@Anonymous wrote:The Verizon collection is not on EX
That's the one I would be working on to get a PFD and get those other 2 scores up to around the same as Exp.
@Anonymous wrote:Yes I have started the process just wanted to see if there is any quick way to come up some points for a better rate. Then long term getting into the 700s. I am not doing a jumbo at all
Gotcha, but again my understanding is that you just need to hit 620 and you'd get the same rate for a VA loan as someone with an 850 (although someone with an 850 may actually be able to secure better-than-VA terms). I think your plan of having one card report a balance under 9% and the rest zero should boost the remaining two scores where you need them for now. And just to add a little encouragement, my scores went up about 15 points after my first mortgage payment reported to the CBs.
No problem at all; I didn't realize you were working with a lender that would go lower than 620 so this all makes much more sense now. Sorry that I didn't pick up on that prior. My last advice to you would then be watch how the rates are doing and if you don't think you can get the middle above 620 (you are SO close so hopefully the letting only one card report a balance over 1% but less than 9% will get you over the mark), take the slightly higher rate. You can ALWAYS do a VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan (IRRRL) in the future as long as you are going to a lower rate, generally with no out-of-pocket expense and a month of no mortgage payment. So if you could get 4.791 as a "higher risk," (I assume this is a 4.75% rate) lock it in if it looks like the regular 30 year rates are going to move to or past that mark. I started at 4.75% and when almost everyone was having a difficult time getting approved for home loans, my agent's finance office began calling vets to do the IRRRL since they are a sure thing and I refinanced at 3.75%. Fast forward another 4 years and the actual lender handling my mortgage called me to drop me to 3.50%. As long as the savings outweigh the costs, there is no limit on the number of times you can do a IRRRL.
Also if you can get above 620, you may want to look into other lenders like PenFed or Navy Federal. Navy's 30 year is 3.25% with 0.5 points which works out to 3.535. I would actually switch to them myself but I don't have any real complaints with my current lender and the half a point for me would actually end up costing me a little money. I am watching those like a hawk on the off chance they do go lower, though, as I'd like to give NFCU my mortgage to get good terms on more lending products from them in the future. I would come out of the garden in a heartbeat for 3.25% with no points or equivalent with points and a lower rate.