Credit Advice for Home Buyers - 1

Welcome to Diane's Florida Homes!

I am in the Real Estate Business in Orlando, Florida. I work with Buyers and Sellers, most often in residential - single family and townhome/condo purchases. I have a very extensive background in the Credit Industry (my previous career in the Corporate world) and thought maybe I could be of some help to those wanting to understand a little more about credit. The criteria for qualifying to purchase a home has changed. There are stricter guidelines now due to the large number of foreclosures, and many other factors, and understanding how your credit report and score factor in to the process, is very important.

It is such a great time to be a buyer, especially a first time home buyer, because you can buy a nice property at a great value, and still purchase with little or no down. However, the reason I decided to start this blogging adventure is, some of my potential clients are running into issues because of the newer lending practices. FHA loans were always the way to go if you had some credit issues. It still is, but there are things you should know, before you start applying for a loan. 620 seems to be the magic number as a minimum credit score to get a loan. There are exceptions to this and you will need a mortgage lender or broker to determine what these exceptions are.

If you are one of those who are starting to think about being a first time home buyer, my first recommendation is to start by pulling your credit report to see what you are up against. If you don't already know this, you can pull a free report from http://www.annualcreditreport.com/. If you want to know what your credit score is, you can purchase this as an additional option. But remember, if you only want your credit report, it is FREE! You are allowed 1 free report from each of the three credit bureaus - Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union, once a year.

Start by choosing a bureau and pull the report. When you are reviewing it, first check to be sure your information is accurate. Then start looking at each item listed and be sure it is an account you opened. If there is anything on there that is not yours, you can dispute it online. I would start with just one bureau so it is not overwhelming.

This is all I have time for today. Till the next time...

Diane
diane@dianesfloridahomes.com
http://www.dianesfloridahomes.com/