We all want to buy a beautiful home and live in it but there are certain steps you must take to make it all happen! This “Buying a House Series” is made with years of experience on the best way to get your life in order so you can get a loan and find the home you want at the price you want. First things first! You need to find out what your credit score is and if you need to clean it up before getting preapproved for a loan.
What is a Credit Score / FICO Score?
Your credit score is a simplified calculation that shows the history of you paying back your debts. Lenders want to know your credit score because they will want to be paid back on time. Your credit score will show them your history and give them an idea of what interest rate to give you and how much you can afford.
How to Get Your Credit Score
There are three major U.S. credit bureaus, including Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Each of these credit bureaus provide different scores and reports but the scores should be roughly close to one another. There are numerous online that collect these scores and some give you advice on how to improve your scores. Also, you can always go to the specific services directly to get your scores. There are fees involved for most services.
How to Dispute Errors on Your Credit Score
The Federal Trade Commision completed a study that showed that 5% of credit reports contain errors so look at your report thoroughly and dispute any errors you find by sending a dispute letter to the bureau. Make sure to backup you claim with documentation. You’ll also have to contact the organization that provided the bad information (ex. bank or medical provider) and ask them to send the correct info to the bureau where the mistake was found. One the information is change you will see your score go up. Again their are services that handle this for you for a fee.
Ask For Forgiveness on Out of the Ordinary Mistakes
If you find an out of the ordinary late payment from a creditor you can contact them and in some case they strike it from the record if your payments were otherwise on time and in good order.
Improve Your Debt to Credit Ratio by Increasing Your Credit Limits
You can ask your credit card companies to increase your limits because this would be a quick way to increase your debt to credit ratio. A debt to credit ratio compares how much you owe to how much you can borrow.
Paying on Time Matters for Credit Scores
Make sure to find a way to always paying your bills on time and consider using automatic payments.
It’s Going to Take Some Time if You’ve Had Problems But You Can Rebound!
Negative items can stay on your report for up to seven years but paying your items on time makes a big difference in your payment history report right off the bat! Your payment history report accounts for 35% of your credit score!
Buying a House Series Posts
- Buying a House Series #8 - A Thorough Home Inspection is a Crucial Step To Buying a Home!
- Buying a House Series #7 - The Bank Will Need to Appraise the House You Want to Finance
- Buying a House Series #6 - Making an Offer On the Home You Want
- Buying a House Series #5 - Finding the Right Home For Your Family in the Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky Area
- Buying a House Series #4 - Tips On Finding the Right Real Estate Agent in the Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky Area
- Buying a House Series - #3 Tips on Finding Out How Much You Can Afford to Spend on Your Next Home
- Buying a House Series – #2 Tips on Saving Up for a Down Payment on a Home
- Buying a House Series - #1 How Do I Check My Credit Score? How Do I Clean Up My Credit Score?
- Buying a House Series #11 - Tips for a Successful Final Walkthrough
- Buying a House Series #10 - Knowing Where and How to Negotiate On Your Closing Costs
- Buying a House Series #9 - Tips On Getting The Best Home Loan in the Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky Area
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Tom has 20+ years experience in helping his clients buy and sell properties. Tom is also great resource for trusted vendors that can help assess and fix a property before buying or selling it.
About Tom Reese
Helping my clients attain their dreams has been the foundation of my success. With my strong attention to customer service, I have earned my clients continued support and referrals. Put my enthusiasm and dedication to work for you!
Call Tom anytime at (859) 393-1293