Answers by Tom Lade

Absolutely! FHA goes down to a 500 credit score and I've closed many aroudn there. If you are above 600 then there are certainly options for that as well as down payment assitance options that can help you keep some of that money you have saved up in the bank to use to fix up or furnish your new home!

Hey Michael! I'm a loan officer in Columbus so I see PLENTY of this. There are about 50% more sellers than buyers so many of the people I help have seller credit built into the contract. You can easily get thousands in seller credit. It's going to depend on how long the home has been sitting... if it's been 14+ days then you can easily ask for listing price with the seller credit. I'd suggest working with your realtor as they should have the best idea as to how to structure it. Pair that with a down payment assistance program and you can really keep a lot of your cash in your bank to use to fix up the home! :)