Why credit score is so important

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Wife and I are getting ready to buy our dream home so we went to talk to a mortgage broker to see where we stood. Turns out she's got one and only one big huge ding on her credit score, some bill that she never received or authorized and it's 60/90 days late. This single item is dropping her score 100 points, otherwise she'd be at 740+ (broker ran what if analysis stuff).

Anything under 740 and it's a sliding scale of fees due based on how much you put down and what your score is. A percentage of the mortgage amount ranging from .25 to as high as 3%. Even doing a typical 20% down this single 40 dollar charge that was late is costing us 10,000 dollars in fees.

Yeah, I'll be disputing that shit with the credit agencies and the debtor. Big mixup on card changes, name changes, her moving, etc. What's even more interesting is the broker said assets don't matter, all the banks care about is credit score and debt to income ratio (and appraisal, comparable properties). If we ran it on my credit/income alone I was approved for 4x my gross salary which is ridiculous.

Here's hoping 40 dollars doesn't cost us 10 grand. :(
 

zerocool84

Lifer
Nov 11, 2004
36,041
472
126
Yea it's really retarded how one small thing can drop your credit score so much.
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Yea it's really retarded how one small thing can drop your credit score so much.

That's what is so frustrating. We have zero debt besides my mortgage but that doesn't matter. The score isn't hurting us getting approved for the loan at all, but the banks are demanding that 10K fee based purely and solely on middle credit score and money down. If we went with 5 or 10% it would be even worse.

That's not a down payment or anything, that's a freaking fee. Put a match to it and set it on fire.:'(
 

sunzt

Diamond Member
Nov 27, 2003
3,076
3
81
That's what is so frustrating. We have zero debt besides my mortgage but that doesn't matter. The score isn't hurting us getting approved for the loan at all, but the banks are demanding that 10K fee based purely and solely on middle credit score and money down. If we went with 5 or 10% it would be even worse.

That's not a down payment or anything, that's a freaking fee. Put a match to it and set it on fire.:'(

That would mean your wife had a lower credit score than the middle one too. Is that from the same issue?
 

Capt Caveman

Lifer
Jan 30, 2005
34,543
651
126
Bought a new vehicle this week, my credit score allowed me to get .4% lower than their 2.9% promotional rate for financing.
 

Svnla

Lifer
Nov 10, 2003
17,986
1,388
126
Lesson for everyone. When you are about to buy something expensive such as a car or house, check your credit reports at least 90 days before you are about to do it so you have the opportunity to fix the errror(s).
 

Ms. DICKINSON

Golden Member
May 17, 2010
1,221
1
81
bit.ly
Not to brag. Mortgage broker ran mine today, came up 784. If you live in California and if you are first time buyer, look up CalFHA. You'll definitely get lower rates than other type of loans.
 

DangerAardvark

Diamond Member
Oct 22, 2004
7,559
0
0
Isn't it awesome that Goldman Sachs can borrow from the Fed at less than one percent, and you're getting nickeled and dimed over 40 bucks tarnishing an otherwise perfect credit score?
 

IndyColtsFan

Lifer
Sep 22, 2007
33,655
688
126
Yea it's really retarded how one small thing can drop your credit score so much.

Some of the things that lower your score are retarded. I've heard, for example, that when your credit report is reviewed, it will temporarily dip the score a few points. It is a crock and yes, I know what the "reasoning" is and it is still stupid.
 

IronWing

No Lifer
Jul 20, 2001
72,859
33,917
136
That 10k will be profit in a banker's pocket instead on being blown on some unnecessary, unproductive petit bourgeois crap. You should be celebrating the free enterprise system.
 

bfdd

Lifer
Feb 3, 2007
13,312
1
0
credit score is unimportant to me. it only represents that i have owed people money and paid it back. i'd just rather never owe anyone any money.
 

Capt Caveman

Lifer
Jan 30, 2005
34,543
651
126
credit score is unimportant to me. it only represents that i have owed people money and paid it back. i'd just rather never owe anyone any money.

Do you buy all of your houses and cars in cash? Don't borrow for investing?
 

bfdd

Lifer
Feb 3, 2007
13,312
1
0
Do you buy all of your houses and cars in cash? Don't borrow for investing?

I don't own a house because I can't afford one. I got rid of the vehicle I was making payments on because I realized I don't want to do that. So now I'm getting one straight up for cash. Sure it's used, but so what? I won't have to owe anyone a damn cent. It's not that I have a problem with credit or people using credit, I just don't want to. Owing someone something takes away my freedom to just walk away from shit and being a semi-responsible person I would be stuck paying it.
 

SMOGZINN

Lifer
Jun 17, 2005
14,359
4,640
136
IMHO credit scores are becoming less and less of a useful tool. We are going to face a real credit crisis soon when everyone's identity has been stolen at least once and no one has a good enough credit score to avoid 10k fees when buying anything.
 

LegendKiller

Lifer
Mar 5, 2001
18,256
68
86
Typical liberal douche

Personally, I hope it hits him too. Asshole constantly brags about his wife's high salary, she's a government worker, but then bashes "liberals" and "big government". He's your typical Repuglican "ME ME ME ME ME" jerkoff.