@Anonymous wrote:Please enlighten me... I am subscribed to all 3 bureaus on here. When I open it it and see all my scores at the top, they all show me to have #'s in the "Very Good" credit ratings. When you click on say Equifax and scroll down, you see the same "overall" credit score you see when signing on and it shows "FICO Score 8".
Just below this section comes "COMMONLY USED IN MORTGAGE LENDING" heading and under that it shows a number for "FICO Score 5". This number is quite a bit lower than the overall number. In fact it drops me from "Very Good" to "Good" in Equifax. In the TransUnion and Experian versions, it drops my scores down to "Fair" credit ratings! Yet the 'Auto Lenders' and 'Credit Card Lenders' are the same "Very Good" ratings and higher credit score numbers. Then comes the "Newly Released Version" and those numbers are higher still.
The Mortgage scores are the only ones that drop. I am getting ready to refi. I contacted my present lender as well as the new lender. How do I know which figure they are looking at? I haven't submitted my packet to either just yet. I want to understand so I know better what interest rate I should be realistically looking at. I keep getting emails about the 2.17% but am being told 2's and upper 2's to lower 3's. I am not talking about buying down rates with points either. I would appreciate straightforward information. Neither lender I spoke with had a clue as to what I was talking about regarding the credit score numbers or credit report versions. I actually pulled up this sight to show my banker when discussing it with him. He was as lost as I am! Not what I was hoping to hear.
Please help me understand!
Thank you!
Sorry, those 3 are the real mortgage scores.
EQ 5, TU 4, and EX 2.
The lenders typically go by the middle score of the 3.
Great post BG, and I truly believe they go with the lower of scores. I applied a few months ago and although my numbers were up the mortage company used Fico Score 4 and low balled it at that. At that time my Trans Fico was 774 and I was told it their number was 735! I was pissed that they were trying to bump up a higher interest rate. I was quoted 3.35% and I feel that when I'm really ready to pull the trigger I'm gonna have to comparison shop to get the best rate.
In my research you have 15 to a few weeks if I remember to comparison shop without hard credit pulls. Get the best rate you can get and watch out for them greedy bastids.
@flexin222 wrote:Great post BG, and I truly believe they go with the lower of scores. I applied a few months ago and although my numbers were up the mortage company used Fico Score 4 and low balled it at that. At that time my Trans Fico was 774 and I was told it their number was 735! I was pissed that they were trying to bump up a higher interest rate. I was quoted 3.35% and I feel that when I'm really ready to pull the trigger I'm gonna have to comparison shop to get the best rate.
In my research you have 15 to a few weeks if I remember to comparison shop without hard credit pulls. Get the best rate you can get and watch out for them greedy bastids.
They use the middle 2/4/5 mortgage score, not the lowest. If it's FHA or if the lender wants to be able to sell the loan on to Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae, they can't do otherwise.
Wow. WOW!! I really appreciate all the great info! I have a couple glitches on my report thanks to an insurance company not paying a claim. It just popped up on there 8 days ago. 
I did contact the agent, again!, and let him know it had better get paid and removed from my CR assuring no liability on me as it is100% their negligence ( which he is completely aware of) and I want a copy directly to me for proof as well. He too was shocked it still was not paid. The second problem, I took a hit as a retail company went out of business and cancelled all their cards. I didn't think it should hurt me too much being a retail card, and never using it anyhow. It did, but it is bouncing back up. I have 10 CC's total (now 9, 5 retails), all seasoned but 1 and total a $55k limit. Keeping UT ratio between 2-6% depending when it cycles. I always pay them off every month and basically only use 4 for their rewards. And the 3rd is a 22 month old 30 day late on a mort payment, which I do disagree with. Grrrr... Have been over it with them a few times just because of the principle. They are no help. Maybe I'll send a letter... Regardless, I don't consider myself in too bad of shape but nevertheless, I still wanna reach those 800's. I should still get a great rate though. My ultimate goal however is debt free and my mark is just 5 more years away!