When it comes to applying for a loan, regardless of what it is for, a credit score and mortgage score are quite necessary, as a lender checks these scores so that he can be sure of the reliability of a person when it comes to paying back on time.
Credit Score vs Mortgage Score
The main difference between credit score and mortgage score is that the former takes into account all factors of finance regarding the person to apply for multiple types of loans. The latter can only be used when applying for real estate (e.g. – houses) loans.
A credit score is based on one’s credit history and gives an account of various activities of the borrower. It also offers a sense of guarantee to the entity providing the loan, if whether the person will pay back the loan in time or not. A mortgage score is used for giving the lender or entity a look into factors that help decide eligibility for a good or bad mortgage. It could be used when one is trying to purchase a property or real-estate.
Comparison Table Between Credit Score and Mortgage Score (in Tabular Form)
| Parameters of Comparison | Credit score | Mortgage score |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | The credit score determines an individual’s reliability when it comes to acquiring loans. It is a superset of all scores. | The mortgage score is used to determine reliability to purchase a house using property ownership records of a person. |
| Used for | You can use a credit score to apply for various types of loans, such as for vehicles, property, education etc. | You can only specifically use a mortgage credit score to apply for loans regarding real estate or property. |
| Scoring system | Credit scores primarily really on the FICO scoring system to determine the credit score. | Mortgage scores are commonly calculated using VantageScore, lying between 501 – 990. |
| Factors to calculate | The factors are – Payment history, the total amount owed, types of credit, the amount owed, or previous debts owed. | Factors are – credit utilization, depth of credit, property history, recent credit. |
| Credit report | The type of credit report used depends on the type of loan being applied. | We usually see the use of Residential mortgage credit report (RMCR) to determine the score. |
What is Credit Score?
Initially, lenders and banks who provided loans to people for various types of purchases and requirements had no way of obtaining any guaranty that the loans would be paid in time, or at all for the matter.
A credit score helps determine if an individual is allowed to apply for a loan, and also to determine what type of loan (the kind of interest) the person is eligible to get.
The credit score is calculated by keeping in mind various factors, most common of which are –
- Payment history
- The total amount owed
- Types of credit
- The amount owed
- Previous debts owed
These factors are all taken into account, and with the help of an organization called FICO (Fair Isaac Corporation), the credit score is calculated. The number lies typically within the range of 300 – 850.
The higher the FICO credit score, the higher the chances of the borrower to receive a loan of lesser interest, and also provides a reliability factor to the lender. The score rating is as follows-
- Fair: 580 to 669
- Poor: 300 to 579
- Right: 670 to 739
- Excellent: 800 to 850
- Very Good: 740 to 799
To receive a loan, lenders look at a credit report that contains the complete list of financial accounts of the individual and are used to calculate the score. The credit report varies with the type of thing the individual wishes to purchase.
What is Mortgage Score?
Several loans were requested from the banks in early 1950, right after the introduction of the credit score so that people could purchase a house or other properties easily. The number of requests was so high, another sector or type of credit score was introduced, namely “mortgage score”.
The mortgage score can be used to apply a loan for the purchase of any type of real estate or buildings such as office spaces, houses, school, etc.
The mortgage score determines the eligibility of an individual to apply for a loan and can be calculated with another scoring system called VantageScore. The credit scoring range for VantageScores lies between 501 – 900.
Few factors the VantageScore group takes into account are –
- Credit utilization
- Depth of credit
- Property history
- Recent credit.
In mortgage score, Residential mortgage credit report (RMCR) is used to determine the score by the companies.
Main Differences Between Credit Score and Mortgage Score
- A credit score is more of a subset of all types of scores, while mortgage score comes under credit score.
- Credit scores can be used to apply for loan concerning any type of purchase, while mortgage loans can only be asked for the property and real estate.
- The credit system used to determine standard credit score is done by FICO, while for mortgage score VantageScore is used to calculate.
- Factors for calculating credit score are payment history, the total amount owed, types of credit, the amount owed. While for mortgage score, they are credit utilization, depth of credit, property history, recent credit.
- For credit score, the types of reports made differ from the kind of purchase the loan is being requested for, while for a mortgage credit it is Residential mortgage credit report (RMCR)
Conclusion
Both the credit and mortgage scores are essential when it comes to applying for the type of loan one wishes to get. Now a credit score can be used by a lender to consider the application for any kind of purchase, and under it, many types of scores exist while a mortgage score is used only for loans of property and real estate.
One needs to understand that these scores matter immensely, and they depend on the purchases you make along the years, your financial records, and even your history of paying back previous loans. It is always recommended to keep a close eye on your score, and hence why these two scores are of primary concern in the modern world.
References
- https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/59249/1/668371129.pdf
- https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-00359712/file/WP_CSI_014.pdf