Question about loan rates

[Banimal]

Hi,
I'm starting to think about buying a home. Last year I got out of all my debt (cc's, student loans, car loans) and now I'm thinking about buying something.

In terms of cash, I have enough for a 20% down payment (more If i really wanted to). I have a years worth of emergency funds in case I loose my job or I go crazy and decide not to work >.>
I also have a 401k I put in regularly.

My only issue is that I checked my credit score and it's about a 820/990 about a "B" rating. (when did they change it to a 990 scale?)

Can I still get a good rate even though I have a not so high score?

I checked my credit report and it said I don't have a high enough credit line on my cc's (~25k), or a mortgage to help me with my credit history. It also said that my last credit card I opened was too recent (4 years ago), I tried to increase my credit line but that didn't seem to help. I keep my credit card charges to less than 10% a month.

I'm 30 years old. There is no rush for me to buy anything I just want to know if I can still get a good rate.

Thanks.

[disneysteve]

I checked my credit score and it's about a 820/990 about a "B" rating. (when did they change it to a 990 scale?)

FICO has not changed their scale. The score you are referring to is not a FICO score. The range for FICO is 300-850.

If you want to know your actual scores, go to myfico.com and order them there. Anything else is not a real FICO score (especially if it goes up to 990).

[Banimal]

FICO has not changed their scale. The score you are referring to is not a FICO score. The range for FICO is 300-850.

If you want to know your actual scores, go to myfico.com and order them there. Anything else is not a real FICO score (especially if it goes up to 990).

Thanks for the link!

Edit:
I looked it up my FICO score is a 680. ( I apparently have a medical bill for 50 dollars I never paid 3 years ago. -_- ER visit for thousands and I forget to cover 50 bucks of it)

So my question still stands I suppose.

[skydivingchic]

Here is a table showing loan rates versus credit scores. The loan rates they show are old, but it should give you an idea of what to expect. A credit score of 680 yielded a rate ~0.5% higher than the best available rates. This one show 0.4-0.6% higher.

[jla85]

carpe diem

Banimal take advantage of the historic low rates. Today a 680 Fico will get you the rate that yesterday a 720 would've have gotten you. Also if you purchase with FHA the rates will be even better because the Gov't wants more people to own homes and reduce the the number of foreclosures. I had a 650 at the time I bought my home (I was loaded with loans at the time) I did an FHA loan and bought a property in MD in November of 2011 and my rate is 3.5% . Check rates at bankrate dot com and just go for it even if you got 5% keep in mind a mere four years ago people were paying 7% with outstanding credit scores. So don't let the opportunity pass you by. Shop smart but shop now!

[Banimal]

Hmmmmmmmm. Maybe I should be looking more seriously. Those rates are looking good now. I should probably figure out if I'm going to stay in one place for the next 5-10 years. Thanks for the help.