The Top 10 Do’s and Don’ts During the Loan Process*
Don’t Apply For New Credit Of Any Kind - If you receive invitations to apply for new lines of credit, don’t respond. If you do, that company will pull your credit report and this will have an adverse effect on your credit score. Likewise, do not establish new lines of credit for furniture, appliances, computers, etc.
Don’t Pay Off Collections Or Charge-Offs - Once your loan application has been submitted, don’t pay off collections unless the lender specifically asks you to in order to secure the loan. Generally, paying off old collections causes a drop in the credit score. The lender is only looking at the last two years of activity.
Don’t Close Credit Card Accounts - If you close a credit card account, it can affect your ratio of debt to available credit which has a 30% impact on your credit score. If you really want to close an account, do it after you close your mortgage loan.
Don’t Max Out Or Overcharge Existing Credit Cards - Running up your credit cards is the fastest way to bring your credit score down, and it could drop up to 100 points overnight. Once you are engaged in the loan process, try to keep your credit cards below 30% of the available credit limit.
Don’t Consolidate Debt To One Or Two Cards - Once again, we don’t want you to change your ratio of debt to available credit. Likewise, you want to keep beneficial credit history on the books.
Don’t Raise Red Flags To The Underwriter - Don’t co-sign on another person’s loan, or change your name and address. The less activity that occurs while your loan is in process, the better it is for you.
Do Join A Credit Watch Program - Your bank, credit union or credit card company may be able to provide you with a free credit watch program that can alert you to any changes in your credit report. This can be a safeguard to help you intervene before the underwriter sees a problem.
Do Stay Current On Existing Accounts - Late payments on your existing mortgage, car payment, or anything else that can be reported to a credit reporting agency can cost you dearly. One 30-day late payment can cost anywhere from 30 to 75 points on your credit score.
Do Continue To Use Your Credit As You Normally Would - Red flags are easily raised within the scoring system. If it appears you are diverting from your normal spending patterns, it could cause your score to go down. For example, if you’ve had a monthly service for Internet access billed to the same credit card for the past three years, there’s really no reason to drop it now. Again, make changes after the loan funds.
Do Call Your Loan Consultant - If you receive notification from a collection agency or creditor that could potentially have an adverse effect on your credit score, call us so we can try to direct you to the right resources and prevent any derogatory reporting to the credit bureaus.
* Source: Based on The Top 10 Credit Do's and Dont's During the Loan Process, provided by Credit Resource Corp.