5 Steps: How to Fix My Credit Score to Buy a House

Not only is buying a house one of the most expensive purchases you will make in your lifetime, but it can also be pretty stressful if you are unsure what is in your credit report.  Many future homeowners wonder how to fix my credit score to buy a house?

Picture this: You have spent several months thinking that you might be ready to buy a house; maybe you start looking at all of the homes for sale in your local area, you go to some local open houses, you spend some time talking to several real estate agents and you may think you are finally ready to get serious about buying a house.

What do you do next?

There are a few things all potential home buyers should do before talking to a mortgage lender. The following 5 steps will make sure everything is in order on your credit report so you are less likely to be surprised by any errors that may be reported in your personal credit report.

• Request your Free Credit Report
• Review all information in your credit report
• File a Dispute for incorrect data if necessary
• Wait for a response from creditor or from credit bureau (usually 30 days)
• Verify that the incorrect information has been corrected or removed from your credit report

First, you should get your free annual credit report.  After you receive your free credit report, review all of the records in your report and make sure all of the accounts belong to you. It is not uncommon for there to be errors in your credit report.  Just remember that this is the reason why it is so important that you do this review before going to talk to a mortgage lender about home financing. You will be able to file disputes with the credit bureau for all incorrect information and have it fixed before you apply for a mortgage. It generally takes the credit bureau about 30 days to review your disputes and depending on the outcome, they will either leave the information alone if it is accurate, correct it or remove it from your credit report file. Finally, after you have received notification from the bureau that the information has been updated, you should be able to request a new credit report for verification and meet with a mortgage lender feeling confident about the information contained in your personal credit report as you continue searching the local houses for sale.

Best of Luck as you search new homes for sale!

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