5 Factors of FICO Scores that Determine Your Buying Future

Looking to buy or sell a home in Merrimack Valley? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at(978) 852-3001 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Thanks for tuning in today. Let's talk about FICO scores.

Fair Isaac Corporation investigates the history and creditworthiness of clients and customers across the country. There are a number of different credit agencies such as Experian, Equifax, and Transunion, which actually compile data with billions of pieces of information regarding creditworthiness. When you're selling or leasing to a prospective client, it's important that you understand their creditworthiness is a criteria, which in most cases will enable us to predict the creditworthiness of a prospective client. 

There are five different categories of payment history, which are reviewed in order to determine creditworthiness. 

1. Payment history is the first, which accounts for 35% of the FICO score.
2. Amount owed compromise is a 30% factor.
3. Length of credit history is 15%.
4. Newly opened accounts and inquiries amount to 10%.
5. The mix of credit cards, retail accounts, installation loans, installment loans, and mortgage loans determines the final 10%.

"Credit agencies compile data with billions of pieces of info regarding creditworthiness."

The credit score itself can range from between 350 to 850 as far as a general score, and those scores 720 and above are considered excellent. Between 680 and 719 is good, and the scores from 620-679 generally garner a closer look from lenders. Scores between 585 and 619 put someone at a higher risk for default, and a score of 584 or below makes the lender question whether or not to make credit available.


If you have any questions about creditworthiness or any other real estate factors, please feel free to reach out to me today. I'd be happy to speak with you.

Changes Enacted by the NAR Affect Our Local Board

Looking to buy or sell a home in Merrimack Valley? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at(978) 852-3001 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

I wanted to talk about some of the advancements that are taking place on our local real estate boards in terms of arbitration disputes and resolution. Ombudsmen are actually now being made available to local real estate boards to try and help resolve conflicts or misunderstandings or communication breakdowns. 

One of the great benefits is that it helps parties when either clients or brokers or agents get into disputes about a certain transaction. An ombudsman will be appointed in such a way that they can help achieve a quick resolution of any kind of a dispute.

Some changes were enacted by the new committee for the National Association of Realtors in 2015. 

• Mandatory processes to ensure timely payment of arbitration awards
• Streamlines grievance committee review or ethics complaints and arbitration requests 
• Steps to prevent costly and unnecessary continuances
• Expedited administrative processing and time frames for arbitration
• Enhancements to the National Association of Realtors model citation policy and ombudsman policy
• Simplification of disclosure requirements in print and online advertising
• Enhancements to encourage informal dispute resolution settlement
• Strengthen procedures to penalties for non-compliance to discipline
• New effective dates of policies adopted by the NAR Board of Directors to assure timely implementation of new initiatives

If you have any questions, thoughts or concerns about arbitration or disputes, please feel free to reach out to me.