2021 was the easiest year for mortgage approval in the 2018-2025 period, scoring 21 out of 100 on the FRC Denial Climate Index — roughly 3x looser than 2023's reading of 66, per FinanceRateCalc (2026).
Source: CFPB HMDA 2025 (1,217,297 decisioned FHA applications), processed by FinanceRateCalc · methodology · all statistics