credit score Archives - Indiana 203K Mortgages

Don’t Let BLACK FRIDAY Get in the Way of Buying a Home!

Black Friday is nearly upon us. Newspaper inserts, emails and TV commercials abound with information about the “BEST DEALS EVER!”. You get to the store before the sun even thinks about coming up only to find that you can get an even better deal if you open a line of credit! STOP RIGHT THERE. If you are in the process of buying a home, or considering doing so anytime soon, we urge you to stop and collect your thoughts for a moment. What the heck does Black Friday have to do with buying a home!? That additional percentage off for opening a line of credit could be a deal-breaker when it comes to purchasing a home. If you are in the midst of the mortgage process with a good lender, you already know that you should hold off on opening new credit...

What’s Going On With Your Credit Score?

What’s Going On With Your Credit Score? Is your credit score good? Don’t feel bad if you don’t know. Many people don’t understand the credit scoring process; or even what these numbers actually mean. Here’s a breakdown of how credit score numbers measure up : 760-850 Excellent 700-759 Very Good 660-699 Good 620-659 Fair 580-619 Poor 500-579 Very Poor If you’re looking to obtain a mortgage, you should shoot for a credit score of 640 or higher. Most lenders require a credit score of at least a 640. The better your score, the better opportunity you have for a lower interest rate. So, what do you do if your credit reports make you want to hide under the covers and never use your credit cards again? Relax; you can...

A Common FHA Mortgage Question: Can Non-Traditional Credit Be Used?

In some cases, yes! There are several benefits of an FHA mortgage. One of them would be the easier credit guidelines that are utilized for mortgage approval. Credit reports that have credit history and credit scores are referred to as traditional credit. Is the most often used when lenders underwrite FHA mortgages. Occasionally, credit reports will not have this necessary information since some borrowers choose not to use traditional credit, such as bank credit cards. This type of qualifying requires using non-traditional credit for FHA mortgage approval. FHA underwriters are required to determine a borrower’s short term and long term bill paying habits. When traditional credit is not available, at least three credit references must be used to produce a credit...