Loan Estimate Tolerance Check 2026
A loan estimate tolerance check compares fees on your Loan Estimate (LE) and Closing Disclosure (CD) under the TRID rule. Some fees can't increase at all, some only up to 10%, and some have no limit. If a lender breaks the rule, RESPA requires they refund you within 60 days.
| Zero-Tolerance Items | |
| Origination fee (LE → CD) | — |
| Transfer tax (LE → CD) | — |
| 10% Aggregate Bucket | |
| Recording fees | — |
| Lender-required services | — |
| 10% bucket: LE total → CD total | — |
| Unlimited (Informational) | |
| Appraisal change | — |
| Title insurance change | — |
| Homeowners insurance change | — |
| Total RESPA refund owed | — |
A loan estimate tolerance check compares the fees disclosed on your initial Loan Estimate (LE) against the final Closing Disclosure (CD) and flags any item that increased more than the law allows. Under the TRID rule at 12 CFR §1026.19(e), each closing-cost line item falls into one of three buckets: zero-tolerance, 10% aggregate tolerance, or unlimited tolerance.
How TRID Tolerance Buckets Work
Zero-tolerance items cannot increase at all from LE to CD. These include lender fees (origination, processing, underwriting), transfer taxes, and any fees paid to an affiliate of the lender. If they go up by even $1, the lender must refund the full overage. 10% aggregate tolerance applies to recording fees and to lender-required services where the borrower did not shop independently — the sum of these can increase, but the total cannot exceed 110% of the LE total. Unlimited tolerance covers items the borrower shopped for, prepaid interest, property insurance, and amounts in escrow. These can change without triggering a refund.
When a Refund Is Owed Under RESPA
If the tolerance is breached, RESPA at 12 CFR §1024 and TRID at §1026.19(f)(2)(v) require the lender to refund the overage within 60 days of consummation. The refund must be paid directly to the borrower or applied to closing costs as a lender credit on the CD. Lenders can avoid violations by issuing a revised LE within three business days of a "valid changed circumstance" — but not for typical underwriting tweaks.
Valid Changed Circumstances
A lender may legally re-disclose and reset the tolerance baseline only if there is a valid changed circumstance: borrower-requested change, new info the lender did not previously know, extraordinary event beyond anyone's control, or borrower's eligibility change. Routine "we forgot to include this" excuses do not qualify. The CFPB enforces this strictly — Wells Fargo, Citi, and several non-bank lenders have been fined seven figures for tolerance violations.
What To Do If Your Lender Violated Tolerance
(1) Print the LE and CD side-by-side. (2) Use this tool to bucket each fee. (3) Send a written demand to the lender citing 12 CFR §1026.19(e)(3) — they have 60 days to cure. (4) If no refund, file a complaint at CFPB complaint portal. (5) For amounts > $500, consider a TILA/RESPA private right of action. The statute of limitations is one year for damages, three years for rescission of certain claims.
Last updated May 2026. Sources: CFPB Reg X (12 CFR §1024) and TRID (12 CFR §1026.19(e), (f)).