. Get a Loan Estimate from each one. Compare them on the same day.
And start by narrowing the list to lenders whose rules fit your situation. Tell us your degree, your training stage, your state and your numbers, and we will point you at the right one. It takes about two minutes and costs you nothing.
This page quotes no rates on purpose. A physician loan is priced one borrower at a time, and any number printed here would be wrong within days. Ask lenders for current quotes in writing.