Mortgage Broker in Charleston, SC
A mortgage broker works for you, not a bank, so on one application we shop your loan across 50+ wholesale lenders, charge zero junk fees, and find the program that actually fits your Charleston home, whether that is a peninsula single house, a Daniel Island jumbo, a first purchase with down payment help, a VA or FHA file, or a refinance. Veteran-owned, local, and originating across the Lowcountry every week.
A broker shops 50+ lenders for you; a bank sells you its one shelf
The reason to start with a mortgage broker in Charleston is structural: a bank loan officer can only offer that one bank’s products at that one bank’s pricing and underwriting overlays. A broker is independent, so on a single application we put your file in front of a wholesale lender network and let them compete for it. That difference matters most in a market like Charleston, where the same borrower and the same house can be a clean approval at one lender and a decline at another over a flood zone, a condo project, a historic-overlay quirk, or a jumbo guideline.
We are paid a disclosed amount on the loan and charge zero junk fees, so the incentive is to place you with the right lender, not to defend a single rate sheet. As a veteran-owned broker with 8+ years originating across this metro, founder Jason Sharon (Navy veteran, NMLS #1281448; company NMLS #1728740) reads Charleston files like a local, not a national call center routing you to a generic underwriter three time zones away.
Practically, that means you get one credit pull, one set of documents, and one point of contact, while several lenders bid on the file. You see the trade-offs in plain English and pick. That is the whole job of a broker, and it is why this page is built around your loan, not around one product.
The full range of loans we broker for Charleston buyers and owners
Because we are independent, we are not steering you toward a single product. We match the program to the home and the borrower. Here is the full menu we place across the Lowcountry, with where each one tends to win in Charleston.
VA Loans
Zero down and no monthly mortgage insurance for eligible veterans and service members near Joint Base Charleston and across the metro. Charleston flood zones and the VA appraisal drive these files, so we cover them on the dedicated VA Charleston page.
VA loans in Charleston →FHA Loans
Lower down payment and flexible credit, with a Charleston County FHA limit ($690,000 for 2026) that sits close to the local median, so the FHA-vs-conventional call is a real decision here, not a formality. We run both.
FHA loans →Conventional Loans
Often the better fit on solid credit, and the route many older peninsula homes take when an FHA or VA appraisal would flag condition. Conforming up to the 2026 one-unit limit ($806,500).
Conventional loans →Jumbo Loans
Above the conforming line, which on Daniel Island (median around $1.5M) and prime peninsula addresses is most of the market. We compare jumbo investors on reserves, ratios, and HOA documentation.
Jumbo loans →Refinance
Rate-and-term or cash-out on a home you already own across the Charleston metro. Useful as Lowcountry equity builds; we compare options on one application.
Refinance →HELOC
Tap equity for a renovation on a historic home or to consolidate, while keeping a low first-mortgage rate intact. We shop standalone second-lien options.
HELOC →Investment & DSCR
Qualify a Charleston rental on the property’s cash flow, not your W-2. Critical here because the city’s short-term-rental rules decide which addresses can even cash flow (more below).
Ask about DSCRFirst-time buyer & DPA
Down payment assistance pairs with FHA, VA, USDA, or conventional. SC Housing, Palmetto Home Advantage, and the City of Charleston program can all apply (detailed below).
First-time options
We broker every major loan program across the Lowcountry every week.
Charleston neighborhoods, by the financing reality a broker sees
For a broker, a Charleston map is a map of loan programs. After 8+ years originating across this metro, here is how the areas buyers actually shop break down, and which program each tends to push you toward.
Downtown peninsula historic districts
South of Broad, Harleston Village, Radcliffeborough, Cannonborough-Elliotborough. Pre-1978 single houses with original systems often fail FHA and VA appraisal standards (peeling paint, structure), so these frequently go conventional or a 203(k)/renovation route. We screen condition before you offer.
Daniel Island
A jumbo market (median around $1.5M) with HOA documentation requirements. Most purchases here clear the conforming line, so the file turns on jumbo reserves, ratios, and project paperwork rather than a standard conforming guideline.
West Ashley
Avondale bungalows, Byrnes Down, Shadowmoss. 1950s-1970s stock at a lower price per foot, classic FHA, conventional, and renovation-loan territory, generally an easier appraisal than the peninsula.
James Island
Riverland Terrace, Harbor View, Secessionville. Close-in with a mix of older homes; parts sit in FEMA flood zones, so we price flood insurance into your qualification from day one regardless of loan type.
Johns Island & Johns Island rural
Oakfield, Riverview Farms, plus outlying parcels. More new construction means cleaner appraisals; some rural addresses may qualify for zero-down USDA financing, which we check by address.
Mount Pleasant & North Charleston
East of the Cooper trends newer and higher-priced (often conventional or jumbo); North Charleston near the bases and Boeing offers more affordable, appraisal-friendly inventory that fits FHA, VA, and first-time programs. We also serve Mount Pleasant and West Ashley.
FHA vs conventional vs jumbo, where Charleston prices put you
Charleston is one of the few South Carolina markets where the loan-limit math is a live decision rather than background detail, and getting it right is exactly what a broker is for. Three numbers set the board for 2026: the conventional conforming one-unit limit is $806,500, the Charleston County FHA one-unit limit is $690,000, and the area’s single-family median sits in the mid-$600,000s. Because the median is so close to the FHA ceiling, a typical Charleston purchase can sit right on the line between FHA and conventional, and the better answer depends on your credit, down payment, and the property’s condition rather than a rule of thumb.
That is why an independent broker beats a single bank here. On the same application we model FHA (lower credit and down-payment tolerance, but mortgage insurance) against conventional (no monthly mortgage insurance once equity allows, and an easier path on older peninsula homes that would trip an FHA appraisal), and we step up to jumbo the moment the price clears the conforming line, which on Daniel Island and prime peninsula addresses is routine. You see all three side by side and choose with the numbers in front of you.
Flood insurance threads through every one of these. If a home sits in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, coverage is mandatory on any loan type, and the premium lands in your monthly PITI, which is what your debt-to-income ratio is measured against. We pull the flood determination up front and fold the premium into your pre-approval, so the number holds whether you end up FHA, conventional, or jumbo.
Down payment assistance that actually applies in Charleston County
You do not have to bring 20% down to buy in Charleston, and you may not have to bring much at all. A broker can pair statewide and city down payment assistance with the loan program underneath it, so we line both up together rather than treating help as an afterthought.
SC Housing Homebuyer Program
A 30-year fixed first mortgage paired with a forgivable, no-payment, 0% second toward down payment and closing costs on a primary home. Stay in the home for the term and the lien is forgiven.
Palmetto Home Advantage
Down payment assistance of up to 4% of the loan amount, and notably you do not have to be a first-time buyer. The 2026 statewide borrower income limit is $135,750, which covers many Charleston households.
City of Charleston assistance
The City of Charleston First-Time Homebuyer Purchase Assistance Program offers down payment and closing-cost help up to $20,000 for income-eligible first-time buyers within the city.
Assistance layers on top of an FHA, VA, USDA, or conventional first mortgage, so the right move is to choose the loan and the help together. We confirm which programs you qualify for and what they do to your real cash to close before you tour. Start with our FHA and conventional guides, or just ask.
Talk to a Charleston mortgage broker
Home Loans Inc: Jason Sharon, Mortgage Broker
2557 Ashley Phosphate Rd, North Charleston, SC 29418
Charleston’s rental rules decide which addresses a DSCR loan can finance
If you are buying a Charleston investment property, the financing question is downstream of a zoning question that catches a lot of out-of-town investors. A DSCR loan qualifies the property on its own cash flow rather than your personal income, which is ideal for rentals, but the cash flow only exists if the city’s short-term-rental ordinance lets you operate. We check that before we structure the loan.
Peninsula is the strictest
On most of the peninsula, only properties at least 50 years old can hold a residential short-term-rental permit, and the Old and Historic District generally limits eligibility to homes on the National Register. Permits do not transfer between properties.
Off-peninsula is more open
West Ashley, James Island, Johns Island, and Daniel Island fall in the broader category where homes of any age can be eligible, so a DSCR underwrite there is usually cleaner. Long-term-rental DSCR files work citywide.
Flood costs hit the DSCR
Many prime investment areas sit in flood zones, and mandatory flood premiums get counted against the property’s debt-service-coverage ratio. We build that in so the qualifying number is real, not optimistic.
How working with a Charleston broker actually goes
1. One application, your goals
We take a single application and one credit pull, then talk through the home you want and the cash you have, so the program search is aimed before any lender sees the file.
Start the file2. We shop the network
Your file goes to wholesale lenders who compete on rate, fees, and guidelines. We surface the FHA-vs-conventional-vs-jumbo trade-offs and any DPA you qualify for, in plain English.
Lenders compete3. Real-numbers pre-approval
Your pre-approval already includes the likely flood premium for the areas you’re shopping, so the number holds when you write an offer in a fast Charleston submarket.
No surprises4. We drive it to closing
We manage appraisal, condition issues on older homes, HOA and condo project paperwork, and underwriting conditions, and keep one point of contact through the closing table.
We run the fileWhy Charleston buyers choose Home Loans Inc
Jason Sharon founded Home Loans Inc in 2018 after serving as a nuclear engineer in the U.S. Navy, a background that shows up as precision on every loan file. He holds NMLS #1281448 (company NMLS #1728740) and has spent 8+ years originating loans specifically across the Charleston metro, which is why this page reads like a broker’s map of the market rather than a brochure.
Because we are a veteran-owned, independent broker and not a single bank, your loan is shopped across a wholesale lender network on one application, with zero junk fees. Charleston clients have left 430+ reviews at a 5.0 rating, and we are BBB A+ accredited. You will work with a veteran-owned broker, not a call center.
Charleston mortgage broker, frequently asked
Rated 5.0 by the families we serve.
Jason knows his stuff! We highly recommend him for your mortgage needs! He responds timely, provides information you didn't know you needed, puts the client needs first, and makes common sense adjustments throughout the entire process.
Jason and his team did an amazing job for me. They communicated often and made the entire mortgage process smooth and efficient. I can genuinely say that they are honest, trustworthy and strive to provide the best service possible to their clients.
Jason has been awesome since the beginning. He has been communicative, professional, KNOWLEDGEABLE, and honest. I am very happy with all my services so far, and I recommend UWM!