Credit score requirements increasing

If you want to buy a home or refinance the one you have, you should get cracking on your credit score.

A 720 score used to be golden standard and gave you access to the very best rates. But, that has been inching up and most mortgage lenders now want to see a 760.

That is quite a stretch for most Americans. The average score is 690.

To get a better score, pay your bills on time, keep your credit card balances at 50% or less of your available credit line, and cancel credit card accounts you do not need or use.

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