What Is Credit Prequalification?

Finance providers run prequalification through their platforms with the homeowner’s authorization, using a soft inquiry that does not affect credit scores, and return an indication of likely eligibility. A hard inquiry follows at formal application. Providers set their own credit and income criteria, and lease or PPA programs have their own thresholds, which can differ from loan programs.

With third-party ownership taking so much of the 2026 market, credit gating decides whether a sat appointment becomes a deal: a homeowner who cannot clear the provider’s review cannot sign. Closers therefore run prequalification early in the visit, or beforehand when the homeowner has consented, so the conversation follows an option that can actually be financed. Setters should not ask about scores or run credit; their job is to learn whether the homeowner is open to a financing review at the visit.

Caveats: prequalification is not approval, and approval can change after the full application when income, debt, or title issues surface. A decline may reflect identity or data errors that can be fixed on the spot. Consumer-credit rules govern consent and notices. Reps should never guess a homeowner’s creditworthiness from the neighborhood or the house, and never promise approval.