Time for the Government to put an end to FICO

[jforsyth]

I think a fairly common misconception made about  FICO scores, or any scoring model for that matter, is that they're supposed to help consumers.

News flash: they're not.

Credit scores were designed to help lenders make better and safer decisions. Our entire economy is based off of debt, backed by debt, back by debt, back by more debt. Credit scoring systems are 100% necessary. Period. Consumers join boards like this one to complain to the credit score gods as to why the system did no benefit them. The system was not made to benefit you. Sorry if it stings, but it's true.

Another misconception about credit cards is that if you use them, you're going to be in debt and paying interest. Not the case. Just PIF and establish a good history. I will never pay a penny of interest on any credit card for as long as I live. If the OP had followed his own cash dogma while using CCs, he would have been fine.

@ the OP/obvious troll, sorry you got burned by rate jacks, but you were the one who put yourself in a hole in the first place. Not Fair Isaac. Not the banks. YOU spent beyond your means and you suffered the consequences. To forsake the entire system and call for a government sponsored overhaul of the most well-researched credit scoring system in the world is childish, and you know it.

And in my honest opinion, cash is for dinosaurs.

[Anonymous]

EXCEPT...there is a BIG hole in your theory. You ASSUME I was cornered and put down a hole by debt....and have a bad FIFRAUD score....We were not Like I said. I saw this mess coming just like I did with the stock market and liquidated many of those investments and shifted such to bonds and other assets. Our "credit troubles"..if you want to call it that....started when we ELIMINATED DEBT paid off, and closed accounts. As our financial health improved (and it was already rather healthy) our FIFRAUD score declined triggering rate increases in other account causing me to promptly 0 them and close them also.(and stopped tracking the FIFRAUD number). As of today I have no idea what the score is...I just don't care. We are in the best financial shape we have been in for 10 years with absolutely NO discernible changes in our lifestyle. We actually get more bang for our buck now. We pocketed an additional $700 on our last jeep purchase. By just saying after 3 days of negotiation...."if you meet my price I will have a cashiers check to you in 2 hours".....BINGO!

Like I said ...I was just like many of you for the longest time as I really didn't know how much money I was burning walking the Old way......now that I see the light I will never go back to what was. Cash IS the new status symbol...That gold card is no longer...all plastic says is "i don't have the money right now...so go ahead and stick it to me!"

[MidnightVoice]

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@Anonymous wrote:

. Cash IS the new status symbol...

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For those of us able to handle Credit Cards wisely, ans intelligent enough to play the game, they give us free money.  And we actually, in effect, get money from those who insist on paying cash only!!  I love zero% financing on cars 

So feel free to use cash only and close all your credit accounts - I will enjoy the extra spending that you give me.  Many Thanks! 

[jforsyth]

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@Anonymous wrote:

EXCEPT...there is a BIG hole in your theory. You ASSUME I was cornered and put down a hole by debt....and have a bad FIFRAUD score....We were not Like I said. I saw this mess coming just like I did with the stock market and liquidated many of those investments and shifted such to bonds and other assets. Our "credit troubles"..if you want to call it that....started when we ELIMINATED DEBT paid offSo , and closed accounts. As our financial health improved (and it was already rather healthy) our FIFRAUD score declined triggering rate increases in other account causing me to promptly 0 them and close them also.(and stopped tracking the FIFRAUD number). As of today I have no idea what the score is...I just don't care. 

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Oh, please. You already said you were revolving high balances and paying interest, which is why you opted-out when they rate jacked you. You were borrowing too much, the banks took notice, and now this is all just sour grapes. If you paid them off as fast as you did, then why were you revolving balances in the first place? Borrow what you need, not what you can.

And if you took some time to learn how FICO scores work, your score probably went down initially because you were rebucketed/resegmented. Often times if you do something that will put you into another "group" of consumers (ie. going from people with debt on their credit reports to people without), your score can go down initially, but in your new bucket/segment, it has the ability to reach a higher possible score. If you had been more patient instead of throwing a tantrum and closing everything, you probably would have recovered and surpassed your old 720. The day to day changes in your score aren't important. 

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@Anonymous wrote:

We actually get more bang for our buck now. We pocketed an additional $700 on our last jeep purchase. By just saying after 3 days of negotiation...."if you meet my price I will have a cashiers check to you in 2 hours".....BINGO!

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No, you don't get more bang for your buck. Dealing with a car salesman that was going to rip you off and caved when you showed him the money is hardly an example to go off of. He was probably skeptical of the price you offered because of your credit. Now imagine how much you could have saved if you hadn't forsaken the system. You might've even been able to get 0% financing since most model years are ending.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Cash IS the new status symbol...That gold card is no longer...all plastic says is "i don't have the money right now...so go ahead and stick it to me!"

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I couldn't care less about status symbols. I care about convenience and saving money.

I earn cash back for every dollar I spend. I don't pay any interest, ever. I don't have to carry disgusting paper around with me that has been passed around for decades (I'm no germaphobe, but money is pretty gross if you think about it), nor do I have to go on countless ATM runs. If I buy something that breaks, I have an extended warranty and I can have the CCC deal with the company I made the purchase from. I have free rental car insurance. I can track my spending more accurately. The list goes on, and on, and on.

Oh, and if I get mugged in the city (which you probably haven't even considered), I lose nothing. Two phone calls and my cards are reported stolen. Where did that $200 you were carrying go? 

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@Anonymous wrote:

Like I said ...I was just like many of you for the longest time as I really didn't know how much money I was burning walking the Old way

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Exactly. The ONLY argument for cash is that it's better for people who can't keep track of their spending and for those who CHOOSE to pay interest. Thanks for proving my point.

[Anonymous]

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@MidnightVoice wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

. Cash IS the new status symbol...

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For those of us able to handle Credit Cards wisely, ans intelligent enough to play the game, they give us free money.  And we actually, in effect, get money from those who insist on paying cash only!!  I love zero% financing on cars 

So feel free to use cash only and close all your credit accounts - I will enjoy the extra spending that you give me.  Many Thanks! 

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No you don't ....with plastic you always pay more. I can't get a better deal with cash than you could ever hope to get.

Quite frankly your paying for me because you being nailed for the LOSS they INCUR because of people like me who wont carry a balance or pay their fees........THANKS!!!

There is no "Using credit cards intelligently".....because the only Intelligent move is not to use them. You sound like a Gambler who just won $1000 after spending $3000 to get it.....and you think your ahead...LMAO.

Why would you play a game you can't win...That high FIFRAUD score cost you Thousands to get......its not worth it....you lose! you don't get free mony from anyone...you just pay for it indirectly.

[Anonymous]

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@jforsyth wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

EXCEPT...there is a BIG hole in your theory. You ASSUME I was cornered and put down a hole by debt....and have a bad FIFRAUD score....We were not Like I said. I saw this mess coming just like I did with the stock market and liquidated many of those investments and shifted such to bonds and other assets. Our "credit troubles"..if you want to call it that....started when we ELIMINATED DEBT paid offSo , and closed accounts. As our financial health improved (and it was already rather healthy) our FIFRAUD score declined triggering rate increases in other account causing me to promptly 0 them and close them also.(and stopped tracking the FIFRAUD number). As of today I have no idea what the score is...I just don't care. 

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Oh, please. You already said you were revolving high balances and paying interest, which is why you opted-out when they rate jacked you. You were borrowing too much, the banks took notice, and now this is all just sour grapes. If you paid them off as fast as you did, then why were you revolving balances in the first place? Borrow what you need, not what you can.

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Exactly. The ONLY argument for cash is that it's better for people who can't keep track of their spending and for those who CHOOSE to pay interest. Thanks for proving my point.

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First of all SHOW ME where I said I was revolving high balances....in relation to our income they were not high at all. There was no logical reason for my interest to be raised...NONE.

Second its we "Cashers" that are the financially responsible...you don't see people like me with 50K in credit card debt, facing foreclosure .AND YOU GET TO PAY for those LOSSES...not I.....

Anyhow like I said I don't care what my FIFRAUD score is...its a game you can't win ...Im not paying for 800 credit score....I don't need it, and Im saving a great deal of money without it.

[jforsyth]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@MidnightVoice wrote:

No you don't ....with plastic you always pay more. I can't get a better deal with cash than you could ever hope to get.

Quite frankly your paying for me because you being nailed for the LOSS they INCUR because of people like me who wont carry a balance or pay their fees........THANKS!!!

There is no "Using credit cards intelligently".....because the only Intelligent move is not to use them. You sound like a Gambler who just won $1000 after spending $3000 to get it.....and you think your ahead...LMAO.

Why would you play a game you can't win...That high FIFRAUD score cost you Thousands to get......its not worth it....you lose! you don't get free mony from anyone...you just pay for it indirectly.

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Do you actually read what you post?

There's no using credit cards intelligently? Hmm. I use my cards just as I use cash. I pay them off before the statement posts, and I never spend more than I have in my bank account. I have never paid a dime of interest, and I have never carried a balance.

So, explain to me how this isn't intelligent use. Explain how getting cash back, purchase protection, extended warranties, rental car insurance, concierge service, and personal finance tools ALL FOR FREE isn't intelligent.

EDIT:

P.S.

Sour grapes.

[Anonymous]

I am curious about one thing.  You stated your house was bought before the time of FICO.   That is very interesting since you are only 45 and FICO has been around for longer.  

The earliest you could have bought a house would have been around 1983. 

[fused]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Anyhow like I said I don't care what my FIFRAUD score is...its a game you can't win ...Im not paying for 800 credit score....I don't need it, and Im saving a great deal of money without it.

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Since you don't care about your FICO scores, why do you continue posting in this thread? 

[MidnightVoice]

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@Anonymous wrote:

 No you don't ....with plastic you always pay more. I can't get a better deal with cash than you could ever hope to get.

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Well, where I live the gas stations charge the same for cash or credit, except that I get cash back with my (no fee) card.  This means you are wrong in your assertion that I ALWAYS pay more.  And no, I don't pay interest.  In fact I earn interest because I do not have to pay at that instant, but (on average) 25 days later

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@Anonymous wrote:

 You sound like a Gambler who just won $1000 after spending $3000 to get it.....and you think your ahead...LMAO.

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I go to Vegas every year and I refuse to give the Casino my money - hence I don't gamble.  So I don't sound like a gambler, just someone who gets a reduction in price ny using a credit card when such reductions are not available for the great unwashed who do not know how to use credit cards intelligently 

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@Anonymous wrote:

There is no "Using credit cards intelligently".....because the only Intelligent move is not to use them.

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OMG - a Ramseyite!!  And you are just as mistaken as he is (to be polite).  Fiscal mismanagement at its very best!

And just to think - you started this rant because you were paying $767 a month in fees and interest!  And BTW - that is $767 a month more than I pay!