I am at LendingTree.com just kicking tires and finding out what kind of loans I could get for a home purchase if I wanted. However, I don't want to submit my info and have them pull my credit score if doing so is actually going to end up lowering my score in the process. Does this in fact happen?

Read this.

It can lower your credit score if you get a whole bunch of checks in a short period of time, but a score check every once in a while shouldn't effect it (or not enough to make a difference anyways)

everytime someone checks or inquires it affects your score, so yes it does, and yes a few points is all takes to keep you from getting the best rates,limits,etc.

It depends on who is checking your score.

1 check from a mortgage co. = yes, 2-3 points
10 checks from various mortgage co's = exactly the same as 1...
because everyone knows that you are not going to go out and buy 10 houses at the same time... so they lump any inquiries (IQ's) of the same type within 30-45 days as "1"

however, credit card co.'s are a whole 'nother story... it is entirely possible to get 10 credit cards and get yourself into trouble. so multiple credit card IQ's will drop a score.  

Remember... IQ's are only a tiny part of your overall credit score... worst drop i've personally seen due to excessive IQ's was 5 points

also, credit checks for things like cell phone contracts or electric / cable companies will not matter either, compared to credit cards or retail cards like jc penny, best buy, home depot...

In my short time in the lending industry, the biggest problem I often saw was capacity... people who simply could not afford the additional monthly payment on the new car loan, or boat loan... and would get all pissed off when we did not allow them to live beyond their means like the CC companies would.  or the people who would want a $40k loan on a Chrysler 300C and had never made a single payment of any type on time.

...and people wonder why our economy is crashing.

From experience, yes.

Very negligible, unless you have 10 or 20 CC companies checking.

BTW, lending tree sucks ass.

Find a good mortgage guy and run it buy him.  He could give you a good est without running your credit as long as you are honest with him.

Interesting.  orm the ex that managed to keep an account open and then had it closed due to non payment (all unknown to me), I have had a collection agency and then some law firm check into my  credit history  My level stayed at 771.