What exactly is FICO Score?

FICO score is just another way of saying your credit rating. We hear terms like “credit rating” and “credit score” and for many, those terms are subjective. FICO score is a rating/scoring system that actually quantifies your credit score and turns it into a number. FICO is short form for this numeric rating system developed by the Fair Isaac Company back in the early 1980′s. This numeric score has become the standardized was the 3 main credit agencies calculate your credit worthiness. Equifax, TransUnion and Experian all have separate files on you, and collect information on your credit history. And all three give you a FICO score.

What Is The FICO Score Range?

Based on your credit details and history you FICO score will range between 300 and 850.

At 300 you’ll have a very hard time getting any creditor to grant your credit. And at 850 you’ll be swarmed with offers from every lender and credit card company.

Your FICO score is not a credit report. A credit report is a detailed list of all your financial transactions. This information, along with a few other things is used to calculate your FICO score.

Your credit report will contain the following

- any credit account you currently have open
- a report of your monthly payments
- how many times you’ve applied for credit, and from who
- what you’ve applied for credit for
- if you’ve declared bankruptcy

Your credit report is just a detailed, ever updating list. You won’t see your FICO score when you look at your credit report.

The credit bureaus use more than just your credit report to calculate your FICO score. Of course, how you pay your bills is important. But they also look at how much credit you’re using, the percentage of credit granted to credit used, total debt load as a percentage, how long you’ve had a credit file, etc.,

The majority of your FICO score is calculated by your payment history and the total debt you currently have. If you want to improve your credit score these are two things you can easily work on.

Pay down your debt, and make sure you make your payments on time. The best thing about hitting a bump in the road is that your score is a dynamic number. It changes constantly, and you can start to improve your FICO score quite easily. Especially now that you know what it is, and how it’s calculated. You’ll end up saving money if you keep an eye on your FICO score!

Also known as the Fair Isaac Corporation Score, FICO is a financial history with a rating between 300 and 850. In calculating the credit score, a number of factors are put into consideration and they include the length of the credit history, late payments of bill, amount of debt and the current credit limits. The main reason for frequently checking our credit report is to check out for errors since any form of outdated, fraudulent, duplicate or wrong entries can negatively affect the FICO score rating.

Both The Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Accurate Credit Transactions Act statethat it is the right of the consumer to request a copy of their FICO credit report once a year. It is therefore important that you request your FICO credit report in order to discover the various things you can do to  improve the score by reading all the details. Fortunately, you can easily and quickly achieve this by use of the various free credit report websites. These websites offer other serives such as credit monitoring, identity theft protection but you need not require them to get your FICO credit score.

(PRWEB) July 20, 2004

We at http://www.goldmedalmortgage.com have programs specifically for California residents who have a high FICO score and qualify for a low home mortgage loan rate that could potentially save you hundreds of dollars a month.

As an example on a $ 150,000 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage a borrower with a high FICO could pay as low as $ 895 a month, where somebody with a lower score could pay $ 1238 on the same loan.

A FICO credit score can range from 300 to 800. Remember, the higher the FICO credit score the better the home mortgage loan rate! Most borrowers fall into the 600-800 credit score range.

A high FICO score is your reward for paying bills on time. This is one of the most important factors that determine your home mortgage loan rate. A borrower’s high FICO score is the best signal to the lender of how well you’ll make your mortgage payments.    

The three major credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian and Trans Union) use a slightly different system to arrive at a credit score. The best known is called the FICO score, developed by Fair Isaac and Company (FICO).

FICO is used by Experian. Equifax’s credit score is called BEACON, while Trans Union uses EMPIRICA.

The most important information that the credit agencies use to determine your credit score are:

Credit History – How long have you had credit? The longer you’ve had good credit the higher the FICO credit score.

Payment History – Do you pay your bills on time? One 30 or 60 day late payment can damage your good FICO credit score.

Credit Card Balances – How much do you owe and how many accounts do you have? A person who has many credit cards even if there are small or no balances on the accounts has a greater potential to incur debt. Close out the credit cards that you don’t use!

Credit Inquiries – How many times have you had your credit checked? The fewer inquiries on your credit report the better the FICO credit score. So when you sign up for a free gift at the mall and your credit gets checked you might have lowered your FICO score even if you have no intention of using the new card!

It is very important to know your FICO score even if you are not in the market for a home mortgage loan rate. You could have errors on your credit report which are lowering your FICO score.

The 3 credit agencies have valuable information on your credit scores. http://www.equifax.com, http://www.experian.com and http://www.transunion.com.

We at http://www.goldmedalmortgage.com have programs specifically for California and Nevada residents who have a high FICO score and qualify for a low home mortgage loan rate. We also have programs for people who have FICO scores which are lower. We make many loans that banks can not. As we like to say, “We make loans that banks do not”!

For more information call 866 398 4664 or please go to:

http://www.goldmedalmortgage.com

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

located within the United States and its territories.

Why am I getting this instead?

Best answer:

Answer by jpocia03
I would look at annualcreditreport.com. From there you will have access from Experian, Transunion and Equifax. These credit bureaus are FICO based.

You should have access to that via internet from the Phillipines.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

What do you think? Answer below!

Fico scores affect whether you can get credit and what interst rate you pay for credit cards, auto loans, mortgages and other kinds of credit. When testing to see what type of loans you are eligible for, most companies will base your approval off of your credit score. This means that having a high FICO score will always be a benefit towards those in a lending situation.

Planning on taking out a loan for a car or obtaining financing for a mortgage? For most kinds of credit applications, higher scores mean you are more likely to be approved and pay a lower interest rate on new credit cards or loans.

When looking for loans and credit cards, having a high FICO score will determine what your interest rates are through the company that you are obtaining a card or loan from. Did you know shaving just 2 or even 3 percent off of a 0,000 mortgage will save you more than ,000 in the long run. That is ,000 that one could put towards a new car or modifying their home or really whatever they wanted.

When trying to rent an apartment or obtaining loans for houses, good FICO scores come into play. Without good fico scores, your apartment application may be rejected. Having a high FICO scores can reduce how much you will have to pay on a deposit for your apartment. It will also lower security deposits for utilities inlcuding phones, electricity, cable TV and even natural gas.

Banks and businesses that use your FICO score will look at your scores constantly for fluctuation. Creditors and banks look at your scores when deciding whether to change your interest rate or adjust the limit on a credit card. Having good credit scores will help you obtain low APRs on mortgages, as well as loans, and will work towards benefitting your finances in the long run.

To improve one’s FICO score, you need to do small things over time that will positively affect your score. Changing a FICO score does not happen instantly, so do not be lured into promises by loan companies that claim immediate alterations to your credit score are possible. In order to positively alter your FICO score, you need to pay your bills on time, always repay more than the minimum on loans and credit cards, and make sure you do not miss any payments on what loans you currently have out.

There are now low cost services available where you can monitor your FICO score. Monitoring your credit through the major three credit agencies will alert you to fraudulent actions on your account and allow you to fix any attempted identity theft.

What can also occur when trying to improve your FICO score are little nuances that show that you have a good score. Many credit card companies that monitor Fico scores will start sending you credit cards through the mail along with directions on how to activate them. Such small actions actually show that card companies trust your current score and want you to be a customer with them.

A site to test your score at is myFico.com. This site gives you an estimate of your FICO score by asking simple questions. It takes less than five minutes to do and just involves a basic relay of information from one’s loan and credit card history. The estimate given at the end can tell you where your score should be, and help you setup an accurate estimate with what your FICO score is.

Credit monitoring services now examine your credit reports through TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax for accurate and up to date FICO scores. These company’s sites allow the user to check their score annually, so space out your checking with the three major companies over the course of a year to monitor your credit score.

With the high amount of identity theft monitoring your Fico score is no longer a luxury, it’s an safeguard for your financial well being.

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The higher your score in your credit report, you can buy the confidence of the financial institutions. You will be able to take your pick from a variety of financial institutions while applying for a loan. Your credit reports and your FICO score are the best tools available in the hands of the financial institutions to judge your reliability.

Calculating Your FICO Score

Calculating your FICO Score by means of a complicated mathematical formula is done taking into account your present and past financial dealings. There are a number of things that are taken into account; mainly your financial records are probed deeply. You income is assessed in terms of your expenditure, the debts that you have incurred are also considered. Whether you are involved in some sort of a loan with other financial institutions or have dues in car payments or have a host of credit cards that you used previously.

Your accountability factor in terms of repaying your loan is judged. If you are punctual and have maintained a desired level of consistency in paying back your loans, then you are likely to have a higher FICO score, otherwise not.  Calculation of your percentage score is done on the basis of the financial activities that you have been involved in, both in the past and the present.

However, it is imperative that you go through a copy of your credit report online frequently, so that you can check for any sort of frauds, errors or wrong information. You need to keep a tab on the credit report as any wrong information or errors will invariably harm your reputation and affect your credit score. With time, the whole system is becoming advanced and more transparent and you can readily get the required information, free copy of your FICO score via the internet.

The Average FICO Score in the USA

The average FICO Score varies but the range is 300 to 850. Now Americans who boast of good credit score have 850 in their kitty, having the highest score. For that matter a credit score above 700 is considered good enough for the moneylenders to trust you. Your credit history should be good enough if you want money or big loans from the money lenders. The unfortunate ones who get the tag of having a poor credit usually have 300 credit score.

Los Angeles, CA (Vocus) July 22, 2010

Figures recently released by Fico Inc. show nearly 43.4 million Americans have a credit score of 599 or below. This marks them as being a high risk for most lenders.

Many Americans facing a low credit score are unlikely to be able to obtain a credit card, car loan, or mortgage. Lower credit scores; resulting from heavy consumer spending and debt has been attributed to the recent slow economy.

Morgan Drexen, Inc. CEO Walter Ledda says, “Creditors were over lending money to consumers and solely basing their underwriting standards on FICO scores. They need to take responsibility for the credit crisis because they over extended credit based on the FICO scores.”

Morgan Drexen provides proprietary software and automated administrative services to attorneys across the nation. This automated software, creates efficiency so that attorneys can spend more time with their clients who are in financial difficulty and less time doing paperwork.

As consumer credit heads south, Morgan Drexen CEO Ledda adds, “ In the month of June alone the attorneys we support have engaged over one thousand new clients; in June 2009 there were a little over two thousand new clients, so numbers are down this year. These clients are consumers in severe financial difficulty. It is my hope, that consumers are now taking big steps to reduce their debt. I personally think consumers should look at their finances and try to lower their debt.

For most people a FICO score below 600 represents poor credit, but what does that really mean? Carey Howe, of Morgan Drexen says. “ Most people strive for a high FICO score, as this represents credit worthiness. Unfortunately, FICO does not consider the debt versus income ratio. It is based on five key factors. These are payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, new credit and types of credit cards. There is no consideration for how much a person actually earns. In my opinion the FICO score often is not a true representation of credit worthiness.”

Mary Allison contacted attorneys supported by Morgan Drexen to help her with her debt. Mary’s FICO score was 802 despite the fact that she was in severe financial debt. There are many like Mary who have high FICO scores but still need help managing their rising debt.

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, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.