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Reviewed by David Ghazaryan, Mortgage Broker, NMLS 1486726 · iQRATE Mortgages · Last updated: October 13, 2026
Quick answer
A San Diego mortgage broker compares many lenders to price your VA, conventional, jumbo or investor loan. iQRATE Mortgages (NMLS 1862492) is licensed in California and shops more than 100 lenders on complex files. San Diego County's 2026 conforming limit is $1,104,000. The City of San Diego charges no city transfer tax, only the county's $1.10 per $1,000, and short-term rentals need a STRO license, with whole-home licenses capped. With the Navy, the Marine Corps and Camp Pendleton nearby, VA loans are a big share of the market. Full-doc loans close in about 17 days.
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5.0 stars from 87 reviews on Experience.com (October 2026) · Read David's reviews on Experience.com
San Diego's buyers include active-duty sailors and Marines, veterans, biotech and defense engineers, and investors chasing coastal rents. VA loans with no down payment, high-balance conforming and jumbo loans, and DSCR loans on rentals are everyday work here, and so is guiding buyers through Mello-Roos districts in newer communities and the STRO license rules for anyone counting on vacation-rental income.
Part of our California mortgage broker coverage. We're licensed in California under company NMLS 1862492 and work San Diego files from our Las Vegas office, closing with local escrow and title.
Neighborhoods and ZIPs we lend in: North Park and South Park (92104, 92102), Clairemont (92117), Point Loma (92106, 92107), Pacific Beach and Mission Beach (92109), La Jolla (92037), Mira Mesa and Scripps Ranch (92126, 92131), Rancho Bernardo and 4S Ranch (92127, 92128), and Carmel Valley and Del Mar Heights (92130).
California basics that apply here: Proposition 13 reassesses a home to its purchase price when it sells; the tax is 1% plus local voter-approved levies, usually about 1.1–1.3% of the price in total, and assessed value then rises at most 2% a year. Expect a supplemental tax bill after you buy. Every county charges a documentary transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000, and some cities add their own. Down payment help statewide includes CalHFA MyHome (up to 3.5% for FHA or 3% for conventional, deferred) and California Dream For All (a shared-appreciation loan of up to 20%, capped at $150,000, when funded).
Closing costs are what it costs you to get the loan: origination, discount points, appraisal, and escrow and title. Cash to close also includes your prepaids (first-year homeowners insurance, daily interest to month-end, and an escrow deposit for your own future property taxes and insurance) plus your down payment. Prepaids aren't a cost of the loan; they're your own bills paid ahead. In San Diego, the first year of homeowners insurance and property-tax escrow at your new Prop 13 value, plus any Mello-Roos special tax, are the main prepaids. Your actual closing costs depend on county, price and loan type, so we don't quote a one-size range: every line is itemized on your Loan Estimate, and our Bare Bones guarantee means we add no fees of our own. Compare states on our closing costs by state page.
San Diego County: conforming $1,104,000 for a one-unit home. VA loans have no loan limit for borrowers with full entitlement, which is why many San Diego service members can buy above the conforming limit with no down payment.
Conventional (as little as 3% down for eligible first-time buyers), FHA (3.5% down, 580+ score), VA (no down payment for eligible veterans with full entitlement), jumbo above the conforming limit, DSCR loans that qualify on rent, bank statement loans for self-employed borrowers, asset-based and 1099 loans, and rate-and-term or cash-out refinances. As a broker we compare wholesale lenders, more than 100 on complex files, instead of one bank's menu.
Terms for each are on its own page; see all iQRATE guarantees.
$1,104,000 for a one-unit home in San Diego County. Above that you need a jumbo loan, unless you're using a VA loan with full entitlement.
No. The City of San Diego charges only San Diego County's documentary transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000, customarily paid by the seller.
Yes. Eligible service members and veterans with full entitlement need no down payment and face no VA loan limit.
A special tax from a community facilities district that funds infrastructure in newer communities such as 4S Ranch and Del Sur. It adds to your payment, and lenders count it.
Whole-home Tier 3 licenses are capped at about 1% of housing units and are hard to get. Tier 1 (20 days a year or fewer) and Tier 2 (hosted home sharing) are easier.
San Diego County's median was $1,090,000 in August 2026, according to the California Association of Realtors, up 6.3% from a year earlier.
Usually, yes, after you meet the VA occupancy requirement. Your remaining entitlement can help you buy at your next duty station.
Closing costs depend on the price, loan type and county, so yours are itemized on your Loan Estimate rather than quoted as a range. Closing costs are what it costs to get the loan (origination, points, appraisal, escrow and title). Cash to close also includes prepaids and your down payment; in San Diego, the first year of homeowners insurance and property-tax escrow at your new Prop 13 value, plus any Mello-Roos special tax, are the main prepaids.
Most of our loans close in under 30 days. For eligible full-documentation conventional, FHA and VA purchases, our goal is 17 calendar days from signing initial disclosures.
Get My Custom Rate Now · or call (702) 766-3744
iQRATE Mortgages · NMLS 1862492 · 6360 S Rainbow Blvd Ste 101, Las Vegas, NV 89118 · Licensed in Nevada, California, Texas and Florida. David Ghazaryan, Mortgage Broker, NMLS 1486726. Verify us on NMLS Consumer Access. Equal Housing Opportunity. Programs, rates and terms change and are subject to credit, property and underwriting approval; local facts on this page come from the public sources below and are not legal or tax advice.
More: California mortgage broker · DSCR loans · Bank statement loans · Our guarantees · Closing costs by state
