What Credit Score Do You Need to Buy a House?

People ask "what credit score do I need to buy a house?" as if there's one number on a velvet rope. There isn't. Different loan programs have different minimums, and your score does two separate jobs: it decides whether you qualify, and it decides what rate you pay. The second job is where the real money lives — the same loan can cost a borrower with a 760 thousands less per year than the identical loan to a borrower with a 660.

This guide lays out the practical minimums by loan type as of 2026, shows in real dollars how your score moves your payment, and gives you a short list of moves that raise a score fastest in the months before you apply.

The minimums by loan type

Lenders use FICO scores, which run from 300 to 850. Here's roughly where each program draws its line — keeping in mind that individual lenders often set "overlays" stricter than the program floor.

• Conventional loans generally want at least 620. You can qualify at 620, but pricing improves in tiers as you climb, with the best rates usually reserved for 740+.
• FHA loans allow scores down to 580 with the standard 3.5% down. Between 500 and 579, FHA technically permits a loan but requires 10% down, and most lenders won't go there. FHA is the go-to for thinner or rebuilding credit — see FHA vs conventional for the full comparison.
• VA loans have no government-set minimum, but most lenders look for around 620. Details in VA loans explained.
• USDA loans typically want 640 for streamlined processing.

The headline: you can buy a house in the low 600s, or even upper 500s with FHA. But "qualifying" and "getting a good deal" are different things.

How your score moves your rate

Mortgage pricing is tiered by score band. Cross from one band into a higher one and your rate steps down. The exact spread shifts with the market, but the shape is consistent — and it's bigger at the bottom of the range than the top.

Here's a worked example on a $320,000, 30-year loan. Suppose pricing looks like this:

• Score 760+: 6.25% → about $1,970/month (principal and interest)
• Score 700: 6.55% → about $2,033/month
• Score 660: 6.95% → about $2,118/month
• Score 620: 7.45% → about $2,227/month

The gap between the 620 borrower and the 760 borrower is roughly $257 a month — over $92,000 across the full 30 years. That's the price of a credit score, and it's why raising yours before you apply often returns more than almost any other prep work. You can see how rate tiers translate into payments yourself in the mortgage calculator, and check current 30-year fixed rates as a baseline.

A second, quieter effect: on conventional loans, your score also sets your PMI rate if you're under 20% down. A lower score means pricier mortgage insurance on top of the higher interest rate — a double penalty. We break PMI down in PMI explained.

What actually makes up your score

You can't fix what you don't understand. FICO weighs five factors, roughly:

• Payment history (~35%) — on-time payments. The single biggest lever.
• Amounts owed (~30%) — your credit utilization, meaning balances as a percentage of limits.
• Length of credit history (~15%) — the age of your accounts.
• New credit (~10%) — recent applications and hard inquiries.
• Credit mix (~10%) — the variety of account types.

Notice that the two biggest factors — payment history and utilization — are the two you can influence quickly. That's where to focus.

How to raise your score before you apply

You don't need a year. Several of these can move a score meaningfully in one or two billing cycles.

1. Pay cards down below 30% — ideally under 10%

Utilization is reported per card and overall. If a card with a $5,000 limit carries a $2,500 balance (50%), paying it to under $1,500 (30%) — or under $500 (10%) — can lift your score within a cycle, because the change shows up as soon as the issuer reports. This is the fastest legitimate boost most people have access to.

2. Never miss a payment in the runway

One 30-day late payment can drop a good score by a lot and stays on your report for years. Automate minimums on everything while you're preparing.

3. Don't open or close accounts

A new card adds a hard inquiry and lowers your average account age. Closing an old card raises your utilization by removing available limit. Both hurt. Keep your file frozen in place.

4. Dispute errors

Pull all three bureau reports and challenge anything wrong — a paid collection still showing a balance, an account that isn't yours. Corrections can post in weeks.

5. Time your application to the report date

Because issuers report balances on a schedule, paying a card down before its statement closes means a lower balance gets reported. A little timing can shave points right when you need them.

A real-world path: 660 to 720

Say you're sitting at 660, two months from applying, with two cards near their limits. You pay both down below 10% utilization and dispute an old collection that was actually settled. Those two moves alone can lift many borrowers into the 700s.

Plug the difference into the calculator: on that same $320,000 loan, moving from the 660 tier (6.95%) to the 720 tier (around 6.45%) drops the payment from about $2,118 to roughly $2,010 — $108 a month, nearly $39,000 over the life of the loan, for a couple months of disciplined prep. Rates vary by state too, so it's worth checking the picture where you're buying, whether that's California, Texas, or Florida.

The bottom line

There's no universal cutoff — you can buy with a 580 FHA score or a 620 conventional one — but the score you bring to the table sets your rate for the next 30 years, and that's where the cost hides. Before you apply, pay your cards down, freeze your credit activity, fix any errors, and time your balances to the reporting date. Then run the rate tiers through the mortgage calculator to see exactly what a higher score is worth on your loan. In most cases, a few months of cleanup pays back many times over.