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The MReport Webcast: Monday 12/8/2014

Despite earning nearly twice as much income on average as other borrowers, self-employed Americans continue to experience more difficulty obtaining a loan quote than their counterparts, according to a study. In a study of borrower profiles and lender behaviors, Zillow found that self-employed loan applicants receive only six loan quotes for every 10 received by non-self-employed borrowers. That's even worse than in June 2011, when the ratio was seven for every 10. While self-employed borrowers tend to earn on average 81 percent more income annually, Zillow says they're being held back by lower credit scores.

According to the company's analysis, 47 percent of self-employed borrowers have self-reported FICO scores below 720, while 28 percent have scores below 680. By comparison, 23 percent of non-self-employed borrowers have scores below 720, and 14 percent have scores below 680. Though their credit scores tend to be lower, self-employed loan applicants beat out their counterparts across most other categories. Besides earning a higher annual income, they also tend to put down more money on mortgage requests and seem to favor higher-value properties.                                                 

U.S. payrolls for November surpassed even the most optimistic forecasts, increasing at the highest rate in more than two years. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by a seasonally adjusted 321,000 in November, following an upwardly revised gain of 243,000 in October, according to the Labor Department. It was the biggest jump since January 2012. Putting a damper on the good news was a climb in the number of unemployed Americans, which was estimated at more than 9 million, according to the government's household survey. The unemployment rate remained flat from October at 5.8 percent.

About Author: Jordan Funderburk

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