Terms of Use

Last updated: June 25, 2026

These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the website, tools, calculators, estimates, and content offered by The Rate Labat the-rate-lab.com ("The Rate Lab," "we," "us"). By using the site or submitting information through our forms, you agree to these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

1. Educational purpose

The Rate Lab provides educational information and financial estimates only. Nothing on The Rate Lab constitutes:

financial advice;
mortgage advice;
tax advice;
investment advice;
legal advice; or
appraisal services.

You should consult licensed professionals before making any financial decision. Content on The Rate Lab is for general informational purposes only.

2. What The Rate Lab is (and is not)

The Rate Lab provides educational calculators, comparisons, scores, and informational content to help U.S. homeowners think about refinancing, home value, equity, and home-related decisions. We are not a mortgage lender, broker, bank, credit repair organization, appraiser, or financial advisor. We do not:

Make or arrange loans or credit decisions;
Provide personalized advice for your full financial situation;
Perform appraisals or provide appraisal services;
Guarantee that you qualify for any rate, product, or lender;
Offer rate locks, Loan Estimates, or other TILA/RESPA disclosures on this site.

3. Estimates are illustrative — not offers

Every figure on The Rate Lab is a rough, illustrative estimate that may change over time as your inputs, market conditions, and available data change. This includes, without limitation:

refinance savings;
monthly payment;
mortgage payoff;
affordability;
home value;
adjusted home value;
renovation ROI;
refinance recommendations;
Mortgage Grade; and
equity estimates.

These estimates may be based on information you enter, public or third-party data, and advertised starting rates lenders publish on their own sites. They are approximations — not a quote, pre-qualification, pre-approval, commitment, or rate lock. Actual lender offers, appraisals, and market values may differ. Your actual rate, payment, fees, closing costs, value, and eligibility depend on the lender, your credit, income, assets, property, occupancy, program rules, and market conditions when you act. Always confirm numbers with a licensed professional before acting.

4. Mortgage Grade

Mortgage Grade is a proprietary educational scoring model created by The Rate Lab. It is not:

a credit score;
an underwriting score;
a lending approval; or
a guarantee that refinancing is beneficial.

5. Home value

Home values shown on The Rate Lab are automated estimates. They are not appraisals and should not be relied upon as the sole basis for:

buying;
selling;
refinancing;
insurance;
lending; or
taxation.

6. Renovation value

Projected renovation value increases and ROI are modeled estimates based on historical market information. No increase in resale value is guaranteed, and actual returns on any renovation may be higher or lower than projected.

7. Artificial intelligence

Some content and recommendations on The Rate Lab are generated or assisted by artificial intelligence. AI may make mistakes. You should independently verify any important financial information before relying on it. AI does not replace licensed financial professionals.

8. Third-party data

Information on The Rate Lab may come from a variety of sources, including:

public records;
market data;
mortgage rate providers;
lenders;
MLS or other public sources where applicable;
information you provide; and
third-party APIs.

We cannot guarantee the completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of information that comes from external sources.

9. Affiliate disclosure

The Rate Lab may receive compensation from lenders or partners. This compensation helps keep the platform free to use. Compensation does not guarantee:

approval;
rankings; or
recommendations.

Where placement may be influenced by a commercial relationship, we disclose it. Some lender links are affiliate links: we may earn a referral fee if you complete an action on a lender's site, at no added cost to you, and that fee does not change the rate or terms the lender offers you. We do not send your personal information to lenders through our affiliate links. When you leave The Rate Lab, the lender's own terms, privacy policy, and application process apply.

10. Rate alerts

Rate alerts are informational only. We cannot guarantee that they will capture:

every market movement;
every lender;
timing;
availability; or
pricing.

11. Your content and information

You retain ownership of the content you provide, including uploaded photos, renovation details, property notes, and documents. By providing content, you grant The Rate Lab a limited, non-exclusive license to store, display, and process that content as necessary to operate and provide the service to you.

The Rate Lab may use anonymized and aggregated information — which does not identify you — to maintain and improve its estimates, scoring, and recommendation models. You agree to provide accurate information to the best of your knowledge, to be at least 18 years old, and to use the site only for lawful purposes.

12. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

Misuse the site or attempt unauthorized access;
Scrape, overload, or reverse engineer our systems or software;
Use the site in a misleading or unlawful way; or
Violate applicable law (including laws on telemarketing, spam, or unfair or deceptive practices).

13. Disclaimers

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the site and all content are provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, or non-infringement. We do not warrant that the site will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that any estimate, score, or projection will match any lender, appraisal, or market outcome.

14. Limitation of liability

You remain solely responsible for your own financial decisions. To the fullest extent permitted by law, The Rate Lab and its operators will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for lost profits or savings, arising from your use of the site or reliance on any estimate, score, projection, recommendation, or lender link—even if we have been advised of the possibility. Our total liability for any claim relating to the site will not exceed the greater of (a) fifty U.S. dollars ($50) or (b) the amount you paid us to use the site in the twelve months before the claim (typically zero). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations; in those cases our liability is limited to the maximum permitted by law.

15. Indemnity

You agree to defend and indemnify The Rate Lab and its operators against claims arising from your misuse of the site, your violation of these Terms, or your violation of any law or third-party rights.

16. Changes

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will change the "Last updated" date when we do. Continued use of the site after changes means you accept the revised Terms.

17. Governing law and dispute resolution

Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict-of-law rules, except where federal law applies. If you are a consumer, mandatory consumer protection laws in your state of residence may apply to the extent they cannot be waived.

Binding arbitration

To the fullest extent permitted by law, any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the site that cannot be resolved informally will be resolved by final and binding arbitration administered in the State of California, rather than in court, except that either party may bring an individual claim in small-claims court. Either party may seek injunctive relief in court to protect intellectual property or unauthorized-access claims.

Class action waiver

You and The Rate Lab agree that each may bring claims against the other only in an individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective, or representative proceeding.

30-day opt-out

You may opt out of this arbitration and class action waiver by emailing hello@the-rate-lab.com within 30 days of first accepting these Terms, stating your name and that you wish to opt out. Opting out will not affect any other part of these Terms.