co-signing a loan

Yes...but it should be noted that you can't co-sign on a mortgage like you can a credit card...you are a co-borrower who must undergo the exact same scrutiny and qualification process as you would if you were getting the loan on your own.

The negative impact on your credit will be the same in either case.

The negative event will hurt you just as bad either way. You will have to declare the other loan as one of your debts, and the property that the debt is secured by as one of your assets. If it is not your primary residence, any equity in it could be subject to seizure by the bankruptcy court for payment of your creditors. There are other potential pitfalls as well. If you are thinking yo may end up down this road, you should definitely seek legal counsel. ~ Bert Carpenter, The LoansA2z team of NOVA Home Loans ~ NMLS 40586 ~ www.LoansA2z.com 888-889-9950

Your credit is your credit.. if you have a damaging event, then it's going to affect you credit.. if one of the "damaging events" was caused by the other signer, but your both on the loan, it will affect BOTH your credit scores.. I'm a Broker here in Scottsdale AZ and I only lend in Arizona. If you or someone you know is looking for financing options, feel free to contact me or pass along my information. 480-287-5714 WilliamAcres.com

Yes it would be the exact same.

Derogatory credit, which is what you are referring to, is going to affect the score the same regardless of what is currently on your credit report. However, if you have a mortgage with mortgage history then you have additional credit being built and your score might be just a little bit higher. That is only because of the difference between having more positive credit history, or less. The two items will be treated separately and weigh into your credit that way, even though they may affect each other.

Both a bankruptcy and foreclosure will impact your FICO score. Generally speaking a foreclosure will have greater negative impact. If you are not the one who is filing bankruptcy, you may be fine so long as the mortgage is current. If the mortgage is being defaulted on then you will have negative implications to your credit score as well. You may want to contact a real estate attorney that can help negotiate with the mortgagor to minimize the negative impact to your credit report accordingly.