@Comeback2021 wrote:Hi members!
My new home is scheduled for delivery in May 2023 so we are going through underwriting. Our rates are unable to be locked due to our delivery date is in flux because they are 2 months behind schedule.
My question is, the myFico mortgage scores are barely moving and are currently: EQ:662, TU: 614 and EX: 694. I have no late payments in the past 3 years, total utilization is 9% no negative items at all. This has been the story for at least 2 years. These scores are basically frozen in time it seems. What am I not doing or what else should I be doing to get these scores to increase in the next 3-4 months? I'm hoping to net a better interest rate or qualify for a NFCU conventional mortgage. Any thoughts or ideas while I have some time left to choose a lender.
Thanks in advance.
The best things you can do for your mortgage scores are:
1. Have all but one of your revolving accounts report at zero balance
2. Make no applications for new credit or anything that can trigger a hard pull
3. Open no new accounts
4. Have no revolving account reporting at 28% or greater
Those are the things you can do short of tackling your late payments. It's possible the late payments are what's holding your mortgage scores down. When you say "no negatives at all", that is not correct, as late payments are negatives.
@Comeback2021 wrote:Thanks @SouthJamaica this is a good point about the past lates. Regarding your 4 points, I've implemented or put into action all of these and I guess just need to wait and see. I was reading that the Mortage fico score 5 in particular is tougher on lates regardless of the "time since" which is + 3 years ago specifically related to lates.
Yes, the passage of time is the most important healer of all wounds in the mortgage scores. Which is why I have found them to be the hardest scores to budge.
@Comeback2021 wrote:Thanks @Anonymous ,
I may have mistyped. Its been 3+ years since my last late payment and unfortunately it did reach +90 days. Its an account I've disputed multiple times over the years and only affects TU. I have 9% utilization is overall all my tradelines are below 10% or lower individually (I'll be bringing them to zero or within 1% to create the most space possible for DTI). MyFICO shows my account mix as "Very Good" (all other categories are Good/Very Good).
My FICO 8 scores are EQ: 704, TU: 695: EX: 704 this score model moves regularly scores 5,4, and 2 do not update plus or minus each month in a way that you would epxpect. TU is particularly sensitive to even minor breaches in utilization thresholds. I want to think I can gain another 10 - 15 points in a few months but I'm not sure the way these scores are staying flat.
Ever since I opened a subscription with experian.com, where I can see score and data changes updated daily, I've noticed a big difference between the way EX FICO 2 and EX FICO 8 move. IMHO FICO 2 moves less frequently, and is affected less easily, but when it moves it moves in bigger increments. E.g, FICO 8 might go up 3 points, then another 4, then another 2, while FICO 2 doesn't move at all. Then one day FICO 8 will go up 2 points and FICO 2 will go up 11. So the mortgage scores can test one's patience.
@Comeback2021 wrote:@jamie123 @SouthJamaica agreed. My overall credit card utilization is about 9% right now but DTI is apparently calculated using credit card minimums along with loans and does not care about payment amounts.
Excluding a future rent/mortgage my DTI is ~16%. Do you think it's worth paying my credit cards to $0 or are they low enough that it won't matter also having UTI at 0% or 5%? In case your wondering I have only 3 credit cards and one revolving card (Amex). Each are 11%,13%, 9% utilization and Amex utilization is 4%.
As of today a past negative item (late) fell off.
Thoughts?
You would no doubt do better with your FICO scores by having 2 of the credit cards reporting zero balances.