Learn To Be A Fix & Flip Investor: Arizona Home Loans: How to Buy a House with Bad Credit

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Arizona Home Loans: How to Buy a House with Bad Credit

If you have bad credit you may find it difficult to buy a home. By being proactive and taking certain steps to repair your credit, you can find Arizona home loans that will help make your dreams come true.

Bad credit can make getting a car loan, credit card, and even a job difficult. Although you may feel isolated, you are far from alone. According to recent statistics released by FICO Inc., the average credit score is about 670 which is considered a “fair” score. In addition, nearly one quarter of all credit using Americans have poor credit. So, although you may feel alone, there are nearly 42 million Americans who are in the same boat as you. Bad credit can also become a vicious cycle. You need to repair your credit by making on time payments, not one will give you the opportunity to make on time payments so you bad credit stays bad. You may begin to feel that the situation is hopeless.

One way to help rebuild your credit is by purchasing a home and making on time mortgage payments. If you have bad there are a variety of ways and programs to help borrowers with bad credit get Arizona home loans. Since the housing crisis of 2008 there has been a rumor that only borrowers with perfect credit can be approved for home loans. However, with banks and lenders relaxing their credit requirements, more home loans are being approved at lower borrower credit scores. Some programs will even approve borrowers with a score as low as 500 as long as the borrower has some cash for a down payment.

If you have bad credit and are thinking about applying for Arizona home loans, there are a few steps you can take to help make sure that you will qualify. First, make all of your rent payments on time. 12 months of on time rent payments can help when a lender is trying to decide if you are worth the risk in terms of a mortgage investment. In addition, start saving cash. Money talks, usually louder than credit alone. Having 6 months to a year of living expenses in the bank (including mortgage payments) will make it more likely that a lender will finance your mortgage. In addition, save up for a down payment.

Types of Arizona Home Loans Available to Borrowers with Bad Credit

The type of loan that you will be able to qualify for depends on how low your credit score is. If you have a score of 650 or higher, you have a possibility to qualify for a traditional loan. A traditional loan is a fixed 15 to 30 year loan with payments that will remain roughly the same for the entire loan term. Payments may fluctuate slightly based on property tax amounts but they principal and interest will remain the same. In order to qualify for a traditional loan you will need to put between 5 and 20 percent of the loan amount down.

If your credit score is less than 650, you can still find Arizona home loans that you can qualify for. One of the main types of loans that can help sub-prime borrowers is an FHA loan. An FHA loan is a loan that is secured by the federal government. You will pay a fixed rate for principal and interest for a 15 to 30 year loan term. You will also pay mortgage insurance in the amount of 80 to 200 dollars each month, depending on the amount of your loan. You can qualify for an FHA loan with a credit score as low as 500 as long as you have between 3.5 and 10 percent of the loan value to put down.

If your credit is less than 500 or you don’t have the cash for a down payment or can’t be approved for other reasons, you might want to look into some less common mortgage programs like rent to own, seller financing, or having a cosigner. Just keep in mind that all of these programs do have some inherent risk and you should make sure you are well informed about the loan type going into it.