Clean Up Your Finances (Collection)

5. Credit-Scoring Myths

For most of credit scoring’s history, the vast majority of the people involved in lending decisions pretty much had to guess what hurt or helped a score. Creators of scoring formulas didn’t want to reveal much about how the models worked, for fear that competitors would steal their ideas or that consumers would figure out how to beat the system.

Fortunately, today we know a lot more about credit scoring—but not everybody has kept up with the latest intelligence. Mortgage brokers, loan officers, credit bureau representatives, credit counselors, and the media, among others, continue to spread outdated and downright false information. Acting on their bad advice can put your score and your finances at significant risk.

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