Do any of the following sound familiar? “Christy, can you lend me $100? I’ll give it back to you on payday.”; “Oh no, I have an overdraft in my account. That stupid bank took too long to clear my transactions.”; or “Don’t pick up the phone, it could be the bill collectors.” If any of these statements sound like you, then chances are you may not quite yet be mortgage ready. RELAX, we have all been there!! It is important not to beat yourself up about this, but rather to ask yourself what can you do to actively get yourself out of the situation, and more importantly to never find yourself here again. Here are some small, yet extremely helpful tips you can use to get your credit back on track and get you on the track of mortgage readiness!!
1) Check your credit score- use a credit monitoring program such as True Credit to ensure your score is being rebuilt and to monitor possible threats to your score. Credit Score monitoring also serves as great positive reinforcement. It can be motivating to see how each on-time payment and cleared off account improves your score.
2) Pay off future bills on time.
3) Pay off all collection accounts and have the agencies reflect the payoff on your credit. In addition, get a note from collection agencies verifying the account has been paid off.
4) Pay off debt rather than moving it around.
5) Do not close a credit card until it’s been paid off.
6) Protect your credit from fraud and identity theft.
7) Be patient!! Remember, the simple goal of rebuilding your credit is to show that you can be trusted with borrowed money. The simple way to do this is to pay back the money you owe and on time from now on. If you can do that and consistently, you will eventually prove that you are mortgage ready. I followed all of these steps and within 2 years I was approved for a mortgage. You can do it too!!
If you have been in this situation, feel free to leave some tips on what worked for you in rebuilding your credit.
Carmelle
