Sponsor SignUp     Sponsor Login You and Your Credit Rating Definition of Credit:   Trust in one's integrity in money matters and one's ability to make payments when due. (Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary) Your credit reports are an ongoing look at how you manage your finances. You must know exactly what your credit reports say about your financial history before you apply for a mortgage, because the reports play an important role in the moregage approval process and in determining the interest rate and other loan terms that a lender offers you. Good credit requires three basic steps: Evaluating your current credit Establishing new credit (for first-time borrowers) Improving your existing credit Obtaining Your Credit Reports - 3 major credit repositories: Equifax P.O. Box 740241 Atlanta, GA 30371 (800) 685-1111 Experian P.O. Box 2104 Allen, TX 75013-2104 (888) 397-3742 TransUnion LLC P.O. Box 2000 Chester, PA 19022 (800) 916-8800 Credit Scoring - FICO scores 700 - 800 Excellent 620 - 700 Good 400 - 620 Fair Most Important Factors Affecting Credit Score Length of your credit history Payment History Outstanding Debt Credit Inquiries Types of Credit One does not need to have perfect credit in order to get loan approval. However, the better your score is, the lower your mortgage rate is going to be. Generally, any judgments, collections and tax liens need to be paid off prior to getting your loan approval. * Credit reports should be checked at least twice yearly for mistakes & errors *