Let’s Talk Credit: Understanding your Credit Score

Did you know?

• FICO is an acronym for Fair Isaac and Company.
• In the 1950’s, Fair Isaac and company created the mathematical calculation that is used to determine your credit score.  It is a tool that was designed to determine one’s credit score and dependability in paying bills.
• The terms credit score and FICO score are used synonymously.

Twenty or so years ago, lenders and banks would obtain the credit scores from the credit report as a reference point.  Loans were based on the overall financial strength of a borrower and their ability to repay a loan.  The Scores were important but they were not weighed nearly as they are today when making a decision.  If scores were on the low side, compensating factors were looked at such as: additional monthly reserves, the amount of credit accounts you carried, the amount of credit accounts that carry balances, do you have a retirement accounts, etc.  Banks in general want to see that you have at least 6 months of reserves in case you should leave your job and have a few months to carry the loan.  In the case where the loan is riskier or may be a low down payment, the lender will want to see more months of reserves, upwards of 12 months.

Your credit history shows the investor your ability to repay and manage debt.  The older the line of credit, the greater the chance of the scores being higher as credit is based on history.

In today’s lending market, your credit decision is first based on the score and can have an effect on your final mortgage rate.  In general, most banks will not lend on loans with scores that are under 640 unless there is an exception or compensating factors, but this is very limited.  Many banks today won’t go below 680 and don’t allow for any compensating factors as they feel these mortgages are far too risky to have on their books.  Based on current mortgage guidelines, if your score is under 740, it will affect the price of your mortgage rate and you are penalized.

When making a credit decision, banks and lenders will pull your credit report that offers three different reporting agencies;  Experian, Trans Union and Equifax.  The middle score of the three credit bureaus is used.  Over time, these scores will be very close to each other.  Consumers who are just starting to build credit may find a discrepancy in these scores as not all creditors are required to report to all three bureaus.

Look at how a Credit Score affects your Mortgage Rate

The higher your FICO scores the less you can expect to pay for your loan. For example, on a $200,000 Loan using a 30 YEAR FIXED RATE MORTGAGE.
Your FICO score is:	Your Interest rate is	And your payment is
740-759	3.875%	$940.47
739-720	3.990%	$953.68
700-719	4.125%	$969.30
680-699	4.250%	$983.88
660-679	4.500%	$1,013.37
640-659	4.625%	$1,028.28
As you can see in this example using a snapshot of the same day’s rate, a person with a FICO score of 760 or better will pay $88 less per month for a $200,000 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage than a person in the lowest score category. Mortgage Rates are only used as an example and do not reflect the interest rate market of today.

Mortgage programs such as FHA allow for low credit scores so that you can get the most competitive rate but this comes with a price.  FHA will charge mortgage insurance, a monthly fee as well as an up-front fee that will be rolled into the loan amount.  After these insurance fees, a mortgage rate of 4.00% will net a rate of 5.40% with the costs of mortgage insurance that is being charged.  A mistake many borrowers make; chasing the lowest interest without truly understanding the real costs of the mortgage.

Written by Bill Nickerson

 

6 Things to Know About Credit Scores

By Jessica L. Anderson | Kiplinger – Thu, Jul 12, 2012

FICO isn’t the only number in town. The score that counts is the one your lender uses.

1. There is no single number. The compilers of the widely accepted FICO credit score allow lenders to customize their system, so different lenders produce different scores. Plus, each of the credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax and TransUnion—has a proprietary scoring model. As if that weren’t enough, the credit bureaus together invented VantageScore a few years ago to compete with FICO.

2. Different scales, different scores. FICO scores range from 300 to 850. You’ll need about 760 or better for the best mortgage rates, but a score of 720 should be sufficient to get you the best deal on an auto loan. About 10% of lenders now use VantageScore, which ranges from 501 to 990 and has corresponding letter grades from A to F. The best rates go to borrowers with scores in the A range (above 900). If you are denied a loan or given less than the best rate, a lender must tell you the score it used, along with the corresponding range and factors that adversely affected your score.

3. Do a credit checkup. You can monitor your credit yourself by requesting a free report once a year from each of the credit bureaus through http://www.annualcreditreport.com. But the free report won’t include your credit score; you’ll pay about $8 to get the credit bureau’s proprietary number. The majority of lenders (especially mortgage lenders) use FICO scores, however, so if you’re in the market for a loan, that is the one you want. At http://www.myfico.com, you can get your credit report and a FICO score from Equifax or TransUnion (but not Experian) for $20.

4. Free doesn’t always mean free. If you are just looking for a ballpark estimate of how you’re doing, go to http://www.credit.com. You’ll get free estimates of your FICO score and VantageScore along with Experian’s own PLUS score. Sites such as http://www.freecreditscore.com and http://www.creditreport.com, however, will give you a free PLUS score, but only if you sign up for a free trial subscription to a credit-monitoring service; if you don’t cancel in seven days, the service costs $15 to $20 a month. Likewise, at MyFICO.com, you can get your FICO score free, but only if you accept a trial subscription to the com­pany’s Score Watch system.

5. Maintain credit health. All of the scores measure the same factors from the information in your credit file, and they all indicate the same thing: creditworthiness. Try to keep your credit-utilization ratio low—that is, be aware of the amount of debt you have compared with the amount of available credit you have. A history of paying your bills on time helps. Having a variety of loans—for example, a revolving line of credit (such as a credit card), a car payment and a mortgage—will boost your score, too.

6. It’s a moving target. The information in your credit files at the bureaus is continually changing—and so will your score. If you’re about to apply for a loan, check your reports for mistakes that could impact your score.  Pay down balances as much as possible. And if you’re not applying for a credit card or making a big-ticket purchase anytime soon, says Jason Alderman, a senior director at Visa, “it doesn’t matter what your score is tomorrow.”

This is great general information about FICO scores.  For more information about your credit score and how it affects your financing a home, please contact me either by email or phone.

Bill Nickerson NMLS #4194

Merrimack Mortgage Company  179 Great Road Acton MA 01720