credit score question

[frank0830]

Im very lost. Over the past year or so, I have been monitoring my credit very closly. I have brought up my scores:

TU: 636

Exp: 629

Equifax: 595

Since these are in a decent range, I thought I would apply for a mortgage. The LO replies that I have credit score of 579. Where can she come up with such number? The number she gave me, and my numbers being reported/monitored by true-credit.com are in opposite directions. The TU is current as of today, the other two as of Jan 6, 09 

Can anyone help me out here?  

[llecs]

Ignore the score from TrueCredit (TC). TC doesn't use FICO scores, but rather a non-FICO score we call FAKO scores. Lenders don't use these score as you found out. Pull all three from here and you'll likely see the same three scores your lender pulled.

[frank0830]

I dont understand the difference in what this $50 report says

http://www.myfico.com/Products/FICOThree/Description.aspx

that a $15 report says from truecredit.com

the description on the $50 report is the exact same thing I get from truecredit.com

[Anonymous]

The difference is in the scoring model. FICO has a heavily guarded confidential formula for calculating scores. The scores you get from other sites are not using the FICO scoring model, so they're only estimates.

That said, I think mortgage scores are weighted differently. I pulled my scores from MyFico a day before visitng a broker in October, and the scores I had were 30-50 pts higher than the scores the broker obtained. Like you, I was quite surprised. On the flip side, my husband's mortgage scores were higher than his scores on MyFico.  

[Anonymous]

my scores have been to the point right on with my FICO from the 3 that have pulled them lately. 

[frank0830]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The difference is in the scoring model. FICO has a heavily guarded confidential formula for calculating scores. The scores you get from other sites are not using the FICO scoring model, so they're only estimates.

That said, I think mortgage scores are weighted differently. I pulled my scores from MyFico a day before visitng a broker in October, and the scores I had were 30-50 pts higher than the scores the broker obtained. Like you, I was quite surprised. On the flip side, my husband's mortgage scores were higher than his scores on MyFico.  

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I'm really beginning to think that these things are a somewhat scam. I don't understand how these can be caculated so differently. Were talking dirastic changes. 

How are other sites selling me my personnal info, thats incorrect? 

One person tells me I need to pull my FICO score from this site...where elsewhere on this site the FICO score is referred to as a credit score from all 3 beaurus...but on another site, its telling me the exact same thing, but not being referred to as a fico score.  

  

[Anonymous]

The main difference is that most lenders look at true FICO scores, which can only be obtained personally from MyFico.com. The other sites are misleading because they don't clarify that they use "fake" scores.

[llecs]

Frank0830, as LSUgrl mentioned, the scores offered through TrueCredit are FAKO or fake scores. TransUnion created that score to best try to copy or emulate a real FICO score. IMO, they did a poor job. My scores through TC have dropped while my FICOs increased, and vice versa. My TU TC score has been as much as 100 points lower than my TU FICO score if pulled on the same day. AFAIK, there are no lenders that use this score. Other examples include the Plus Score offered by EX, Vantage score, Credit Karma's score, and so on. IMO, these are nothing more than money makers. If "FICO" doesn't appear anywhere in the fine print by the score, then it isn't a FICO score.

In fact, these are the last two sentences found in the fine print on your scores page in your TC account:

TrueLink is not connected in any way with Fair, Isaac and Company; the credit score provided here is not a so-called FICO score. The credit scores of TransUnion may not be identical in every respect to any consumer credit scores produced by any other company.

The only place you can get all three FICO scores together is via this website (outside of asking them from a lender). You can get EQ FICO from this site and Equifax.com, if buying the single report and score only (not the 3-in-1 product). You can only find TU FICO from this website and transunioncs.com (note the -cs). And you can only get your EX FICO score from this website or from PA State Employees CU (if a member) and possible at a couple other participating lenders.

For more info, check out Credit Scoring 101.

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LSUgrl wrote:

That said, I think mortgage scores are weighted differently. I pulled my scores from MyFico a day before visitng a broker in October, and the scores I had were 30-50 pts higher than the scores the broker obtained. Like you, I was quite surprised. On the flip side, my husband's mortgage scores were higher than his scores on MyFico.  

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Most lenders use the exact same forumal version as found on this site. However, some either use a new or older version which can really throw your score off. A good example is the TU FICO score. Mose lenders use TU 98, however, a growing minority use the '04 version. Many have posted a 30-40 point swing between the two if pull on the same day from the lender and from here.

[llecs]

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frank0830 wrote:

I'm really beginning to think that these things are a somewhat scam. I don't understand how these can be caculated so differently. Were talking dirastic changes. 

How are other sites selling me my personnal info, thats incorrect? 

---

I see your comments all the time. I can't tell you how many horror stories I've read of people relying on a FAKO score thinking it is a FICO score, only to app and get denied because their FICO was much lower, for example. And Fair, Isaac & Co. have been going after these companies to disclose that they are unrelated to FICO. It's a daunting task for them. The term "credit score" has become too generic, IMO. I'm for free markets and competition, but disclosure sure would come in handy.

Forgot to mention, but you brought it up, but th einfo in your TC report does come in very handy. While the scores should be ignored, the information in the CR is relatively the same as from the CRAs. TC is great in letting you know of an added baddie, for example. While you can only now pull monthly (used to be daily until last month), you can see every 30 days the deletion of an account, new updates, new accounts, etc. IMO, a credit monitoring service like TC or CCT is important to have.

Message Edited by llecs on 01-30-2009 07:28 PM

[frank0830]

Please, answer me this. 

I spoke with my LO this afternoon. She does not use a "fico" score. I took a screen shot of my TC screen, emailed it to her. She can not figure out how my score came out so low.

I hopped on the govt website for your annual credit report that you are entitled to. Guess what. Same scores.

I called my aunt, who is a retired banker. (28 years) She told me FICO, Beacon, and credit scoring is all the same thing. Told her my situation, and she also can not figure it out. 

Im onto some more researching. I find it very hard to believe that so many credit monitoring websites are out there, and this ONE website is the ONLY one that can give you any true knowledge of what your credit is really like. According to you, the govt's website is incorrect, as well. Sorry, I don't buy it.