Poor Credit Home Mortgage Loans - Getting Approved With No Down Payment

Posted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010

When applying for a new mortgage with poor credit, you may be wondering whether or not you can get approved with zero down. There are a few factors that will influence this. Consider these points:

1. Poor Credit Will Put More Weight On Your Employment History & Salary - When you are putting less money down and have credit problems, this will cause the lender to look more heavily at the stability of your employment history and income. If your debt-to-income ratio is low and you have been at your job for more than one year, this will help you toward getting 100% financing.

2. Lenders Will Look Closely at Your Most Recent Payment History - Many people have had financial difficulties in your past, but one of the most telling things for a lender, is what your most recent payment history has been like. If you have a bankruptcy that is more than a few years old, but over the last few years have made regular, on-time payments on all of your existing bills, you are more likely to get approved for 100% financing.

3. Consider Having The Home Seller Pay The Closing Costs - If, with poor credit, you are able to get 100% financing, it will probably be quite a stretch to have the lender also wrap the loan closing costs up in the mortgage loan as well. When you make your offer on your new home, consider including in your offer that the seller pay all of the loan closing costs. This is a common practice, and it is highly likely that the seller will agree.

Try pulling a copy of your own credit report to see how bad your credit really is. Make sure you have disputed all inaccuracies on your credit report before you allow a mortgage lender to pull your credit. If possible, pay down as many high balance revolving credit accounts as possible. This can help increase your credit score significantly.