The minimum credit score to buy a house depends on the loan program and the lender. As a working guide, conventional loans generally start at 620, FHA can go lower, VA has no VA-set minimum but most lenders apply their own, and jumbo loans usually want considerably higher. Your score also sets your price, not just your approval, so the difference between 679 and 680 can matter more than the difference between approved and declined.
Which score lenders use
Mortgage lenders pull a tri-merge report: all three bureaus. They take the middle of your three scores. With two borrowers, most programs use the lower of the two middle scores.
These are older FICO models, not the score your banking app shows you. The app score is often higher, sometimes by a lot, and that gap is the source of a great deal of disappointment. Know your mortgage scores before you plan around them.
The floors you will hear about
These are the commonly cited program floors. Lenders often overlay stricter minimums, and every program changes over time, so treat this as orientation rather than a quote.
- Conventional (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac): generally 620 for most loans. Pricing improves in steps as the score rises.
- FHA: HUD's published floor allows lower scores than conventional, with a higher down payment required at the bottom of the range. Many lenders set their own minimum above HUD's. For the detail, see FHA Credit Score Requirements in Arizona.
- VA: the VA itself does not set a minimum score. Lenders do. See VA Loans and Credit Score Minimums.
- Jumbo: typically higher, often 700 and up, with reserves that rise as the score falls. See the Scottsdale Jumbo Loan Guide.
- Non-QM programs such as bank statement or DSCR loans each publish their own grids.
Why the score matters even after you clear the floor
On conventional loans, pricing adjustments are tied to score bands. Crossing a band can lower the rate or the cost of the rate, and on loans with mortgage insurance it can lower the insurance premium too. That is why I sometimes tell a buyer with a 676 to wait three weeks: a balance paydown that reports before we lock can put them in a better band and save money every month for as long as they keep the loan.
What actually moves a score quickly
- Revolving utilization. The fastest lever. Pay card balances down before the statement date so a lower balance reports. Per-card utilization matters as well as the total.
- Errors. Disputing genuinely inaccurate items can lift a score, but it takes weeks.
- Rapid rescore. Once you have paid something down or corrected it, a lender can sometimes request an updated score in days rather than waiting for the next reporting cycle. Not every change qualifies and you cannot buy one yourself, so ask your loan officer.
What does not work quickly: opening new accounts, closing old ones, or paying off old collections without asking first. The full plan is in Fix the Credit First.
Below the floor right now?
Then the question becomes how far and why. Twenty points below a floor because of card balances is a sixty-day project. A recent bankruptcy or foreclosure is a waiting period, and the clock is set by the program. See FHA After Bankruptcy in Arizona.
Either way, get a real tri-merge pulled by a lender who will tell you the exact gap and the cheapest way across it, before you spend a weekend at open houses.
Why ask me
- I answer the question before I sell you anything. If renting, waiting or a different program is the better move, I will say so.
- Real numbers, not a calculator guess. I price your actual scenario, side by side, with the fees on the page.
- Every program under one roof. Conventional, FHA, VA, jumbo, and non-QM options like bank statement, DSCR and asset-based loans, so the program fits you instead of the other way around.
- You talk to the principal. Ricky Khamis is President of EPiQ Lending, NMLS #173141, lending in Arizona since 1999 and a 2025 Presidents Club Winner at CMG Home Loans. Direct line: (480) 999-9842.
EPiQ Lending is NMLS #1936984, at 7975 N. Hayden Road, Suite A-101 in Scottsdale. Verify all of it before you trust any of it: Ricky's EPiQ Lending profile, the Scottsdale branch, and the license itself at NMLS Consumer Access. Hold every lender to that standard, including us.
More plain-English answers in the Mortgage Education library.
Equal Housing Opportunity. This is general information, not a commitment to lend or an offer to extend credit. Program guidelines, eligibility requirements and documentation standards vary by investor and change over time. Rates, terms and program guidelines change and depend on credit approval, property appraisal and other qualifying factors. Not all applicants will qualify. This is not legal or tax advice; consult a qualified professional about your own situation.
Find out which program actually costs you less
FHA, conventional and jumbo price the same borrower very differently once the mortgage insurance is compared across the years you will own the home. Tell me the shape of your file and I will run them side by side.
Looking at a specific home? Send me the address and I will run the numbers: rickykhamis.com/analyze
