Tag Archive | "credit score"

Blog, Wealth Building

The fastest way to increase your credit score18 Feb

As credit cards balances get close to their maximum limits, your score will start to drop. In fact, a single credit card at its maximum limit can lower someone’s credit score by 75-100 points.  This drop in a score can be the difference between a mortgage loan approval or denial, or add 2% to the [...]
Blog, Home Buying, Mortgage

Do this if you don’t have a 740 or Better Credit Score09 Feb

You need to get your credit score to at least 740 in today’s economy. If your credit score is not a 740 or higher, you will pay more for things like home loans, auto loans, credit cards, insurance. The extra costs of all these things will make it very difficult to have extra money left over.  [...]
Blog, Mortgage

7 Ways To Protect Your Credit Score For Better Mortgage Rates05 Feb

Credit scores not only make the difference between a mortgage approval and mortgage turn-down, but they also play a large role in determining your actual mortgage note rate. In the 3-minute piece, the NBC Today Show talks about 7 ways that homebuyers ruin their credit -- often by accident.
Blog, Financial Safety, Home Buying, Refinancing

Improving your Credit Score – Step One03 Feb

Know what you are working with! Image via Wikipedia If you haven’t seen your credit report in a while, get a copy now.  There is only one place for a truly ‘Free’ report – but it comes with a catch – www.AnnualCreditReport.com will give you a copy, but the catch is you have to pay for your [...]
Blog, Financial Safety, Mortgage, Refinancing

Understand how your credit score is determined02 Feb

1.       Do you pay your bills on time? The answer to this question is very important. If you have paid bills late, have had an account referred to a collection agency, or have ever declared bankruptcy, this history will show up in your credit report. 2.       What is your outstanding debt? If the amount you owe [...]
Blog, Financial Safety, Home Buying, Mortgage, Refinancing

What are your Rates?09 Dec

For many people the first question they ask a mortgage loan officer is, “What are your Mortgage Rates?” When I get this question, I could flippantly choose between any of these answers: A. That Depends A. Anywhere from 1% to 10%, what would you like them to be? A. 5% plus or minus A. Rates on what? As you can [...]

About

My first profession was an F-16 pilot with the United States Air Force followed by short stint as a commercial airline pilot with US Airways.  As a pilot, I honed my ability to stay focused on “the mission” while adjusting to unplanned circumstances like bad weather, equipment problems, and even enemy aircraft.  This ability serves me well as a Certified Mortgage Planning Specialist (CMPS).

Speaking as a former airline pilot, a long flight resembles a mortgage: you should start with a destination in mind, a plan for how to arrive there, and adjust your course along the way.  With a mortgage, the destination is paying off the loan and living in the right home.  You make course corrections by paying extra on the mortgage, using a home equity line or refinancing.

In a long flight, however, missing one simple thing at the beginning, like checking the oil level in the engines, or setting the heading wrong by even just one degree, could have disastrous consequences later on. Same with a mortgage.

I had big ambitions when I started my mortgage company (and still have them). I envisioned a company that would help homebuyers develop an integrated mortgage strategy that would lead to financial clarity, and a plan that would help them increase their financial security, minimize their tax obligations, and increase their net worth over time.

Read more about Tom Tousignant . . .

Contact Us

Tom Tousignant, CMPS
704-541-1171 Office
866-835-7153 Fax
Tom@StartWithTheHouse.com

Tom Tousignant LinkedIn ProfileTom Tousignant on Twitter

Newsletter Signup

Stay abreast of new mortgage products and finance legislation and how they may affect you. My newsletter updates provide mortgage-focused financial planning tips based on the ever-changing financial landscape.