Selling a Home?
This blog content is available in video format, too, at: Insights to Credit Scores and Mortgage Lending
Let's Talk About Credit Scores and Mortgage Lending Programs
Hi, I’m Real Estate Mimi, leader of the Francis Home Team in beautiful Cary, North Carolina! I wanted to talk with you today about credit scores and obtaining financing for home mortgages. Buyers my Team works with frequently ask ‘what credit score is necessary to qualify for a mortgage?’ or ‘my credit score is XYZ – what mortgage rate will that get me?’
While those are good questions, it’s important to understand a couple of points about lending practices in 2011:
1. Mortgage programs are not one-size fits all. There are *a lot* of different mortgage programs available and each depends upon your individual situation. That’s one of the reasons it’s *really* important to partner with an experienced, knowledgeable and trusted mortgage lender to find the best program for you. We recommend Kevin Martini at www.KevinMartini.com because we know he will work as hard to find the best program for your specific circumstances, just like my Team sorts through the thousands of homes available to help you find the best options for you.
2. Credit scores are not one-sized either. Each company calculates your credit score somewhat differently so getting a 700 score from a car dealership, for example, doesn’t mean a mortgage lender’s score will be in the 700’s. Or even in the high 600’s, for that matter. In fact, we don’t really have *one* credit score – what we have is a bunch of credit history data and different companies ‘weight’ differently. The car dealership may not care that someone was evicted from an apartment for not paying their rent, or that they haven’t paid student loans, and place a very low ‘weight’ on those pieces of data. But you can bet that a mortgage lender will care *a lot* that someone didn’t pay their rent and place a high weight on that data. And the federal government cares *intensely* if student loans aren’t paid – so much that federally-guaranteed loans like FHA, USDA and VA will not be an option for folks who have not kept up with their student loans.
So what do aspiring home buyers do? Well, the point of this video blog is *not* to make you a mortgage expert – just to point out how important it is to partner with the *right* lender and the *right* real estate team.
So if you’re thinking about buying a selling a home in 2011 – give us a call at 919-882-3276 or email me directly at: Contact Real Estate Mimi
Your home is much to important to trust to anyone other than the Francis Home Team and our partners!
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