Mortgage 101 - Credit Scores

Learn how to safely check your credit score, improve your credit score, and learn what credit scores qualify for the best mortgage terms. You can also check out our Mortgage 101 vlog series for more information and links.

How to Safely Check Your Credit Score 

Mitchell Bonte: A lot of people are scared about the idea of checking their credit report. What are some ways that they can safely check their credit score?

Milynda Hallermann: First thing, Credit Karma and some of the other free credit check sites that you may have access to, are not necessarily going to tell you your true score that the mortgage lender is going to pull. It is important to find out what your actual credit scores are. You can do that at annualcreditreport.com, a free website sponsored by the government that lets you check your credit scores and credit reports on each of the three major bureaus once a year at no charge. Those are going to be your actual credit scores.

How to Improve Credit Score 

Mitchell Bonte: What are some things that I can be doing to improve my credit score?

Milynda Hallermann: The first thing that you want to do is find out what your true credit score is. You will do that by going ahead and letting a mortgage lender pull your credit. Once they’ve done that,  there are a variety of things that we can do. From a short-term, rapid rescore that can help boost your credit to some longer-term credit solutions depending on what is in your individual report. Everyone is unique and so are their credit reports. It’s best to let a lender look at that early in the process.

What Credit Score Qualifies For The Best Mortgage Terms

Mitchell Bonte: What credit score would qualify me for the best mortgage terms? 

Milynda Hallerman: Generally, you will start to get good mortgage rates at about a 620. Now you can go lower than that, but if we can get you to a 620 it is beneficial. This will also help us figure out what type of loan is good for you, but it’s important to remember that your credit is more than just the score. You are an individual, your credit score is going to reflect that too.