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Articles Tagged With: FICO Score Requirements

June 20, 2013

FHA Loan Reader Questions: FHA Decision Credit Scores

By Joe Wallace

A reader asks, “Do all three credit scores on my credit report have to be in the 640 range in order to qualify for an FHA home loan?” FHA loan rules include a minimum credit score. Borrowers who have credit scores below this minimum are not eligible for FHA loan financing. But the minimums found in the FHA loan rules are not necessarily the minimums a financial institution will impose–and the bank is free to require a general higher standard applied equally to all borrowers according to Fair Housing laws. FHA loan FICO score minimums are as follows, as found on the FHA official site: However, many lenders will require a minimum credit score of 640. The reader wants to know if all his or her credit scores need to | more...

 

April 12, 2013

FHA Loans, Credit, and the Future Of Mortgage Lending

By Joe Wallace

A recent article in American Banker notes that while the housing market is definitely trying to recover, many borrowers face a difficult time getting a mortgage because of high credit standards. But the FHA and the Department of Housing and Urban Development are trying to work out solutions to this problem, one that according to the American Banker article by Kate Berry titled, FHA Working On Plan to Increase Lending, Reduce Banks’ Risk, would, “potentially release banks and mortgage lenders from liability for minor defects on FHA loans that meet current guidelines even if they ultimately default”. One of the problems–one addressed publicly by both the HUD Secretary and the head of the FHA–is the need for financial institutions to expand access to home loans for borrowers with credit scores | more...