How to Get a Low Mortgage Rate

Jennifer Labin was coming up on the seventh year of her adjustable rate mortgage when she decided it was time to try to lower her interest rate. Jennifer and her husband had lived in their Maryland townhouse for the better part of a decade. But with a bigger family on the way and the interest rate on their ARM about to jump, they knew it was time to find a home (and a mortgage interest rate) that better suited their needs.

With a fixed-rate mortgage in mind, the couple went in search of the best interest rate they could find. And if there's one thing savvy buyers should avail themselves of, it's how to read their credit report.

With a FICO score of 720 or above, you're in a position to get the best mortgage interest rate, and in turn save hundreds of dollars a month on loan payments. But it doesn't pay to obsess about achieving a perfect score once you're in the upper echelon. Instead, to reap the full benefits of being a low-risk borrower, it's important to understand what considerations go into your credit score, and how lenders interpret the data to determine your mortgage interest rate.