When you apply for credit from a mortgage company, credit card providers or an auto finance company, you authorize them to "inquire" to a credit bureau to get a copy of your credit report. You would later notice that their credit inquiries show as an "inquiry" on your credit report.

Fair Isaac Corporation developed the technologies behind credit scores, which is why lenders may refer to your credit score as your "FICO score." Fair Isaac Corporation says that for inquiries for a new mortgage made in a short period Read the rest of this entry »

This is going to come across as a lecture, and well, it is. I have had some loans come close to being denied, because people cannot control their credit card use. When you apply for a mortgage don't Read the rest of this entry »

The Grinch, which in this story is Fannie Mae, just stole Christmas. I must admit, that is dramatic, and not literally true. But they did potentially just steal your mortgage.

Fannie Mae’s current rules allow an underwriter to exclude revolving debt (i.e. credit card debt) from the debt-to-income (DTI) ratio if there are ten or fewer payments remaining. Fannie Mae will now require all revolving debts to be included in the DTI ratio regardless of Read the rest of this entry »

There are a variety of foreclosure alternatives available to homeowners. And there are also a variety of ways that these alternatives impact your credit. Read the rest of this entry »

Contrary to popular belief, having a mortgage lender, mortgage broker, bank or credit union pull your credit report does NOT hurt your credit score. I would like to catch the person that started this myth, to give him a piece of my mind. If I had one dollar for every person that said,“ please tell me what I can qualify for but do not pull my credit because I know it hurts my credit score”, I would Read the rest of this entry »

Fannie Mae has some new guidelines going into effect as of June 1st 2010 in regards to credit reports. Fannie Mae wants to make sure that borrowers' overall credit situations have not changed between the time of application and settlement, and to make sure that there are no new undisclosed debts. So, be aware that lenders are going to start Read the rest of this entry »

Don't let your credit score fall down. There are many current homeowners who can afford their mortgage, but are upset that their home is not worth what it once was. These people are called "strategic defaulters". But walking away from a mortgage, especially one you can afford, is a bad idea. Read the rest of this entry »