New credit law trying to be passed

[Adrenaline]

I would like to see this pass. Then I would like to see them show how they actually get your number when you look at the report.

 

[highland145]

FICO generates your score but they don't divulge how they come up with the #. Impossible to get a perfect 850. Why? Don't know. Asked my equifax rep and she said "that's how they do it."

You can already get the report free. Not sure what the implications are for a free score.

 

[StageLeft]

This is a tiny law that will save some people a few bucks. I think ultimately whoever is spending time on this should get the fvck to work and stop dicking around on tax payer money. Don't these idiots have any real work to do or are they only capable of spending resources working on bills that are very easy to get everybody on board with and nobody cares to challenge because ultimately they are quite irrelevant?

 

[Blackjack200]

I would like to see this pass. Then I would like to see them show how they actually get your number when you look at the report.

That formula for that number is proprietary and I believe it changes from time to time. If it was a set forumula and Fair Isaac had to divulge it, it would put them out of business.

This is a tiny law that will save some people a few bucks. I think ultimately whoever is spending time on this should get the fvck to work and stop dicking around on tax payer money. Don't these idiots have any real work to do or are they only capable of spending resources working on bills that are very easy to get everybody on board with and nobody cares to challenge because ultimately they are quite irrelevant?

I disagree mainly because when I bought my house, I couldn't even pay to find out my credit score. No website would provide it unless I signed up for some bullshit "credit monitoring" $15/month service. It's a total scam. I don't mind there being a propietary and opaque method for determining my score, and I don't mind paying to learn what it is, but I draw the line at being coerced into signing up for a service. That's bullshit.

 

[highland145]

I disagree mainly because when I bought my house, I couldn't even pay to find out my credit score. No website would provide it unless I signed up for some bullshit "credit monitoring" $15/month service. It's a total scam. I don't mind there being a propietary and opaque method for determining my score, and I don't mind paying to learn what it is, but I draw the line at being coerced into signing up for a service. That's bullshit.

annualcreditreport.com is the free site for the report and you will be solicited to pay for the score. IIRC, equifax was $8.00. I do not remember if it was tied in to a monitoring program.

 

[blackangst1]

That formula for that number is proprietary and I believe it changes from time to time. If it was a set forumula and Fair Isaac had to divulge it, it would put them out of business.



I disagree mainly because when I bought my house, I couldn't even pay to find out my credit score. No website would provide it unless I signed up for some bullshit "credit monitoring" $15/month service. It's a total scam. I don't mind there being a propietary and opaque method for determining my score, and I don't mind paying to learn what it is, but I draw the line at being coerced into signing up for a service. That's bullshit.

You can go to myfico.com and get a one time FICO score. No need to sign up with a service.

 

[Blackjack200]

annualcreditreport.com is the free site for the report and you will be solicited to pay for the score. IIRC, equifax was $8.00. I do not remember if it was tied in to a monitoring program.

You can go to myfico.com and get a one time FICO score. No need to sign up with a service.

I started looking for houses about 3 years ago. I googled, posted on forums, checked the major websites and did pretty much all I could on the internet and could not find anything that didn't require signing up. I don't know if these options are new. I don't mind paying $8.00, really, how often do you need to know your credit score?

 

[StageLeft]

That formula for that number is proprietary and I believe it changes from time to time. If it was a set forumula and Fair Isaac had to divulge it, it would put them out of business.



I disagree mainly because when I bought my house, I couldn't even pay to find out my credit score. No website would provide it unless I signed up for some bullshit "credit monitoring" $15/month service. It's a total scam. I don't mind there being a propietary and opaque method for determining my score, and I don't mind paying to learn what it is, but I draw the line at being coerced into signing up for a service. That's bullshit.

It is bullsh*t, but it's also of no consequence compared to other major laws that need to be on the books now and the government has been playing grab ass instead of working, namely banking reform.

The whole credit thing is a big mess. I have had my scores in the past (since annual free report I no longer get them, though) and never had to sign up for a service. It looks like on myfico you can get it for $16/pop. Huge rip off, though.

 

[cubby1223]

I can see this issue both ways. First we do need to open up the system a bit just because identity fraud is a growing problem. But, if we open it up too much where individuals now can game the system, the system will no longer be useful to lenders. I think it is fair for lenders to be able to assess someone's risk before handing him a boatload of money.

 

[tk149]

I started looking for houses about 3 years ago. I googled, posted on forums, checked the major websites and did pretty much all I could on the internet and could not find anything that didn't require signing up. I don't know if these options are new. I don't mind paying $8.00, really, how often do you need to know your credit score?

I payed myfico.com for my credit score 2 years ago. I paid $35 or so 2 weeks ago for my credit score and credit reports from two agencies. Didn't have to sign up for credit monitoring.

 

[blackangst1]

I started looking for houses about 3 years ago. I googled, posted on forums, checked the major websites and did pretty much all I could on the internet and could not find anything that didn't require signing up. I don't know if these options are new. I don't mind paying $8.00, really, how often do you need to know your credit score?

Well, I look at both my reports (all 3) and my FICO twice a year. And the "scores" you get from TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax are NOT FICO's. They are useless, actually.

 

[highland145]

Well, I look at both my reports (all 3) and my FICO twice a year. And the "scores" you get from TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax are NOT FICO's. They are useless, actually.

Supposedly, equifax is the only one that uses a true fico. I know the others don't. They add adjustments to the #. Who knows for what reason. There's only one bank in town that doesn't use equifax. And all of the consumer finance co.s, like me, use equifax.

 

[highland145]

I can see this issue both ways. First we do need to open up the system a bit just because identity fraud is a growing problem. But, if we open it up too much where individuals now can game the system, the system will no longer be useful to lenders. I think it is fair for lenders to be able to assess someone's risk before handing him a boatload of money.

That was the reason for the govt to set up annualcreditreport.com. You can get all 3, once per year, free.

They already game the system. You'll love this. Actual applicant of mine. Applied and I pulled the credit. Score was ~650. Name was real familiar so I checked my turn downs. Sure enough, she had applied a year earlier and her score was ~390 (now that's hard to do). Multiple charge offs on the older report. NONE on the new. WTF? My equifax rep explained it. She filed a police report for id theft and, by law, equifax has to let her cherry pick the "fraudulent" accounts and have them removed. She got rid of multiple I-9s and kept the I-1s. 2 of the companies that charged her off previously had actually re-opened her loans. The only note on the report was a one line, 2 word "fraud alert".

 

[Blackjack200]

That was the reason for the govt to set up annualcreditreport.com. You can get all 3, once per year, free.

They already game the system. You'll love this. Actual applicant of mine. Applied and I pulled the credit. Score was ~650. Name was real familiar so I checked my turn downs. Sure enough, she had applied a year earlier and her score was ~390 (now that's hard to do). Multiple charge offs on the older report. NONE on the new. WTF? My equifax rep explained it. She filed a police report for id theft and, by law, equifax has to let her cherry pick the "fraudulent" accounts and have them removed. She got rid of multiple I-9s and kept the I-1s. 2 of the companies that charged her off previously had actually re-opened her loans. The only note on the report was a one line, 2 word "fraud alert".

How ironic.

That's unbelievable. Do you have to provide any evidence of ID theft?

 

[highland145]

How ironic.

That's unbelievable. Do you have to provide any evidence of ID theft?

Nope. Just a police report. So she filed a false report but who's going to check. Not the police, too busy.

 

[Moonbeam]

How ironic.

That's unbelievable. Do you have to provide any evidence of ID theft?

You just have to state that everybody loves themselves.

 

[StageLeft]

That was the reason for the govt to set up annualcreditreport.com. You can get all 3, once per year, free.

They already game the system. You'll love this. Actual applicant of mine. Applied and I pulled the credit. Score was ~650. Name was real familiar so I checked my turn downs. Sure enough, she had applied a year earlier and her score was ~390 (now that's hard to do). Multiple charge offs on the older report. NONE on the new. WTF? My equifax rep explained it. She filed a police report for id theft and, by law, equifax has to let her cherry pick the "fraudulent" accounts and have them removed. She got rid of multiple I-9s and kept the I-1s. 2 of the companies that charged her off previously had actually re-opened her loans. The only note on the report was a one line, 2 word "fraud alert".

390 IS hard to do. I am not even sure how I'd do it because that shows you're probably getting people to give you credit when it's already shot somehow. Or had a lot of accounts and defaulted all at the same time.

 

[highland145]

390 Or had a lot of accounts and defaulted all at the same time.

That's what she did. Had multiple previous accounts with 5 or 6 different creditors, all paid I-1. Then every one was charged off for non payment. The medical collections/public records helped too.

Welcome to the consumer finance industry. That's why I get to charge 35%.

 

[Moonbeam]

Consider the sparrow...................

 

[highland145]

Consider the sparrow...................

Live for today because the cat might eat you tomorrow.

 

[Blackjack200]

Consider the sparrow...................

Live for today because the cat might eat you tomorrow.

 

[blackangst1]

Supposedly, equifax is the only one that uses a true fico. I know the others don't. They add adjustments to the #. Who knows for what reason. There's only one bank in town that doesn't use equifax. And all of the consumer finance co.s, like me, use equifax.

They dont. They are pretty close, but not FICO. TU is usually the farthest from FICO.

 

[brandonbull]

People should have a right to know the exact method for determining your credit score. It's used in to many aspects of our lives not to know this.

 

[Pulsar]

People should have a right to know the exact method for determining your credit score. It's used in to many aspects of our lives not to know this.

No.

People have every right to know their score. People do NOT have a right to know a company's tradesecret.

Originally the credit score was developed as a risk-avoidance score. It was developed by a company for other companies to use. Only once it was widespread did this become an issue. You can hardly expect to force a company to give up that trade-secret and lose their entire business.

The score is all you really need to know.

 

[blackangst1]

Not sure what else youre looking for, but...

What’s in your FICO® score

FICO Scores are calculated from a lot of different credit data in your credit report. This data can be grouped into five categories as outlined below. The percentages in the chart reflect how important each of the categories is in determining your FICO score.

These percentages are based on the importance of the five categories for the general population. For particular groups - for example, people who have not been using credit long - the importance of these categories may be somewhat different.
Payment History

• Account payment information on specific types of accounts (credit cards, retail accounts, installment loans, finance company accounts, mortgage, etc.)
• Presence of adverse public records (bankruptcy, judgements, suits, liens, wage attachments, etc.), collection items, and/or delinquency (past due items)
• Severity of delinquency (how long past due)
• Amount past due on delinquent accounts or collection items
• Time since (recency of) past due items (delinquency), adverse public records (if any), or collection items (if any)
• Number of past due items on file
• Number of accounts paid as agreed

Amounts Owed

• Amount owing on accounts
• Amount owing on specific types of accounts
• Lack of a specific type of balance, in some cases
• Number of accounts with balances
• Proportion of credit lines used (proportion of balances to total credit limits on certain types of revolving accounts)
• Proportion of installment loan amounts still owing (proportion of balance to original loan amount on certain types of installment loans)

Length of Credit History

• Time since accounts opened
• Time since accounts opened, by specific type of account
• Time since account activity

New Credit

• Number of recently opened accounts, and proportion of accounts that are recently opened, by type of account
• Number of recent credit inquiries
• Time since recent account opening(s), by type of account
• Time since credit inquiry(s)
• Re-establishment of positive credit history following past payment problems

Types of Credit Used

• Number of (presence, prevalence, and recent information on) various types of accounts (credit cards, retail accounts, installment loans, mortgage, consumer finance accounts, etc.)

Please note that:

• A FICO score takes into consideration all these categories of information, not just one or two.
  No one piece of information or factor alone will determine your score.
• The importance of any factor depends on the overall information in your credit report.
  For some people, a given factor may be more important than for someone else with a different credit history. In addition, as the information in your credit report changes, so does the importance of any factor in determining your FICO score. Thus, it's impossible to say exactly how important any single factor is in determining your score - even the levels of importance shown here are for the general population, and will be different for different credit profiles. What's important is the mix of information, which varies from person to person, and for any one person over time.
• Your FICO score only looks at information in your credit report.
  However, lenders look at many things when making a credit decision including your income, how long you have worked at your present job and the kind of credit you are requesting.
• Your score considers both positive and negative information in your credit report.
  Late payments will lower your score, but establishing or re-establishing a good track record of making payments on time will raise your FICO credit score.