When Nicole Johnson lost her job as a teaching assistant last May at the height of the pandemic, she decided to stay home with her then 6-year-old daughter who was remote learning.

Johnson, who lives in a low-income public housing building in White Plains, New York, used some of her downtime to attend a series of webinars to educate herself in first-time homebuying.

“My daughter is only 7. And from the time she started talking, this is one thing she's always said, ‘I want to live in a house,’” says Johnson, who is divorced. “That’s just something I want to give her. We want to have a backyard and I want to eventually be able to leave it for her.”

Nicole Johnson and her daughter Khloe look at their planner.
As she went through the webinar series, one thing became clear: the importance of being in good financial standing and having a good credit score. That would determine her appeal to a lender when she went mortgage shopping, and whether she would get favorable terms.

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A credit score is a number between 300 and 850 that shows a consumer’s creditworthiness based on their bill payment history, current debt and other financial information. A high score could mean lower interest rates on a loan as lenders feel more confident that a person will repay their future debts.

A score of 800 or above is considered excellent, and most consumers have credit scores that fall between 600 and 750, according to Experian, a credit reporting agency.

Johnson said her credit score had taken a beating when she got divorced six years ago and it took her six years to get her credit score from poor to good.

“I looked at my credit score and saw what was outstanding. And I personally wrote to each company, and they offered me a lower payment schedule,” she says. “I was very shocked that they were willing to work with me.”

Nicole Johnson's organizer
Johnson's first order of business was getting an organizer where she would write down each payment that was coming due and making sure the payment was made on time. If she couldn't make the payment, she'd negotiate an extension without penalty.

"The mortgage lenders will want to know that you have at least two years of paying all your bills on time," says Johnson. "I am so proud of myself. I am in the 650 to 700 range right now."

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