Purchase · 5 min read
What credit score do I need to buy a house?
October 16, 2026 · Written by Bill Egan, NMLS 7342
Short answer
There is no one credit score every buyer needs. Most conventional loans look for a score around 620 or higher, and FHA can go lower when the rest of the file is solid. We pull your credit early so you see the mortgage score on your file and what it means before you shop. A free app score is often different from the one the underwriter uses.
01
Why this comes up
First-time buyers hear different numbers from friends, ads, or online and worry they will be turned down before they even apply.
02
Where this goes wrong
The score on a free app or credit card site is not the mortgage credit score the underwriter uses. A buyer thinks they qualify, then the real report on the file shows something else.
03
What we do about it
We pull the mortgage credit report on your file and walk through the score and any issues with you so you know the path before you write an offer.
04
How to get ready
Review your free credit report for errors. Pay down credit card balances if you can. Do not open new accounts. Then let us pull the report.