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Are you applying for a Mortgage Home Loan? You may quickly get competing offers from other mortgage companies. It’s not that the company you applied to is selling or sharing your information. Rather, it’s that creditors, including mortgage companies are take advantage of a federal law that allows them to identify potential customers for the products they offer, and then market to them.
The Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, wants you to know why your application for a mortgage may trigger competing offers, how you can use them to your benefit, and how to stop getting them if that’s your choice.
The unsolicited calls, emails, and letters about competing offers often are called “prescreened” or “pre-approved” offers of credit. They are based on information in your credit report that suggests you meet criteria set by the creditor making the offer.
For example, if you live in a certain zip code, you have a certain number of credit cards, or you have a certain credit score. Credit bureaus and other consumer reporting companies sell lists of consumers who meet the criteria to insurance companies, lenders, and other creditors.
When you apply for a mortgage, the lender usually gets a copy of your credit report. At that point, an “inquiry” appears on your report showing that the lender has looked at it. The inquiry indicates you’re in the market for a loan. That’s why mortgage companies buy lists of consumers who have a recent inquiry from a mortgage company on their credit report. Federal law allows this practice if the offer of credit meets certain legal requirements. |
