Creditors taking harder look at loans

By Cathy Spaulding
Phoenix Staff Writer

March 19, 2008 12:27 am

— Debbie McGraw says with pride that she didn’t need a home improvement loan to redecorate her house.
“I don’t spend any money,” she said. “And I just redid my living room from top to bottom, made curtains, needed no financing. The only thing I spent money on was primer. I go to Lowe’s and get $5 cans of paint, and I can have them remixed.”
McGraw said such economizing helps her keep her credit card costs down and her credit rating good.
With problems hitting the credit and housing markets, maintaining good credit is more important than ever, area financial advisors say.
Area bank officials say they’re taking a harder look at credit and ability to pay when someone takes out a loan.
“It’s not harder to get a loan, but it takes a little longer,” said Chris Condley, chief executive officer at First National Bank of Muskogee. “There’s more verification we must go through. A person will have to show a checking account, pay stub for verification of employment.”
A loan approval process that once took about a day or two now might take an extra day, Condley said.
Shirley Hilton, loan officer with Armstrong Bank, said people should have few problems getting government-backed loans.
For example, a buyer could be able to pay for a house with an FHA loan if the buyer has good credit and pays outstanding medical and credit bills.
“Conventional (non-government) loans are probably affected by the sub prime, adjustable rate loans,” she said. “I have a passion to get people off adjustable rate loans.”
Hilton said Oklahoma is not experiencing the housing or credit crises hitting the east and west coasts.
“You don’t see the highs here, or the lows,” she said, adding that Oklahoma is ranked third in the country on housing market stability.
“Here in the Midwest, real estate values are holding up to what coastal influences are doing,” Condley said.
People seeking loans also are being more cautious, said Jim Harig, president and chief financial officer for Muskogee Federal Credit Union.
“The (loan) supply is good, but the demand isn’t there,” he said. “Consumers are probably taking a more conservative approach before they commit to much.
A conservative approach to credit pays off, financial advisors agree.
One way to do that is to pay off credit cards, which could charge around 17 percent interest, Condley said.
“Look at what your debts are and see what rate you’re paying,” he said. “If you’re a homeowner, see what you can save with a lower interest rate, if it is at least 1 percent, run a scenario and see if you can take cash out and pay off some of the credit cards.”
Condley said some customers run up $9,000 on their credit cards.
McGraw said she used her tax refund to pay off credit cards. She said the one thing she has spent her credit card on was airline travel to California.
“I’m very localized,” she said. “I’m blessed because everything’s close.
Other ways to deal with a credit crunch is to have a savings plan and set aside luxury purchases, Haring said. “Weigh necessity versus desire. See what’s necessary and delay luxury items to later.”