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Ok so correct me if im wrong because im really new to this.
Me and wife just took the plunge to start home shopping and we were referred to a real estate agent by a friend. She then referred me (the agent) to a lender. We spoke briefly and she asked me to fill out a application on her webiste for the loan, we did that and waited.
She emailed me after me emailing her about the status of the application. Right after i emailed her i got a notification from my CK app that said i had a new inquiry (and a minus 5 points even though she said it would harm my credit) so im assuming she had just ran the application. She had informed me that me and my wife had a 618 9very unlikely but im new to this) score and we needed a 620 to be approved for a fha loan.
Ok the weird part is that i pulled myfico scores are nowhere near a 618. My scores through the CreditCheckTotal site were EX661 TU672 EQ633. So what gives? even more so if she ran my wifes credit why didnt she get the same alert that i got? So im a bit bummed about the ordeal, I know our scores are stellar but we have made great strides in the last few months with the scores. I was at 529 two months ago. So are we being played? or am i abit overly optimistic regarding our scores in refernce to a fha approval.
Should we attempt to go with different lender? or will my score drop again with the credit pull or should we continue with our credit score improvement journey and try again in march?
Thank you for your time
CCT shows you FICO 08 scores only, MyFICO's 3 bureau reports gives several real FICO scores, including the ones used by mortgage lenders. You can order all three reports for a total of about $60 on this site.
If your scores are just borderline, I would wait six to 12 months and try to get them up so you are 10-20 points above the minimum required. Scores do bounce around and you could be fine on Friday but SOL on Tuesday based on a minor score change. Also, if you can try to clean up your reports a little bit, make sure you have only one revolving card reporting a balance that's not more than 1% of total available revolving credit limit.
Not sure fi they pulled your wife's reports, but since they use the middle mortgage FICO score of the person with the lower middle score, if your scores didn't make the cut, there would be no need to run hers.
ok thanks that makes sense, i do have a new card that increased my credit limit by a 1000 dollars but it hasnt been posted yet. im assuming that when it does show up it will decrease my credit utilization and increase my credit score. i will continue to be patient and try again in may. Thanks for the reply and if anyone else has good info keep it coming. Im new to this and looking to learn as much as i can
Read the stickies above the mortgage forum so you have an idea about FICO mortgage scores. As Ch7Rebuilding pointed out, it is a different scoring formula from FICO 8 which is what CCT uses. There are many versions of FICO so you need to know what the lender will be using for your underwriting criteria (whether it is bankcards, auto loans or mortgage loans). All mortgage lenders use mortgage scores rather than FICO 8 (except for 1 lender of which I am aware) and even most portfolio lenders use mortgage scores rather than FICO 8.
It is iimportant to note that even more important than your score is your debt ratios. While you are paying down your current debt for better scores, it will also benefit your debt ratios by reducing your outstanding debt. Search here in this forum for an explanation of front end and back end ratios so you have a handle on what you need to do, if anything.
Take the time to visit the rebuilding forum so you can see tips to increase your scores. It will be worth your effort to do so.
EDIT: Quite a few mortgage lenders require a min mortgage score of 620, some require a min mid-score of 640 and others require a min mid-score of 660. Big box banks are more conservative right now (tighter criteria). You would be better off going to a mortgage banker rather than a bank. A mortgage banker only does mortgages, nothing else. They originate, underwrite and fund their own loans. They have the capacity to broker a loan out, but they mainly fund their own loans and then sell them to one of the big box servicers IME. That is a good thing.
By the way, stop adding cards and stop any applications while you pay down your debt.
There was a change to how the monthly payment is calculated when your student loans are in deferment. You probably want to take them out of deferment and have them on a payment plan. Read this link for details: http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Mortgage-Loans/FHA-changing-guidelines-on-deferred-student-loans-6-1...
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