Please help with raising FICO score for mortgage!!

[GregB]

PMI is high enough that it can make it impractical to buy at all. If you don't have enough down to avoid PMI, I would try to wait and accumulate a higher down payment.

The only scores that will be used for a mortgage will be the EQ FICO sold here, a later version of the TU FICO sold here, and your EX FICO II. The EQ FICO for here is (virtually) the only score you can get online that will be one of the 3 scores used for your mortgage. They will used your middle score to qualify.

[Anonymous]

OK  thanks. It won't affect my score pulling those right?

[JM-AM]

Pulling your own scores never has an impact on your scores or credit.

[Anonymous]

I just recently raised my score to qualify for a mortgage. My loan officer suggested I pay the balances down to 50% of the limit so I did that plus paid some off and paid the smaller accounts to 30% of the limit. My score jumped over 50 points in a month and a half. Good luck with everything!

[marty56]

I would also use the debt snowball approach to paying down my CC debt.  Also remember that DTI can be an issure beyond your FICO score so the less debt you have, the better your look on MR.

[Crashem]

Donna, its all guesses, but I think some bad advice here. Assuming a set amount of money and short term need to get score up, here are my recommendations. First, you need to pay down any card over 80% util, 80% util or more hits your score much harder relatively. 2nd, take out those small balances to 0% as you will reduce fico hit for invididual cards with balances and sheer number of cards with balances. At this point, hard to say what to do next. I know next key number util wise is 30%, but others seem to think 50% is another key number. If you have time to experiment, try bringing one card down to 50% and see what happens and then bring it below 30% and see what happens. As for scores, your best bet is to but eq fico score from here as it is the most accurate score mortgage wise available for purchase.

[crunching_numbers]

Donna, you need to pull your EQ FICO score to see where you are actually at. Do not pay attention to the FAKO scores from the CB's.  The lender won't be looking at those numbers and there is no relationship between them and your actual FICO.  I agree with the advice about paying off the small cards and then putting the rest toward the close to maxed out card.  Will probably help your FICO the most.