Crystal Lake, IL · Appleton, WI · A community bank since 1915
A home loan from
the bank that keeps it.
Home State Bank is a portfolio lender. We approve, close, and service loans in our own building, so decisions come from people who know your town, and they come fast.
- No credit impact to get started
- Same-day pre-approvals
- 4.88 from 4,246 reviews
What brings you in today?
Buy a home
First home, next home, or the lake house.
Refinance
Lower the rate, shorten the term, or take cash out.
Build
One closing from foundation to front door.
Use my equity
HELOC or home equity loan, decided locally.
111 years · Portfolio · Fannie Mae direct · FHA · VA · USDA · IHDA · WHEDA · Jumbo · Construction
years as a community bank, since 1915
average from 4,246 verified client reviews
offices, Crystal Lake and Appleton, sharing one in-house underwriting team
running as McHenry County's #1 business lender
Why a portfolio lender
When the guideline says no, a banker can still say yes.
Most mortgages are written to be sold, so they have to fit a national box. Home State Bank keeps portfolio loans on its own balance sheet, which means we can underwrite the whole picture, price off our own cost of funds, and service the loan ourselves for its entire life.
| The situation | National guideline | Home State portfolio |
|---|---|---|
| Self-employed for 18 months, strong deposits | Declined: needs 24 months | Approved on the business's cash flow |
| Retiree with $1.4M in assets, little W-2 income | Declined: insufficient income | Approved on assets |
| Buying before the current house sells | Declined: ratio too high with both | Bridge loan, closed in 12 days |
| Farmhouse on 12 acres with a workshop | Declined: no comparable sales | Approved by a banker who's driven past it |
| Non-warrantable condo downtown | Declined: project not approved | Approved; we know the building |
Illustrative scenarios. Every loan is subject to credit approval; portfolio decisions are made case by case.
0.50%+
Portfolio pricing has historically run at least half a point below the going 30-year fixed for the programs we hold.
100%
Of portfolio loans serviced by us, for life, whether you closed in Crystal Lake or Appleton. Your payment address never changes.
1
Building. Application, processing, underwriting, closing, funding, and servicing.
Loan programs
Every leading program, plus the ones only a portfolio bank can offer.
Conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, jumbo, and the state first-time-buyer programs, alongside portfolio, construction, and bridge loans decided in-house.
Under one roof
Every step of your loan happens in one building. Ours.
Most lenders hand your file to a processing center in another state and an underwriter you'll never meet. Ours share a coffee pot at 40 Grant Street, and our Appleton loan officers have them on speed dial. Scroll, and watch the lights come on floor by floor.
ApplyFloor 1
Online in about 15 minutes, or across a desk with your loan officer. Pre-approvals usually come back the same day.
ProcessedFloor 2
A processor in our own office gathers documents and orders the appraisal. You get a real name and a direct line.
UnderwrittenFloor 3
Our underwriters sit down the hall from your loan officer, or one call away from our Wisconsin team. Questions get answered in a conversation, not a ticket.
ClosedFloor 4
We close and fund from 40 Grant Street. Typical purchases close in 30 days; we've done it in nine.
ServicedFloor 5
Portfolio loans stay with us for life. Ten years from now, the same building answers the phone.
Want to see the difference in person? Come by either office.
40 Grant Street, Crystal Lake650 N. Westhill Blvd., AppletonYour loan officer
Meet your lender. Actually meet them.
Every application starts with a person who has a desk near you, in McHenry County or the Fox Valley, a direct line, and the authority to get your file in front of underwriting. Here are eight of them, in no particular order.
Run the numbers
What would the payment actually be?
Property taxes often run higher than buyers expect, and they differ a lot between McHenry County and the Fox Valley, so pick your state and the calculator uses a realistic local rate. Drag the sliders; the estimate updates as you go.
Taxes & insurance assumptions
Estimated monthly payment
$3,124
- Principal & interest
- $2,149
- Property tax
- $850
- Home insurance
- $125
Loan amount
$340,000
Total interest (30 yrs)
$433,651
Estimate only. Actual payment depends on your credit, property, taxes, insurance, and loan program. Not a commitment to lend.
Neighbors, on the record
What it's like to borrow from people who'll see you at the grocery store.
My wife and I just completed a re-finance on our second home in Florida. Home State was awesome to work with, which did not surprise us since we have handled several mortgages in the past at HSB, always with great enthusiasm, professionalism, and communication. Excellence in action.
Home State did a great job of assisting us on the finance end of our search for a new home. Once the offer was made and the ball was rolling, all staff contacts with Home State Bank were pleasant, professional, and timely. Would highly recommend them.
Working with Home State was easy. Very knowledgeable and explained every step taken on the way to purchasing our new home. I would highly recommend working with them.
We have worked with Jim for 25 years, and we would not go to anyone else for our mortgage, refinance, or HELOC needs.
Jim made the home-buying process smooth and stress-free. We closed on time.
My wife and I just completed a re-finance on our second home in Florida. Home State was awesome to work with, which did not surprise us since we have handled several mortgages in the past at HSB, always with great enthusiasm, professionalism, and communication. Excellence in action.
Home State did a great job of assisting us on the finance end of our search for a new home. Once the offer was made and the ball was rolling, all staff contacts with Home State Bank were pleasant, professional, and timely. Would highly recommend them.
Working with Home State was easy. Very knowledgeable and explained every step taken on the way to purchasing our new home. I would highly recommend working with them.
We have worked with Jim for 25 years, and we would not go to anyone else for our mortgage, refinance, or HELOC needs.
Jim made the home-buying process smooth and stress-free. We closed on time.
We have worked with Jim for 25 years, and we would not go to anyone else for our mortgage, refinance, or HELOC needs.
Jim made the home-buying process smooth and stress-free. We closed on time.
My wife and I just completed a re-finance on our second home in Florida. Home State was awesome to work with, which did not surprise us since we have handled several mortgages in the past at HSB, always with great enthusiasm, professionalism, and communication. Excellence in action.
Home State did a great job of assisting us on the finance end of our search for a new home. Once the offer was made and the ball was rolling, all staff contacts with Home State Bank were pleasant, professional, and timely. Would highly recommend them.
Working with Home State was easy. Very knowledgeable and explained every step taken on the way to purchasing our new home. I would highly recommend working with them.
We have worked with Jim for 25 years, and we would not go to anyone else for our mortgage, refinance, or HELOC needs.
Jim made the home-buying process smooth and stress-free. We closed on time.
My wife and I just completed a re-finance on our second home in Florida. Home State was awesome to work with, which did not surprise us since we have handled several mortgages in the past at HSB, always with great enthusiasm, professionalism, and communication. Excellence in action.
Home State did a great job of assisting us on the finance end of our search for a new home. Once the offer was made and the ball was rolling, all staff contacts with Home State Bank were pleasant, professional, and timely. Would highly recommend them.
Working with Home State was easy. Very knowledgeable and explained every step taken on the way to purchasing our new home. I would highly recommend working with them.
Since 1915 · Crystal Lake, Illinois
111 years of knowing whose house that is.
A mortgage is a thirty-year relationship. We've been keeping ours in McHenry County for more than a century, and now in Wisconsin's Fox Valley too: the same hometown, the same address since 1961, and a giving mission that funds nonprofits within ten miles of a branch.
1915
Chartered Sept. 29. William Pinnow, also Crystal Lake's mayor, is the first president.
1932
Through the Depression, Home State becomes the only bank in Crystal Lake.
1947
72 N. Williams St. remodeled; employment at an all-time high.
1961
Moves to its current home at 40 Grant St.
1982
Route 14 banking facility opens; assets reach $82 million.
2023
Ribbon cutting for the 611 S. Main St. banking center.
Recognized locally, which is the point
- #1 Business Lender in McHenry County · 17 consecutive years, 2008–2025 (FFIEC CRA data)
- NW Herald Top Workplace · 2018, 2019, 2023, 2024, 2025
- United Way Community Impact Award · 2023
- Crystal Lake Chamber Banking Partner of the Year · 2020–21
- Home of the Sparrow Spirit of Home Award · 2025
- McHenry County EDC Business Champion · 2015
- Pride in Crystal Lake Award · 2015
- Robert O. Covey Business of the Year · 2005
“A bank that keeps its loans has to live with its decisions. We think that’s exactly how a lender should feel.”
From the blog
Local answers, written by the people who underwrite here.
IHDA and WHEDA assistance, McHenry County property taxes, Fox Valley closing costs, lake houses, PMI, and the loans only a portfolio bank can say yes to.
Are you in the right place?
- Make a payment
Already have a loan with us?
Make a payment, set up autopay, or reach servicing. Your loan is serviced in Crystal Lake.
- Personal & business banking
Looking for checking, savings, or business banking?
The mortgage team is one part of a full-service community bank with five McHenry County branches and a Fox Valley mortgage office.
- Partner with us
Realtor, builder, or attorney?
Pre-approvals your buyers can lean on, a portfolio that saves deals, and a lender who answers the phone.