Believe it or not, I never asked them what my credit scores were based on their pull. All I know was that my mid-score was over 640. Credit scores don't matter for USDA Direct unless you have an instance of what they call "Unacceptable Credit". A middle score of 640 allows them to overlook these instances which would otherwise be an automatic denial. If you don't have any, your credit score could be 500 and you could still be approved. I would STRONGLY recommend that you download and read the "USDA Direct Single Family Housing Loans and Grants Field Office Handbook" from the USDA website (HB-1-3550 DLOS Field Office): http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/handbooks.html
All of your questions can be answered somewhere in this handbook. The other thing you will learn is that not all of the people in the USDA office are familiar with all of the rules and regulations concerning this loan. The handbook is the "bible" so to speak, so whatever it says given a specific topic is the final answer. On several occasions I have had to reference specific section when my office was telling me something that was different than what was in the handbook. Every time, the person at the USDA has revised her decision so that it agrees with what was in the handbook. It's boring reading but a fantastic resource to make sure your loan is being processed correctly. It's unfortunate that the burden falls on the applicant, but my loan would have been kicked out of the program a long time ago had I not had the handbook to reference.
