Finance companies and PMB address changes

Jim & Betty wrote:

kcmoedoe wrote:
I appreciate that fact that a PO box may constitute a legal address, but it will be a detrimental factor when a financial institution considers whether or not to extend credit. There is much more to extending credit than a simple credit score. Lenders take into consideration collateral, income, stability, the purpose of the loan and a multitude of other factors. For example, it does not matter how good your credit score is, if you are trying to borrow an amount you cannot afford to repay, you will be turned down. Today, most lending is done by composite scores generated by the financial institution's own scoring system of which credit score is an element. If the total score is high enough, loan approved, miss the cutoff by a couple of points, no loan. Housing is one of the many factors that go into that scoring. Homeowner, no mortgage, generally gets the most points, homeowner with mortgage a few less, renter a few less than that, border, even less. Every lender's software will quickly recognize that a Private mailbox address is being used, even if it is in Livingston, Texas or Rapid City South Dakota. That will mean your application will score far fewer points than the guy that lives at a real address in those cities. It doesn't mean you will not be approved. You might score plenty of points with your income, your collateral, your personal credit history, etc. But for some people it will make a difference that causes a denial.
By the way, there is no residential property in the United States that does not have a physical address associated with it. That was mandated by federal law multiple years ago. It is a safety issue, first and foremost. Fire and police response is predicated on knowing where a property is located, going to a post office box won't help put out a fire at your house.

So what do you think about Dave Ramsey?

JimR

I have a problem that he calls bankers and loan collectors "scum of the earth". His program makes sense if you cannot handle credit. However, most people can and do use credit wisely. People start and expand businesses, buy homes, cover emergency medical needs, get educations and do countless other things that improve their lives using credit. Credit is a tool, just like a hammer. If you constantly smash your fingers every time you pick up a hammer, maybe you shouldn't use a hammer, but that doesn't mean that properly used a hammer isn't useful.