The current credit crunch, which has spilled over from subprime mortgages into other types of lending, is putting a greater premium on high credit scores for borrowers looking to finance or refinance large purchases, the Wall Street Journal reported. Until this summer’s subprime crisis, a score of 720 or higher earned you some of the best interest rates, says John Ventura, director of the Texas Consumer Complaint Center at the University of Houston Law School. Borrowers now need a score in the high 700s to get the same benefits, he says. The benefits are dramatic for mortgages. Raising a score from a range of 580-619 to 660-699 could save someone with a 30-year, $300,000 fixed mortgage $5,148 in one year, according to Fair Isaac’s Web site.
