--- title: What is a Firm Offer of Credit? description: Have you ever gotten a letter in the mail saying you prequalify for a loan or a credit card and wondered how that lender got your information? Here's how: image: https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/_How%20do%20they%20know%20I%20prequalify%20for%20a%20loan__-1.png --- 1 min read # What is a Firm Offer of Credit? [ Rachel Wilson ](https://blog.monitorbase.com/author/rachel-wilson) : Oct 1, 2020 12:00:00 AM [credit monitoring](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/credit-monitoring) [mobile prequalification](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/mobile-prequalification) [contacts](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/contacts) [aged mortgage leads](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/aged-mortgage-leads) [purchase mortgage leads](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/purchase-mortgage-leads) [prescreening](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/prescreening) [prequalification](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/prequalification) [prescreened credit list](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/prescreened-credit-list) ![What is a Firm Offer of Credit?](https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/_How%20do%20they%20know%20I%20prequalify%20for%20a%20loan__-1.png)   A [firm offer of credit](https://academy.monitorbase.com/knowledge/firm-offer-of-credit-requirements-for-prescreened-lists) is a letter or email that goes out to a potential borrower to let them know that they most likely qualify for credit with a lender.  Lenders can get credit data on potential borrows (without harming their credit) to [see who may qualify for credit.](https://academy.monitorbase.com/knowledge/what-is-credit-pre-screening-and-how-are-lenders-able-to-do-it) Once a lender obtains this information, if a person meets their lending standards, they must send out an offer of credit to that potential borrower. This can be done via email or direct mail, and gives the consumer an opportunity to reach out to that lender for additional information.  This process is made possible by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which was designed to protect the consumer from harmful lending practices. With out the FCRA, lenders could send offers to anyone, including those who do not qualify as borrower. The lenders would then pull credit, harming the credit of those that do not qualify. Through prescreening, lenders are less likely to pull a hard credit inquiry on those who do not qualify to borrow. 4 If you've ever received a letter in the mail saying that you are prequalified for a credit card or a loan, the FCRA is how that lender was able to obtain your information. MonitorBase offers [credit prescreening](https://ww3.monitorbase.com/database-marketing-alerts) to lenders on their own contacts and past clients. When contacts are uploaded, MonitorBase watches that person's credit to see when they may be in the market for a new mortgage or qualify for a refinance. Once a potential borrower is identified, a firm offer of credit is sent out via email and direct mail, letting that person know that a loan officer is ready to help them out.    - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) [![Close More Loans Than Ever Before](https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/backgroud%20cropped-Apr-11-2025-01-46-42-8605-PM.png) ](https://blog.monitorbase.com/blog-heres-how-to-close-more-loans-in-2020) #### [Close More Loans Than Ever Before](https://blog.monitorbase.com/blog-heres-how-to-close-more-loans-in-2020) [Rachel Wilson](https://blog.monitorbase.com/author/rachel-wilson) : Feb 5, 2020 12:00:00 AM We all have goals, but sometimes it can be hard to know how to achieve them. Closing more loans isn't impossible, and may even be easier than you... [tips](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/tips) [soft credit inquiry](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/soft-credit-inquiry) [database monitoring](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/database-monitoring) [marketing constraints](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/marketing-constraints) [credit score](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/credit-score) [email notifications](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/email-notifications) [text notifications](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/text-notifications) [notifications](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/notifications) [first time home buyer](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/first-time-home-buyer) [Database Recapture](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/database-recapture) [prescreened credit list](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/prescreened-credit-list) [legislative update](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/legislative-update) [soft inquiry technology](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/soft-inquiry-technology) [Read More](https://blog.monitorbase.com/blog-heres-how-to-close-more-loans-in-2020) [![3 Runoff Risks for Mortgage Professionals in 2020](https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/customer%20retention-3.jpg) ](https://blog.monitorbase.com/aged-mortgage-leads-1-1) #### [3 Runoff Risks for Mortgage Professionals in 2020](https://blog.monitorbase.com/aged-mortgage-leads-1-1) [Rachel Wilson](https://blog.monitorbase.com/author/rachel-wilson) : Apr 2, 2020 12:00:00 AM [aged mortgage leads](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/aged-mortgage-leads) [purchase mortgage leads](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/purchase-mortgage-leads) [Read More](https://blog.monitorbase.com/aged-mortgage-leads-1-1) [![Retention Rockstar™: Getting Ahead of the Mortgage Credit Trigger](https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Retention%20Rockstars%20April%202024%20Updated-1.png) ](https://blog.monitorbase.com/retention-rockstars-0) #### [Retention Rockstar™: Getting Ahead of the Mortgage Credit Trigger](https://blog.monitorbase.com/retention-rockstars-0) [MonitorBase](https://blog.monitorbase.com/author/monitorbase) : Apr 3, 2024 12:00:00 AM Today's MonitorBase Retention Rockstar™ video blog focuses on staying ahead of mortgage credit triggers amid increased scrutiny and regulation.... [predictive alert](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/predictive-alert) [Relationship Retention](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/relationship-retention) [retention rockstar](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/retention-rockstar) [credit trigger](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/credit-trigger) [Prescreen credit](https://blog.monitorbase.com/tag/prescreen-credit) [Read More](https://blog.monitorbase.com/retention-rockstars-0) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Rachel Wilson", "url" : "https://blog.monitorbase.com/author/rachel-wilson" }, "dateModified" : "2025-04-11T13:47:50.729Z", "datePublished" : "2020-10-01T06:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "What is a Firm Offer of Credit?", "image" : [ "https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/_How%20do%20they%20know%20I%20prequalify%20for%20a%20loan__-1.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.monitorbase.com/what-is-a-firm-offer-of-credit", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.monitorbase.com/hubfs/download.png" }, "name" : "Mobility Market Intelligence (MMI)" } } ```