Borrowers with scores above 750 generally qualify for a lender's best available rates, since a high score signals lower default risk to the bank. Scores between 650-750 might still get approved but often at a slightly higher rate, and scores below 650 can mean higher rates, additional conditions, or outright rejection depending on the lender's policy.
The gap between a good and a mediocre score can easily be 0.5-1% on a home loan rate, which over a 20-year tenure on a large loan amount translates into a genuinely significant difference in total interest paid — often lakhs of rupees over the loan's life.
Improving your score before a major loan application is worth the effort: paying existing EMIs and credit card bills on time, keeping credit utilisation low, not applying for multiple loans or cards in a short window, and checking your credit report periodically for errors, since incorrect entries do happen and can be disputed and corrected.