[Stacheman]

I work in the credit reporting industry, so here are a couple of tips for you. First, the credit scores that you get directly from Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion are NOT the same credit scores that lenders use when making decisions. They give you the "consumer" version of the score not the "mortgage" version. There are different versions for many different industries (auto, insurance, mortgage, etc). The difference is in the mathematical models used to derive the scores. Bottom line, don't put too much faith in these "consumer" scores. I have seen the consumer scores be up to 100 points higher than a mortgage score.

Next, amount of credit card debt is very important, second only to payment history in my estimation. Balances on credit cards should be kept below 30% of the limits. The lower the better, but it sounds like you know this.

Last, opening new accounts tends to hurt credit rather than help, at least at first. Inquiries that potential lenders put on your credit are harmful, so is taking on new debt.

I have not seen many lenders require 800 FICO scores to get their best rates on low/no doc loans. There are hundreds of lenders and products though, so I'm sure there are some. An 800 score is very tough to achieve, and not all the factors are in your control (ie, length of credit history). I have looked at 1000s of credit reports in the past 3 years and the number of scores in the 800s I've seen is probably in the teens.

Good luck, and I would be happy to try and answer any specifics if desired.