Most contractor financing platforms pre-qualify homeowners at FICO scores far below what a bank wants for an unsecured loan. Hearth's lending partners work with scores as low as 550, a floor Hearth confirms on its own site as of July 2026. Wisetack approves interest-bearing plans starting in the low 500s, while GreenSky publishes no minimum at all. Knowing where each floor sits tells you which customers to run through an application and how to talk about credit without losing the room.
Key takeaways
- Hearth's own product pages state its 18+ lender network works with FICO scores as low as 550, with loans from $1,000 to $250,000 on 2 to 12 year terms.
- Wisetack qualifies homeowners for interest-bearing plans with scores in the low 500s, but its longer 0% APR options require scores in the low 700s, per Wisetack partner documentation.
- GreenSky does not publish a minimum score; NerdWallet and third-party reviewers place the practical floor around 600 to 650, with most approvals going to 700+ borrowers.
- Pre-qualification on these platforms uses a soft credit pull, which myFICO confirms has zero effect on the homeowner's score.
- Mosaic is no longer an option: it filed Chapter 11 in June 2025 and stopped originating new loans.
What FICO score ranges mean in plain terms
FICO scores run from 300 to 850, and lenders group them into five bands. Experian and myFICO define the ranges the same way:
| FICO range | Rating | What it means for financing |
|---|---|---|
| 300 to 579 | Poor | Below most platform floors; Hearth's 550 cutoff sits inside this band |
| 580 to 669 | Fair | Qualifies on multi-lender platforms, usually at higher APRs |
| 670 to 739 | Good | Approvals common; mid-range rates |
| 740 to 799 | Very good | Strong approval odds and competitive rates |
| 800 to 850 | Exceptional | Best available terms, including most 0% promotional offers |
Traditional banks typically want a score around 700 for an unsecured personal loan at a competitive rate. Contractor financing platforms exist precisely because a large share of homeowners who want a project done now sit below that line. The platforms fill the gap with lender networks that include near-prime and sub-prime specialists.
FICO minimums by platform in 2026
Platform credit floors are the numbers that decide whether an application is even worth running. Here is where each major contractor financing platform stands as of mid-2026, using each company's own published materials where available:
| Platform | Stated FICO floor | Max loan | Source and notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hearth | 550 | $250,000 | Hearth's product pages: "lending partners work with FICO scores as low as 550"; 18+ lender network |
| Wisetack | Low 500s (interest-bearing) | $25,000 | Wisetack partner docs; 0% options require roughly low-700s scores |
| GreenSky | Not published | $100,000+ | NerdWallet notes GreenSky discloses no minimum; reviewers estimate 600 to 650 in practice |
| Regions (formerly EnerBank) | Not disclosed | Varies | Underwriting criteria not public |
| Service Finance | Not published | Varies | Known for promotional 0% products aimed at stronger credit |
| Mosaic | No longer lending | N/A | Filed Chapter 11 in June 2025; servicing moved to Forbright Bank, per EnergySage and pv magazine |
Treat every number here as a pre-qualification floor, not a promise. All financing is subject to credit approval, and lenders weigh income, debt-to-income ratio, and loan amount alongside the score. For a deeper look at Wisetack's tiers specifically, see our guide to Wisetack credit score requirements for homeowners.
Why Hearth can approve at 550 when banks say no
Hearth's 550 floor works because Hearth is a marketplace, not a lender. One application goes out to a network of 18+ lending partners at once, and those partners include companies that specialize in near-prime and sub-prime borrowers. A homeowner a prime lender declines can still match with a lender built for fair-credit profiles. We break down the mechanics in our post on how Hearth's lender network gets more homeowners approved.
The trade-off is price. As of July 2026, Hearth's site lists personal loan rates starting at 7.99% APR, and that starting rate belongs to the strongest borrowers. A homeowner near the 550 floor who receives an offer should expect a rate at the upper end of what the matched lender charges, which across the industry can run into the mid-30s. Wisetack, for comparison, publishes an APR range of 0 to 35.9% depending on creditworthiness. Some homeowners will decline an offer at those rates, and that is fine: your job is to surface the option, not to sell an expensive loan. Our guide to Hearth's interest rates covers what homeowners actually pay by credit tier.
One correction worth flagging: older articles (including an earlier version of this one) cited Hearth rates "as low as 4.99%". Hearth's current loan pages show 7.99% as the starting rate, so quote that number to customers, not the stale one.
What approval really depends on beyond the score
A FICO score clears the door; it does not close the loan. Lenders on these platforms also evaluate debt-to-income ratio, verifiable income, requested amount, and recent credit events. That is why a homeowner with a 680 score and maxed cards can get declined while a 590 borrower with low debt gets funded. Practical implications for your sales process:
- Never eyeball creditworthiness. The house, the truck, and the neighborhood tell you nothing reliable about a FICO score or debt load.
- Offer financing on every job above a set threshold, say $3,000 to $5,000, and let the platform decide. Pre-screening by gut feel costs you real jobs.
- Quote ranges, not guarantees. "Most of my customers see options in a couple of minutes" is safe; "you'll definitely qualify" is a promise you cannot keep and a compliance problem if you make it.
Homeowners also worry about what an application does to their credit, which is a fair question with a good answer, covered next. For the fuller customer-facing script, see how contractor financing affects homeowner credit scores.
Soft pull vs hard pull: the part that closes deals
Soft credit pulls are the reason financing conversations work at the kitchen table. Every major platform pre-qualifies with a soft inquiry, and myFICO states plainly that soft inquiries do not impact FICO scores at all. A hard inquiry only happens when the homeowner accepts an offer and moves to funding, and even then myFICO reports that one inquiry typically costs most people fewer than five points.
That gives you an honest, verifiable script: "Checking your options takes about two minutes and does not touch your credit score. A credit check only happens if you pick an offer, and even that usually moves a score by less than five points." Fear of credit damage is the single biggest objection to applying, and this removes it with facts rather than reassurance. More objection-handling language lives in our list of 10 homeowner financing objections and what to say.
Run the pre-qualification together during the estimate, on your phone or theirs. A monthly payment number on the screen turns "we need to think about it" into a decision about $240 a month instead of $18,000.
What to do when a customer gets declined
Declines still happen, even at a 550 floor, and how you handle one decides whether you keep the customer. Four moves, in order of preference:
- Reduce the scope. A homeowner declined at $20,000 may pre-qualify at $10,000. Phase the project and book the second half for next season.
- Run a second platform. Underwriting differs lender to lender. A Hearth decline is not a Wisetack decline; our Hearth vs Wisetack comparison shows where each one is stronger.
- Point to alternatives. HELOCs, credit unions, and the customer's own bank all serve borrowers the platforms miss. Follow up in 30 days.
- Consider in-house terms only for small jobs. Carrying payments yourself is credit risk you are not built to manage; keep it to amounts you could afford to lose.
Whatever happens, never speculate about why someone was declined. The lender sends the homeowner an adverse action notice with the actual reasons; your line is "the lenders look at more than the score, and the letter they send will explain it."
The bottom line for contractors
Hearth's 550 minimum is one of the lowest published floors in contractor financing, and it means the fair-credit and lower-credit homeowners other programs screen out are still worth running through an application. Combined with soft-pull pre-qualification that costs the homeowner nothing, there is no good reason to leave financing out of any estimate above a few thousand dollars. If you are weighing the subscription math, our full Hearth fee breakdown and the primer on how 0% APR contractor financing actually works cover the costs side.
Ready to test it against your own job sizes? Get started with Hearth here and run a few soft-pull pre-qualifications on your next estimates.
How we put this together
We pulled the credit floors, loan amounts, and rate figures directly from Hearth's product and loan pages, Wisetack's consumer and partner documentation, and GreenSky coverage from NerdWallet, then cross-checked FICO band definitions against Experian and myFICO and Mosaic's status against EnergySage and pv magazine bankruptcy reporting. Where a platform publishes no minimum, we say so instead of guessing. All figures verified July 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum credit score for Hearth financing?
Hearth's lending partners work with FICO scores as low as 550, according to Hearth's own product pages as of July 2026. A score above 550 allows pre-qualification, but final approval and pricing depend on the individual lender's review of income, debt, and loan amount.
Does pre-qualifying for contractor financing hurt a homeowner's credit score?
No, pre-qualification uses a soft credit inquiry, which myFICO confirms has no effect on FICO scores. A hard inquiry only occurs if the homeowner accepts a loan offer, and myFICO reports that a single hard inquiry typically lowers most scores by fewer than five points.
What credit score does a homeowner need for 0% APR financing?
Roughly a low-700s score for the longer promotional terms: Wisetack's partner documentation says customers must be "well qualified" for its extended 0% options, which reviewers place in the low 700s. Interest-bearing plans reach much further down, into the low 500s at Wisetack and 550 at Hearth.
Can a homeowner with a 500 credit score get contractor financing?
Usually not through the mainstream platforms, since 500 sits below Hearth's 550 floor and below Wisetack's practical low-500s cutoff for interest-bearing plans. Options at that level are a co-signer, a secured product like a HELOC, a credit union, or phasing the project until the score recovers.
Is GreenSky's minimum credit score really 600?
GreenSky publishes no official minimum, so any specific number you see is an estimate. NerdWallet notes the company does not disclose qualification requirements, and third-party reviewers place the practical floor between 600 and 650, with most funded loans going to borrowers at 700 or above.
Why would a customer with good credit get declined?
Debt-to-income ratio is the most common reason a strong score still gets a decline. Lenders on these platforms weigh income, existing debt, requested amount, and recent credit events alongside FICO, so a 680 borrower carrying maxed cards can lose to a 590 borrower with a clean debt profile. The lender's adverse action notice tells the homeowner the specific reasons.
