Getting mortgage pre-approval is one of the first steps toward buying your dream home. Pre-approval boosts the likelihood that the seller will accept your offer and gives you a detailed quote for your homebuying budget. 

But homebuyers often hesitate because they think that pre-approval hurts their credit score. Will it? 

The truth is that it will temporarily lower your score, as is true whenever a creditor pulls your credit report. But the benefits of getting pre-approved outshine the slight dip in your score.

Does a Pre-approval Impact My Credit Score?

A pre-approval usually requires a hard credit inquiry, although a soft inquiry is all that is needed for a pre-qualification. A hard inquiry can lower a borrower's FICO score by about