Stay AWAY from the CRAs’ new Vantage Scores
The CRAs announced a new “joint credit score” by VantageScore Solutions.
It’s apparently geared towards stupid people:
901-990 - A
801-900 - B
701-800 - C
601-700 - D
501-600 - F
Note that the scores are much higher than the real FICO scores. Of course the idea is DECEPTION, to mislead consumers into thinking that their scores are GREAT when they are above 700 and to keep consumers from analyzing the scores and reports so they can increase their credit rating.
It’s the win win win situation for the CRAs:
Revenue from the sales of scores AND fewer disputes AND happy clients (creditors) who buy lots of reports because they can charge consumers with less than perfect credit MORE.
Don’t waste your money on this score and don’t bother me with questions about it until these VantageScore are used to rate MORTGAGES. Of course there will be idiots who purchase these scores and discuss their VantageScore scores in the credit forums on the web. Ignore them.
Rather than having MORE scores that don’t work, we need to get back to manual credit underwriting using common sense. While there are problems with FICO scoring itself (such as lowering scores for inquiries), the main problem is the INCORRECT and INCOMPLETE data on the CRA reports. No score can be accurate while the reported data is so screwed up.
After 3 years in federal court my credit reports are STILL incomplete and incorrect.
Here’s the press release:
Equifax, Experian and TransUnion Roll Out New Joint Credit Score
March 14, 2006
The nation’s three consumer credit reporting companies - Equifax, Experian and TransUnion - today jointly announced the introduction of a new credit score designed to simplify and enhance the credit process for both consumers and credit grantors.
VantageScoresm is a direct result of market demand for a more consistent and objective approach to credit scoring methodology across all three national credit reporting companies. This approach is unprecedented in the marketplace.
The new VantageScore leverages the collective experience of the industry’s leading experts on credit data, scoring and analytics. Under the new scoring system, credit score variance between credit reporting companies will be attributed to data differences within each of the three consumer credit files and not to the structure of the scoring model or data interpretation.
By combining cutting-edge, patent-pending analytic techniques with a highly intuitive scale for scoring, VantageScore will provide consumers and businesses with a highly predictive, consistent score that is easy to understand and apply. VantageScore uses score ranges from 501 to 990. Consumers and credit grantors alike will recognize the logical score groupings that approximate the familiar academic scale:
901-990 - A
801-900 - B
701-800 - C
601-700 - D
501-600 - F
VantageScore is being independently marketed and sold separately through each of the three national credit reporting companies via licensing agreements with VantageScore Solutions, LLC. VantageScore is commercially available beginning today.
Source: Press Release
Posted by Christine on 03/14/2006 at 12:43 PM
Credit - Collection - Economic News • (3) Comments • Permalink
When I was reading news of this new VantageScore and all of the zillions of benefits it would bring to consumers and businesses, I knew that I was right to not buy Fico scores for now and instead focus on a plan to attack the information on my CRs for a positive outcome. I hope that people realize that this new system is just another way to exploit the consumer to the benefit of the CRAs. I wish we had a Congress that legislated strict liability for CRA abuses; I guess I can dream, right?
Yeah, it is amazing to see the contempt the CRAs have for the FCRA. After 3 years in federal court, Equifax and Experian have absolutely NO concern for my credit report, they have no idea what my claims are and they couldn’t care less.
“I knew that I was right to not buy Fico scores for now and instead focus on a plan to attack the information on my CRs for a positive outcome.”
Positive for who?
That is the million dollar question.
An employer or creditor manually reviewing the reports has most likely very different criteria than a creditor. You can’t go wrong with having long account history and a variety of accounts, stability is always good.
When it comes to score based ratings, the million dollar question is which score will be used.
Even the Fair Isaac scores vary by release, but I can’t say that I noticed conflicts such as what’s good for one score is bad for another.
That’s a possibility with the VantageScores, especially if they’re as screwed up as the Experian PLUS and the TrueCredit scores.
I read that Fair Isaac shares fell 10% on the news of competition by VantageScore. We’ll see what happens.
Hello Everyone,
We seem to have two forums going on this subject, so I will be short and say that there is a consumer site that you are welcome to post to at [deleted by Christine - no SPAM and no BS here!]
Have a great day!
Robert Paisola
