Lake Tahoe Real Estate Buyers, How is Your Credit?

Now is the perfect time for all of the South Lake Tahoe home buyers that are still on the fence to make sure that their credit is ready for the big day. There is nothing more disappointing than finding a great deal on the perfect home, and finding out that you can’t qualify  for a loan because of bad credit.

The first step is to get a copy of your credit reports. You can get a free copy once a year if you go to www.annualcreditreport.com . If you have already received your free credit report in the last 12 months, you can purchase a copy from www.myfico.com . The cost is about $16 for a report from one credit bureau or $48 for all three.

Once you have a copy of your credit reports, look at them very carefully for mistakes. Make sure that your name and address is correct (this will not affect your credit score, but is still important). Make sure that loans and accounts that have been paid off or closed show a zero balance. Make sure that there are no accounts on your reports that do NOT belong to you. If you do find something wrong with your report, you will need to file a dispute with each credit bureau that has the incorrect information. This may take a while, but it will be worth the time and effort when it comes time to apply for a loan.

Here are some tips for raising your credit scores:

• Keep credit card balances below 30% of their limits
• Make sure payments are on time, and pay at least the minimum payments on all accounts.
• Avoid signing up for new credit cards, especially at stores just to receive the 10% off your first purchase. All credit inquires will lower your score.
• Job stability- a long term job of a year or more will help your score
• For more tips go to myfico.com

You would be surprised how ofter mistakes on credit reports happen. I was caught off guard when I checked my score. I had been sent to collection for a $28 medical bill that had been sent to my physical address. I recieve my mail at a  P.O. box, so I had never received the bill. My credit score had gone down by about 80 points. I had to file a dispute, write letters, deal with the collection agency, hospital, and the credit bureaus. I finally had the issue resolved and it was well worth the hassle.

Once you have a good credit score you can be confident that you will be able to obtain a loan with a good interest rate. When you are ready to start looking at homes for sale in South Lake Tahoe, make sure that you sign up for new listing notification on my website. The new listing notification will allow you to choose your search criteria and have new listings e-mailed to you as they are entered onto the South  Lake Tahoe MLS. Another great tool is my current list of foreclosures for sale in South Lake Tahoe blog post. I update this post daily and have all of the foreclosures on the South Lake Tahoe MLS, foreclosure price reductions, and foreclosures that are in escrow.

For more information about foreclosures in South Lake Tahoe, the South Lake Tahoe MLS, or South Lake Tahoe Real Estate contact Brent and Jill Johnson today!