How will my wife's or husband's bad credit affect my application for a mortgage or refinance?

If you need to use your wife's or husband's income in order to better your chances of getting a mortgage loan, the underwriter will want to see their credit history as well. Any negative credit on their report will adversely affect your ability to purchase or refinance. However, sometimes only one person is needed to qualify for the loan, but both husband and wife could go "on title" with the property. That way both parties can have their names on the title to the home and they both "own" the home, but only one person would have their name on the loan itself. So if one party has good credit, and can qualify for the loan, it may not be a good idea to compromise the loan process by introducing your partner's bad credit into the loan equation.