Maine Real Estate Info

Credit Score Primer: What Buyers Need to Know to Get a Loan
In the wake of the credit crisis, lenders have become much pickier about whom they lend to. Here are some basic facts that will help potential borrowers understand what they face.

The measurement that most lenders use to assess applicants’ credit risk is the FICO score developed by Fair Isaac Corp. The score ranges from 300 to 850.

There’s not one FICO score. Buyers have three: one for each of the three credit bureaus, Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax.

Each credit score is based on information the credit bureau keeps on file. Since credit bureaus don’t share their data with one another, the three FICO scores may differ, sometimes by as much as 100 points.

The components of a FICO score are:

• Payment history: 35 percent
• Amounts owed: 30 percent
• Length of credit history: 15 percent
• New credit: 10 percent
• Types of credit used: 10 percent

A consumer with a 580 credit score might qualify under FHA requirements, but, generally, in order to qualify for a prime loan, a borrower must have a credit score above 620 for a conventional loan at all and above 720 for a loan at terms and rates most borrowers would consider desirable.

Source: The Dallas Morning News, Pamela Yip (12/03/07)

Homes Features that are Big Buyer Turnoffs
Old homes can be quaint, but there’s a difference between old and outdated. Unless home owners periodically invest in upgrades, their homes will fall so far below the standards of current buyers that they become obsolete and hard to sell.

What’s obsolete? Here’s a list of relics, many of them courtesy of Nick Kuhn, an associate with McEnearney Associates in Washington DC.

• A house with only one bathroom. Even a house with one full bath and a toilet/sink powder room is going to turn buyers off.

• A house without air conditioning.

• Electrical systems protected by a fuse box instead of a circuit breaker.

• Spiral staircases. They’re relatively rare, and for good reason — they are unsafe.

• Basements with only an outside entrance. Homeowners expect convenient access to that valuable space.

• Ceilings that look like they’ve been stuccoed, dropped ceilings with fluorescent lights, and dark beams cutting across the ceiling.

• The split-level floor plan. Want to go from kitchen to family room? Go down half a flight of stairs. From living room to bedroom? Up half a flight. Most folks would rather not.

Source: The Washington Post, Elizabeth Razzi (12/02/07)

If you’re thinking of moving to these areas to take advantage of the quality education Maine students are already receiving, give us a call. We can help you find the right home in the right neighborhood and school district.

We would love to refer you to a qualified agent in the Limestone and Bangor areas.

Meservier & Associates is located in the Lewiston Auburn area and services the Yarmouth, Falmouth and Cumberland areas. Find us on the web at http://www.meservier.com.