It's time to buy a home on Mt. Hood in Welches, Brightwood, Government Camp or Rhododendron. What is one of the most important things you need to know? Answer: your FICO score or credit score.

Why is this so important? Depending upon what your credit score is, your interest rate will be determined by this score.

Here is an example of Oregon interest rates as related to FICO credit scores:

As you can see this is nearly a 2% difference on your interest rate of your loan and a big difference for your payment.over the life of the loan.

This next chart will show you nationally where credit scores currently sit. This is taken directly from www.myfico.com which is an excellent source to lean about credit scores.

If you have a low credit score, work on getting this higher now. Not only will this have an impact on home buying but also car purchases, insurance rates and any other purchases where you need credit!