What is a Soft Credit Pull?

At McGowan Mortgages, we work with homebuyers with a broad range of credit scores. Many express concern going into the process that a credit check will damage their score. We avoid this issue by performing a “soft credit pull.” This type of pull is simply a credit check that is not part of a new credit application.

What is the Benefit of a Soft Inquiry?

The advantage of a soft credit check is that unlike a hard credit check, it does not have a negative impact on your credit score. This is similar to checking your score yourself, but it provides your accurate mortgage-based credit score, along with many more details to help prepare your financing. Based on what we find out from a soft credit check, we can give you a solid idea of what you likely qualify for.

Do Soft Credit Checks Have Any Drawbacks?

There is one drawback of a soft credit pull, which is that they do not sync to the automated underwriting systems used for approval for mortgages. That means we do need a full credit report to proceed with pre-approval. The soft credit check score on its own is not enough to satisfy the underwriting requirements. The good news is that once we have performed the soft credit pull, we will know whether you are good to go or need to take steps to raise your score. We may be able to bring your score up to where it needs to be with a quick and easy credit rescore. If your score needs more work, we can provide you with additional personalized recommendations.

Start the Mortgage Process Without Harming Your Credit Score

When you work with McGowan Mortgages and we perform a soft credit check, there is no risk to your score, and you get the information you need to take the next steps forward in the process of buying a home.  If you have questions about credit or you are ready to begin, please call us today at (816) 631-9687 to get started. We can help you purchase a home in Missouri or 30 different states.