How's Your Credit?

You might think that the home buying process starts with getting pre-approved for a loan or with choosing a real estate agent. In reality, the home buying process begins and ends with your finances. Saving your money for a down payment is a good idea, but if you don't have a strong credit score to back it up, you could end up renting for another couple of years in Cary, North Carolina until you improve your score.

A FICO score is a collection of your years of credit history based on a model developed by Fair Isaac and Company. Most people usually have a score of 650, but scores range from 300 to 850. With the change in the economy, however, some borrowers have seen their score lowered because of loss of employment, delinquent credit card accounts, or credit card accounts closed by the lender due to inactivity. Some of the factors in deciding your FICO score are:

• Payment History — How many times do you make late payments?
• Credit to Debt Ratio — How much do you owe versus how much credit you have available?
• Credit Inquiries — Do you have too many open accounts?
• Types of Credit — Do you have a healthy mix of loans and credit cards?

Lenders want to make sure that giving you a loan is a safe move. Your credit score gives lenders a view of what type of borrower you'll be solely because of your credit history. Because of the shift in the economy, most home buyers should have scores in the range of 740 or higher to get an acceptable interest rate. If your score is less than that, you can still qualify for a loan, but the interest paid over the life of the loan could be more than double the amount of an individual with a better FICO score.

Improving your FICO is the best way to ease into owning a home. Contact us and we can help you get on the right track to the home of your dreams.

There are plans to raise your score. Building your FICO score takes time. It can be hard to make a significant stride change in your FICO score with quick fixes, but your score can improve in a year or two by monitoring your credit report and by using credit extended to you to raise your score, instead of ruin it. The most important thing is to know your FICO score. You'll improve your credit score by using these helpful hints:

• Keep your cards active. Whether you have older cards, or are just getting started with credit, use your cards so that your accounts maintain an active status. But, make sure you pay them off in one or two payments.
• Keep up with payments. Your FICO score plummets with each account that goes to collections. It's one of the reasons people who have recently experienced job loss see the biggest dip in their credit score. Yes, it takes longer to build up your credit with payment history, but it's the most reliable way to show that you're responsible enough to make payments to a bank.
• Ensure that your credit history is correct. If you find mistakes on your credit report, contact the bureau requesting that the item be removed. If you have a common name or the same name as a family member, you'll want to give extra care to make sure the activity reported is correct.
• Spread your debt around. At first, this doesn't sound like a good idea. But, you want to avoid of having one card that is maxed out and have the rest of your cards at a zero balance. It's better to have each of your cards at a smaller balance than to have the majority of your debt transferred to a single card.
• Apply for gas station cards or department store credit. For those who have non-existent credit or below average credit, chain store credit cards and gas credit cards are ways to begin your credit history, increase your credit limits and stay on top of your payments, which will raise your credit. You should always beware of maintaining a high balance for too long because these types of cards usually have a surprisingly high interest rate.

Knowing the methods you can use to improve your FICO score, you can move toward becoming a homeowner. Know that when it's time to apply for a loan to purchase a house, you'll want to keep your credit inquiries within a two-week window to avoid a negative mark on your credit score. With the help of RE/MAX Performance, the loan application process can be a stress-free experience so you, too, can become a homeowner.

Learn more about FICO scores at myFICO.com, Fair Isaac's informational site and review your credit history for free at annualcreditreport.com. And, for a small payment, you can get your FICO score from each bureau on their websites: equifax.com, experian.com and transunion.com.