Patrick's Quick Answer
Four credit moves are off the table from the day your loan goes in until the day you get the keys. Do not open any new accounts unless your loan officer advises it. Do not pay off installment loans early, even with fewer than 10 payments to go. Do not contest collections that are actually correct. And do not close revolving accounts that sit at $0. Each one sounds reasonable, and each one can quietly move your numbers the wrong way.
Here's the key: every credit decision you make during the loan process is a decision the underwriter sees. I have watched buyers do all four of these things with the best intentions and hand Ursula a reason to pause the file. None of them are obvious disasters. That is what makes them dangerous.
Do Not Do #1: Do not open new accounts
Do not open any new accounts while you are attempting to purchase, unless your loan officer tells you otherwise. That 0% furniture offer, the new card for the move, the truck you convinced yourself you need. A new account means a hard inquiry and new debt landing right in the middle of underwriting. It does not matter how small the payment is. Wait until you have the keys.
Do Not Do #2: Do not pay off installment loans early
Do not pay off installment loans early, even if you have fewer than 10 payments to go. I know it feels responsible. But paying off an installment loan can shift how your credit history reads and how your debt is scored. Let the loan run its course. The underwriter would rather see a steady history than a sudden change.
Do Not Do #3: Do not contest correct collections
Do not contest collections that are correct just to try to wipe them off your report. If the collection is legitimately yours, a dispute does not erase it. It just adds a dispute to your file and can stall your timeline. Save your disputes for genuine errors.
Do Not Do #4: Do not close $0 revolving accounts
Do not close revolving accounts that sit at $0, even if you never plan to use them again. Closing a card lowers your total available credit, which can push your utilization ratio up, and utilization is one of the numbers the score models watch closest. Let the card sit there.
Reality Bites
Every one of these do not do's is something a buyer did with good intentions, and every one of them cost time on a file. The loan process rewards boring credit behavior. No new accounts, no early payoffs, no disputes, no closings.
Patriot Pro Tip
Not sure whether a credit move is safe? Ask Lawrence the Loan Officer before you do it. One message costs nothing. A new card or an early payoff can cost you your closing date.
This is the kind of practical detail I walk first-time buyers through in my free live webinar, where I teach the entire roadmap from credit prep to getting your keys. If you want a straight answer on what to touch and what to leave alone on your credit, that is a conversation worth having.