CredEvolv: Clearing the Path to Homeownership

One in three people in the United States don’t have the credit score needed to qualify for a mortgage, resulting in 840,000 denials per year. A disproportionate percentage of denials go to Black applicants, who are denied mortgages at a rate 84% higher than white applicants. And this disparity continues to grow year over year.

2023 Housing Venture Lab cohort member CredEvolv built a platform for improving credit for people initially denied mortgage loans, addressing inequity in lending in the process. Typically, potential borrowers whose mortgage applications are denied don’t know what to do next, or how to make improvements to their credit. “There are people out there who are right on the edge of possibility, but don’t know how to get there,” says Housing Venture Lab Director Kara Murray-Badal.

CredEvolv connects denied borrowers to nonprofit housing counselors certified by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, who then work together to improve the borrower’s credit score. People who have used CredEvolv’s platform have seen an average increase of 53 points to their credit score, and a 10x increase in the likelihood of obtaining a mortgage in one year.

During their time with the Housing Venture Lab, CredEvolv worked to improve consumer experience through business development and technology integration. CredEvolv co-founder and CEO Jeff Walker says the program helped the company clarify their approach: “The [HVL] coaching was incredibly helpful. It brought discipline, structure and disruption to how we viewed our target market and value proposition, which helped us tighten our messaging.”

Watch our video profile of CredEvolv to see how their platform is helping to bring homeownership within reach.