Does your credit report have skeletons hiding in the closet? Many are startled at what is lurking on their credit report when they’re getting ready to buy or refinance their home. [Read more…]
Charge-Offs Aren’t Forgiven Debt — Here’s What They Mean for Your Mortgage
August 1, 2012 by 1 Comment
Part of what I do as a mortgage advisor is review credit reports — and I’m still surprised how often people think a debt that’s been “charged off” means it’s gone. It isn’t. A charge-off is the creditor writing the debt off their books for accounting and tax purposes — it doesn’t erase what you owe, and it doesn’t mean a mortgage underwriter will ignore it.
A client once asked me to help her mother get a mortgage. A couple years earlier, her mom had voluntarily surrendered a car back to the lender. She assumed that meant a straightforward repossession on her credit report, and that enough time had passed to qualify. What she didn’t realize: the lender had charged off the remaining loan balance after taking the car back, and for mortgage purposes, that balance was now sitting on her credit report as a collection — a separate issue from the repo itself. [Read more…]
Shallow Credit: What It Is and Why It Can Affect Your Mortgage Approval
August 5, 2011 by 2 Comments
You can have a decent credit score and still run into problems qualifying for a mortgage. One of the most common — and most misunderstood — reasons is something called shallow credit. Here’s what it means and what to do about it.
