Many people living in California who currently have FHA loans realize that interest rates are low – sometimes much lower than the current mortgage rate they have on their loan. The California FHA streamline refinance is a popular option for people who currently have an FHA loan and want to take advantage of lower interest rates without having to completely re-qualify for a new loan by proving income, asset and credit score information.
But wait – Is that all there is to the California FHA streamline program? Not anymore. many lenders are making it harder for people to participate in the FHA streamline refinance program because they are now requiring a minimum credit score of 620. Many lenders are requiring this, but not all lenders are requiring that you have a minimum credit score.
The truth is, FHA doesn’t have a minimum credit score requirement — it is the lenders who actually are lending you the money that do. About a year ago, lenders started requiring a minimum of a 580 credit score and as early as January of this year, some lenders started requiring a 620 credit score. Now a 620 minimum credit score has become the norm for lenders to require.
Do all FHA lenders require that you have a minimum credit score in order to get approved for a California FHA streamline? No, but many of them are. You can still get approved for a FHA streamline refinance no matter how bad your credit score is as long as you have made your payments on time for the last 12 months.
