How to shop for a mortgage without hurting your credit score
Key takeaways
- Getting preapproved for a mortgage usually means undergoing a hard credit pull, which causes a dip in your credit score.
- While soft credit check mortgage preapprovals are hard to come by, a prequalification can help you explore loan options without the credit score hit.
- If you do pursue preapproval, do it with several lenders at the same time to minimize the credit impact.
Comparing mortgage offers helps you find the lowest possible rate, which can ultimately save you thousands in interest. If you’re not careful about how you comparison-shop, though, you could unnecessarily hurt your credit score, which can make it harder to qualify for the best mortgage rate. With some planning, this drop doesn’t have to be the case.
Here’s how to shop for a mortgage without hurting your credit.
How can shopping for a mortgage impact your credit?
When exploring mortgage options, your credit score typically only takes a hit when you obtain a loan preapproval from a mortgage lender. That’s because getting preapproved involves a “hard” credit inquiry, meaning the lender looks at your credit history and score. A soft credit check mortgage preapproval is hard to come by since lenders want a close look at your financial history during this process.
That said, you can explore soft credit check mortgage options. If you obtain a prequalification — a step down from a preapproval — you might not see any change to your credit score because prequalifications involve a “soft” credit pull.
Keep in mind: Some lenders use the terms “prequalification” and “preapproval” interchangeably. Be sure to confirm the prequalification doesn’t require a hard credit check before moving forward.
Can you get preapproved for a mortgage without a credit check?
Still hoping for that soft credit check mortgage preapproval? Sorry — you’re out of luck. Hard credit checks are a standard part of the mortgage preapproval process, so it’s highly unlikely you’ll get preapproved without agreeing to one.
How to shop for a mortgage without hurting your credit
Here’s how to avoid dinging your credit score when shopping for a mortgage:
Shop for your mortgage within a short timeframe
When you’re ready to get preapproved for a mortgage and want to compare offers from multiple lenders, aim to do it within a 45-day time frame. That’s because in this window, all of the credit inquiries different lenders make appear as one inquiry on your credit report.
While your score might be affected by the single inquiry, it won’t be impacted as much as multiple inquiries on your report. That said, it can be a good idea to get prequalified well before this time frame so that you have more time to compare rates and fees.
Get prequalified for a mortgage
Getting prequalified for a mortgage — some lenders call this a rate check — can be a smart strategy if you’re concerned about damaging your credit score as you comparison-shop. This gives you a soft credit check mortgage exploration option.
To prequalify you for a loan, lenders check your credit report but conduct a “soft” inquiry, or “soft pull,” in which they prescreen your report without it affecting your score. A “hard” credit inquiry, in contrast — which happens when you get preapproved or formally apply for a loan — can adversely impact your score.
In other words, you can prequalify without hurting your credit score. This allows you to shop around and compare rates without this risk.
Keep in mind: While getting prequalified can help minimize damage to your credit score, it is no substitute for getting preapproved when the time comes. In today’s competitive seller’s market, a preapproval is necessary to prove to sellers you’ll be able to get financing if your offer is accepted.
Hold off on applying for new credit
If you’re also considering opening a new credit card or taking out a personal loan while you shop for a mortgage, be aware: Multiple inquiries for different types of credit can negatively impact your credit score, hindering your efforts to obtain a competitive mortgage rate. If possible, wait until you officially close on your mortgage before applying for more forms of credit.
In addition, adding new debt can impact the loan amount you can qualify for. The more debt you have, the less mortgage you will qualify for.
Check your credit report
Whenever you apply for a loan, knowing where you stand credit-wise is important. If you check your credit report before comparison-shopping for a mortgage, you can take proactive steps to improve your credit score if needed. You’ll also be able to spot and fix any errors, putting you in the best position to get the lowest rate without accumulating unnecessary inquiries on your report.
You can get a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies each week at AnnualCreditReport.com. Don’t worry — checking your credit report won’t affect your score.
Keep in mind: The credit score you see on free credit reports might be slightly different from the score mortgage lenders see since they might use different credit scoring models.
Pay down debt
You might be wondering how to shop for a mortgage without hurting your credit because your score isn’t that great to begin with. If your credit score could use improvement, one of the best ways to raise it is to pay down your debt, like credit card balances. If doable, pay off a credit card balance in full — bonus points for keeping the balance as low as possible moving forward.
Keep in mind, though: It might make more sense from a mortgage qualification standpoint to pay down or pay off another loan instead of putting all of your excess funds toward eliminating credit card debt, even if the credit card debt has a higher interest rate. That’s because mortgage lenders review your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio through the lens of monthly payments.
If your student loan payment, for example, is higher than your minimum credit card payment, it might be better to focus your debt payoff strategy on the loan, which would lower your DTI ratio. In cases like this, it’s helpful to consult with an experienced loan officer who can advise you on the best ways to qualify for the lowest rates.
Improving your credit score before getting a mortgage
The most attractive interest rates are reserved for borrowers with solid credit scores. With a credit score of 740 or higher, you can get a lower interest rate, reducing your monthly payment.
To make sure your score’s at its strongest, check for any errors on your credit report that could be dragging it down, such as incorrect contact information or an unreported satisfied loan. If you need to dispute a credit report error, contact the credit bureau right away.
In the meantime, be sure to make timely payments each month and bring any past-due accounts current. Also, pay down your credit card balances, if possible, to improve your utilization ratio, and avoid applying for any new cards or other big loans. It might also help to become an authorized user on a relative’s credit card if they have an exceptional payment history and manage the card responsibly.
