There's good news trending across the U.S. and it's all about credit scores. According to a Washington Post article, the average FICO score is 704, which is a new record high. FICO's vice president of scores and analytics, Ethan Dornhelm, said that Americans are "making more judicious use of credit" now that 10 years have passed since the financial crisis and housing bust.

Individuals with a FICO score of at least 704 will increase their likelihood of being approved for a mortgage. However, there's still a chance that people with an average FICO score won't qualify for a mortgage that easily. Research published by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University found that the median credit score for owner-occupied home purchase originations jumped from 700 in 2005 to 732 in 2016. While 732 isn't too far away from the new average FICO score, it's still a big difference that could affect whether or not someone qualifies for a mortgage.