Yes. A large down payment is exactly what rescues a 650 score on a conventional loan. Conventional pricing runs on a loan-level price adjustment matrix that combines your score with your loan-to-value. Put a lot down (say you finance only half the value) and you land in a section of that matrix where a lower credit score is largely overlooked. Roughly past 40% down, the score penalty shrinks dramatically, close to a get-out-of-jail-free card on pricing. Those thresholds change, so confirm current guidelines. Even without that much down, FHA tends to give a 650 a solid rate, because FHA does not price by score the harsh way conventional does. So a good rate is available, just not the same rate an 800-score borrower would see. The big down payment shrinks how much the lower score costs you rather than erasing the gap entirely. Where the answer gets specific is your exact numbers, since the right call between FHA and conventional depends on how much you are putting down and whether you want to avoid FHA's mortgage insurance. That side-by-side comparison is what we run on the free Roadmap conversation.