What Does It Take?

Your Credit History

The minimum credit score for a standard first mortgage is now 620. Your credit should show no recent bankruptcies, foreclosures or short sales. If you need help bringing your credit score up to this standard, the Credit Union offers a credit counseling service for our members through GreenPath.

Your Savings

If you’re purchasing a home, funds for your down payment and closing costs can come from your own savings, a gift from a relative, a loan against a retirement plan or other financial asset, or a combination of the above. You’ll need 3% of the purchase price in your own money unless you can make a down payment of at least 20% of the purchase price. If you can put more than 20% down, all of the funds can come from a gift.

If you’re refinancing, you may not need to contribute any money except for the cost of a credit report and home appraisal.

For both purchases and refinances, the credit union currently lends up to 95% of the purchase price or value of the home.

Your Debts

Mortgage lenders look at your new mortgage payment, including taxes, homeowners’ insurance and any homeowners’ association fees, as well as the minimum monthly payments on other loans and credit cards you have, and compare the total to your monthly pre-tax income. (Student loans in deferment are also included in the monthly debt calculation even though payments may not have begun yet.) The lower your percentage of debt to income, the better qualified you are. If your own rough calculation puts your debt to income percentage close to or above 40%, we suggest you contact us for advice prior to buying or refinancing. We’ll review your situation and see if there are ways to reduce your monthly debt burden so that you are better qualified for

Questions?

Call our loan department at 410-534-4500 Ext. 503, or email ld@jhfcu.org.