If you plan to finance real estate, either as a home buyer or as an investor, these credit tips will help you with your credit score and save you money on loan costs.

1. Using expensive or undesirable types of credit costs too much and is negatively scored.

2. Accumulating too many lines of credit or too many credit cards causes credit report remarks like "too much consumer credit."

3. Only paying minimum due keeps balances too high.

4. Being maxed out on any credit card or line of credit causes deep drops in scores.

5. Taking cash advances costs higher interest and extra fees.

6. Exceeding limit and having to pay over-limit fees is a negative with creditors and causes "high proportional amounts owed" remarks on credit reports and subtracts credit score points.

7. Paying a day or more late causes unnecessary late fees and often increases interest rates.

8. Charging more than you can afford causes a snowball effect of amassing debt with no easy way to pay it off.

9. Letting someone else use your credit, such as co-signing a loan, raises your debt-to-income ratio and possibly adds "too many consumer accounts" on your credit report, which lowers your score.

10. Ignoring credit problems causes unnecessary negative impact. Talk to creditors before being late and make arrangements. This action heads off negative reporting to credit bureaus.

11. Failure to report address changes to creditors causes misplaced bills and late payments.

Why Sellers Sell At a Discount

Homeowners' problems often prevent them from staying on top of their home's upkeep, and factors such as job loss, divorce, serious illness, various addictions, or other personal problems quickly overwhelm them. These sellers can't make needed repairs because of financial or physical limitations, and when that happens, their home becomes a low priority and sometimes will go into foreclosure.

Look for "Triple D"

Home sellers with three problems give beginning investors a great opportunity. A "Triple D" is a Doghouse, involved in a Divorce, and in Default. The label "doghouse" comes from Southern California Realtors who used this term to describe worst fixers. These houses maybe "tired" and need only cosmetic work in order to favorably compare with other homes in area.

What to Look for in a Doghouse

The hardest house for a homeowner to sell is a "doghouse," "dump," or "fixer-upper." These run-down houses scare off most buyers, who don't have money to cover down payment, closing costs, new furniture, carpeting, appliances, roof repairs, and other deferred maintenance required to bring home back into top condition.

As you look through classified ads or at realtor listings, keep an eye out for terms like "handyman special," "as is," "fixer," or other tell-tale words. Also have your agent use similar terms when scanning Multiple Listing Service for your target area.

Once you've found a property that you can turn from doghouse to dollhouse, find out seller's problem and then offer a solution. Distressed sellers frequently experience financial problems and need cash as soon as possible. Therefore, if you're ready to close quickly, you'll be set to negotiate a lower sales price.

How to Close Quickly