Chase now requires 700 FICO score, 20% down payment to buy a home

It’s a good time to make sure you are maintaining good credit and protecting your financing position.

As the country struggles through the economic impact of the coronavirus, numerous mortgage companieshave raised their lending standards to protect both borrowers and themselves. Now, one of the largest mortgage lenders in the country is joining that list. JPMorgan Chase this week is increasing its minimum lending standards to require nearly all borrowers to have at least 20% down in order to buy a home. Beyond that, Chase is also raising its minimum FICO credit score to 700 on purchase mortgages.

Put simply, if a borrower doesn’t have a 20% down payment and a FICO score of 700 or above, they will likely not be able get a loan from Chase to buy a home. According to Chase, those lending standards also apply to refinances on non-Chase mortgages.

Read the complete HW article here.