@Anonymous wrote:
I recently signed up and app'd with PenFed (was approved for 1 out of 3 lines) and the two denial letters stated that my credit score was 645 from Equifax - yet when I pulled all 3 bureau reports from Credit Check Total earlier in the day, the scores ranged from 690-705. That's a big difference - most I have ever seen is maybe 10-15 pt difference. How accurate is Credit Check Total? Is the credit report PenFed pulled from Equifax my actual score? If so, that's very surprising.
All scores are accurate and you don't have one actual score. You must always consider the specific scoring model as well and not just the CRA. Different models evaluate report data differently and can even have different scoring ranges. You cannot assume that all models should produce the same number. You cannot use a score generated by one model to determine a score generated by a different model.
CCT provides FICO 8's. PenFed uses a FICO NG2. FICO NG2 isn't on the same points scale as FICO 8 and it evaluates data differently. See also the Understanding FICO Scoring subforum, its stickies and other resources for info on the various FICO models used by creditors.
You need to consider relevance, not "accuracy" which isn't about how well a given model mimics another anyway despite your assumption. CCT's FICO 8's are relevant to products where a TU, EX or EQ FICO 8 is used. It is not relevant where one of those scores is not used. FICO NG2 is relevant to PenFed and other creditors that use it. Same sort of thing applies to any model/CRA combo. While most creditors use a FICO model and FICO 8 is the most commonly used model, FICO 8 is not used for all products and not all creditors use FICO in their decision.
If you want to know where you stand score-wise with a given product then you need to know the model & CRA used in the decision for the product and pull that specific score. You can use resources such as the Credit Pulls Database (Google to find) and existing threads to find such info,
