Kathy

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Hi Kathy,

The rapid rescore.

Paul

Is there such a thing as a rapid rescore for FREE?
Im a mortgage broker, and have heard its possible. What is the exact process ifi it exists at nocharge

Thank you,
WIlliam

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Hello William,

There’s no such thing as a free rapid rescore per se.  The mortgage broker will be charged for the rapid rescore.  The rapid rescore could be ‘free’ to the client if the mortgage broker elects to absorb the cost.

Another option is for the client to contact the credit bureau by phone and explain the mortgage urgency and immediate need to fix the credit reporting error.  If the client is persuasive enough, the CRA could then accomodate the borrower through the Expedited Dispute Resolution. 

William, those are my suggestions.  We definitely don’t know everything and are open to any other practical, lawful, and ethical solutions that anyone cares to submit to the blog.  So, anyone out there that has any credit repair tips that could help others is encouraged to submit them and we’ll post it on the site to empower consumers everywhere.  Until then, I’ll say this question didn’t Stump the Experts.

Thanks for the questions and hope this helps.

Paul

Anyway- my real estate agent said not to lose hope- apparently the buyer’s lender is going to try a rapid rescore.  Could you please explain how this could help if the buyer’s wife is illegally in this country?

We’re trying for another closing day on Wednesday, July 18.  I’ve cried a lot of tears over this.  We worked very hard to get this deal done and now it’s fallen apart before our eyes.  It’s a distinct possibility that we may have to scratch the whole deal, put our house back on the market, and lose the home we were going to buy.  Please advise what you think, and thank you.

Kat

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Hi Kat,

You’ve brought up a few points.  You write: “She may not be legally in the country although her husband is, and their lender is using his financial information to secure the loan”.  The answer to that is simple.  If her income/assets are not required to qualify for the loan then remove her from the loan application.  Problem solved. 

I’m only guessing here, but perhaps her income is needed to qualify for the loan.  You write: “When she and her husband applied for the loan to buy our house, she used her tax ID number instead”.  The loan officer should have been able to identify this immediately.  Both a SSN and an ITIN have nine digits, but unlike a SSN, the ITIN begins with the number ‘9’. 

Without going too far off on a tangent and politics aside, there are loan programs for ITIN borrowers.  In addition, a credit report and credit score can be established under an ITIN.  According to Experian.com: “Individual tax identification numbers (ITIN) – not employer tax identification numbers (ETIN) – are legitimate identifiers for new immigrants. The numbers take the same form as a Social Security number. When used to apply for credit, the ITIN can be added to your credit history in the SSN field, although there might be an alert added to the report indicating the ITIN is not recognized as a valid SSN.”

Unfortunately, the story seems to take a bizarre turn when rapid rescore is mentioned as a solution to the incongruous rental verification (a/k/a VOR), because a VOR (corrected or not) can’t improve FICO through a rapid rescore.  I’m only guessing here, but the LO may be attempting a rapid rescore for the husband, so that he moves up into the No Ratio or No Doc bucket and can qualify on his own.

Kat, I am thankful for your question as it further emphasizes to me the importance of the role of the LO in today’s real estate market.  As a side note, the Broken Credit Blog is currently adding loan officers and mortgage brokers from across the country to its database to serve our visitors.  For what its worth, there’s no money in it for the Broken Credit Blog.  To date, the BCB has not accepted one penny from any party or any advertiser.  Now, that’s not because people haven’t offered.  The advertising offers come in daily and some are more annoying than others.  We are looking to establish goodwill from everyone in the credit world and, in that regard, our satisfaction comes from knowing that your loans closed on time and at the same terms as were initially promised. 

Thanks for the questions and hope this helps.

Paul

(source=metromail.com/ask_max/max040704c.html)

  Today, I got call from another broker who said he could beat the 6.75 rate because he could raise my credit score dramatically in 7 days by doing something that required my SS#. Now…he offered to do this magical thing for me if I would guarantee him my business, which of course I would not. My guess is that he is talking about the optout program. Am I correct in this assumption?..as I need to bring my score back up over 620 quickly.

Debbie

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Hi Debbie,

Many mortgage brokers believe that opting-out raises a credit score.  This is simply not true.  While I strongly recommend for every consumer to opt-out, the belief that it improves a credit score is false.  According to OptOutPrescreen.com:

Does Opting-Out improve my credit score?

No, since inquiries for firm offers for credit or insurance are not used in calculating credit scores, Opting-Out does not improve your credit score.

Now that we are done telling old wives tales, let’s get into some truth.  There are two Trans Union models currently in use by the mortgage community – the 98 and 04 models.  If your middle score was the TU, then find out which TU model the mortgage broker was using.  Then, find another mortgage broker or company that uses the other TU model.  Of course, the other option to raise your credit score in a few days is the rapid rescore.

Debbie, thanks for the questions and when your mortgage broker asks where you learned this then send him back to the Broken Credit Blog for some free credit score lessons.

Paul

(source=optoutprescreen.com/faq.htm)

Ryan

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Hello Ryan,

Mixed files result from the CRA’s matching algorithm.  Write a short unambiguous dispute letter and send it along with a copy of your driver’s license by CMRRR to the credit bureau(s).  You may choose to include a copy of your social security card for extra measure.

Yes, the rapid rescore is for mortgage loan applicants only.

Thanks for the questions and hope this helps.

Paul

Lance

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Hello Lance,

The Rapid Rescore change takes place at the bureau level.  Within three to five days of requesting the rapid rescore, your Equifax, Experian, and/or Trans Union reports will be updated and your credit score will reflect the new change.  

Is it permanent?  For the most part, yes; but, that really depends on what you’re rescoring.  For example: if you rescore a credit card balance and run the balance up after the rescore, then, of course, the next month your credit report will reflect the higher balance.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…

The Rapid Rescore is one of the most powerful tools in the mortgage loan officer’s arsenal, yet even as I type, most LOs still do not understand how it works or the leverage it can provide for a mortgage loan applicant.  Rescoring a credit score 20 points higher might be the difference between a mortgage loan approval at a low rate or a loan denial.

Thanks for the questions and hope this helps.

Paul

Read, learn, write, mail, negotiate, write, mail and Raise Your Credit Score!

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Hi Pam,

Yes, your score will improve.

Thanks for the questions.

Paul

Allison

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Hi Allison,

Here’s what you need to know about paid judgments.

The rapid rescore could be used to update the accurate status if necessary.

Thanks for the questions.

Paul

Brent

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Hey Brent,

We will be adding an area on the Help Center for ‘Join Paul’s Family’ in the next week or so.  The purpose will be to create a database of service providers who cater to consumers in the most professional manner.  This database will also include mortgage brokers.

Our hope is that there will be some accountability, in as much as IF the morgage broker doesn’t follow through, then the consumer can email the Broken Credit Blog and we can track their performance.  Nevertheless, it is intended to be a free service and must be stamped with Caveat Emptor.  Unfortunately, at the moment, we don’t have this free service yet available.

A great deal of this is heavily weighed on by time management and this process will have to be automated in a way that can weed out the bad apples easily.  That is a daunting task and much easier said than done.  We’re going to try it anyway.  Call us crazy!

Sorry for the long winded answer and we don’t have anyone for you at the moment.  Hopefully, in a few weeks we will have a different story to tell.

Thanks for the questions.

Paul