The 4 C's of Mortgages | TBA Credit Union (2024)

Whether you’re getting ready to buy your first home, looking to relocate, or remodeling to create your dream home, one of the first hurdles in purchasing a home is to get approved for a mortgage loan.

So, what do lenders look at when deciding to approve or deny an application? Lenders consider four criteria, also known as the 4 C’s: Capacity, Capital, Credit, and Collateral.

Capacity
What is your ability to pay back your mortgage? Factors that play into your Capacity include current income, employment history, and liabilities, such as other loans and financial obligations.

Helpful Tip: Check out our free calculator to help you learn how much you can afford.

Capital
How much money do you have on hand or in reserve? Lenders not only look at the money you have saved in your checking and savings accounts but also your investments, such as 401k and property assets. With this information, the lender can decide whether you can manage your finances and take on a mortgage payment.

Helpful Tip: You may qualify for down payment assistance. This assistance program includes grants, second mortgages loan, or tax credits. Read more and learn if you are eligible for this assistance program.

Credit
What is your credit score and history? Many institutions have a minimum credit score requirement, and it can determine your mortgage interest rate and down payment amount. Your credit score and history are important to lenders because they show your track record for paying bills and loans on time.

Helpful Tip: Even if you are not looking to buy now, keep an eye on your credit score. Your score can impact many aspects of your life, such as the ability to rent an apartment, purchase a car, or qualify for a credit card. A few ways to check your score are through Credit Karma or TransUnion.

Collateral
Can you offer something as a pledge of security on loan? For lenders, collateral is the guarantee that they will receive their money back if you stop paying your mortgage. When it comes to a mortgage, your collateral will be the home or property you are buying. Your home or property will need to be appraised to analyze its market value during the purchasing process.

Helpful tip: If your home inspector finds any issues during the appraisal, you have a few options: negotiate sales price to accommodate any repairs you will have to do, require the seller to make the repairs, or back out of the purchase.

The 4 C’s are just a glimpse into one part of the mortgage process. It might seem intimidating, but we are here to help. Visit our mortgage page, contact our team, or check out the resources below for more information. We cannot wait to help you with your home.

Helpful Resources:

The 4 C's of Mortgages | TBA Credit Union (2024)

FAQs

What are the 4 C's of credit mortgage? ›

Standards may differ from lender to lender, but there are four core components — the four C's — that lenders will evaluate in determining whether they will make a loan: capacity, capital, collateral and credit.

What are the 4c framework in mortgage? ›

So, what do lenders look at when deciding to approve or deny an application? Lenders consider four criteria, also known as the 4 C's: Capacity, Capital, Credit, and Collateral. What is your ability to pay back your mortgage?

What are the 4 C's of credit underwriting? ›

Meet the Fantastic Four - the 4 C's: Capacity, Credit, Collateral, and Capital.

What is one of the 4 C's of credit granting? ›

They look at four main factors, commonly known as the four C's: credit, capacity, capital, and collateral.

What are the four Cs? ›

The 4 C's to 21st century skills are just what the title indicates. Students need these specific skills to fully participate in today's global community: Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Creativity.

What are the 3 Cs in mortgage? ›

After the above documents (and possibly a few others) are gathered, an underwriter gets down to business. They evaluate credit and payment history, income and assets available for a down payment and categorize their findings as the Three C's: Capacity, Credit and Collateral.

What are the 5 Cs of mortgage lending? ›

Called the five Cs of credit, they include capacity, capital, conditions, character, and collateral. There is no regulatory standard that requires the use of the five Cs of credit, but the majority of lenders review most of this information prior to allowing a borrower to take on debt.

What are the 4 Cs of financial management? ›

This includes strategic and tactical steps to continually evaluate and improve four key financial indicators: cash flow, credit, customers, and collateral. We call these indicators the 4 C's.

What are the 5 Cs of underwriting? ›

The Underwriting Process of a Loan Application

One of the first things all lenders learn and use to make loan decisions are the “Five C's of Credit": Character, Conditions, Capital, Capacity, and Collateral. These are the criteria your prospective lender uses to determine whether to make you a loan (and on what terms).

What are the four 4 Cs of the credit analysis process? ›

The “4 Cs” of credit—capacity, collateral, covenants, and character—provide a useful framework for evaluating credit risk.

What are the 4 Cs of credit CFA? ›

Capacity, Collateral, Covenants, and Character. Traditionally, many analysts evaluated creditworthiness based on what is called the “Four Cs of credit analysis”.

What are the 3 Cs of credit approval? ›

The factors that determine your credit score are called The Three C's of Credit – Character, Capital and Capacity.

What are the 4 Cs explained? ›

Shipley, the founder of GIA, coined the term 4Cs to help his students remember the four factors that characterize a faceted diamond: color, clarity, cut and carat weight.

What are the 4 Cs of credit conditions? ›

It binds the information collected into 4 broad categories namely Character; Capacity; Capital and Conditions. These Cs have been extended to 5 by adding 'Collateral', or extended to 6 by adding 'Competition' to it (Reference: Credit Management and Debt Recovery by Bobby Rozario, Puru Grover).

What are the 4 Cs of commercial lending? ›

If you are a business owner or potential borrower, understanding the “4 C's of Commercial Lending” is your key to success. These are Capacity, Collateral, Capital, and Character.

What are the 5 Cs of credit underwriting? ›

Lenders also use these five Cs—character, capacity, capital, collateral, and conditions—to set your loan rates and loan terms.

What are the 3 Cs of credit that lenders look for in a loan applicant? ›

Students classify those characteristics based on the three C's of credit (capacity, character, and collateral), assess the riskiness of lending to that individual based on these characteristics, and then decide whether or not to approve or deny the loan request.

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