Credit Score Blog Category

FICO schmico. Credit scores have long proven an obstacle to getting a loan for students with little credit history. But there's a new score in town and it is specifically designed for students.

Should medical debt should hurt your credit score in the same way that other types of unpaid debt do? Rodney Anderson doesn't think so.

The good news: The 3G iPhone now costs only $99. The bad news: If you have poor credit, it may end up costing you $899.

I thought I'd bring it back to basics today, because there are plenty of folks out there just learning the importance of a credit score (and many more who need a refresher!).

One of the services offered by some credit repair companies is a new credit file, completely free of any credit history – good or bad. Are these new credit files real?

When foreclosure seems imminent, a loan modification seems like a godsend. The benefit is a mortgage payment borrowers can afford, but the true cost, many are discovering, is a damaged credit score.

Do you have a "keeping up with the Joneses" mentality? You know, the mindset that you should have a better, bigger, and brighter lifestyle than those less fortunate, little people around you? Yep…you know what I’m talking about!

Ben Stein—actor, comedian, and former Clear Eyes spokesman—was recently fired from his 4-year stint as a columnist for the New York Times.

Medical credit cards are offered by lenders to consumers facing large out-of-pocket medical expenses. Here are the pros and cons of medical credit cards to help you decide if applying for one is the right choice for you.

Fair Isaac, the creator of the well-known FICO score, is suing credit reporting agencies TransUnion and Experian for trademark infringement.

Does shopping around for the best rate during your search for a new credit card, auto loan, or mortgage hurt you? Learn when credit inquiries affect your credit score here.

The FICO credit scoring system, originally implemented in the late 1950s by the Fair Isaac Corporation, has been undergoing a few lifts and tucks lately. The new scoring model, called the FICO 08, was first adopted by credit bureau TransUnion several months ago, and Equifax just announced that it will also begin using FICO 08.

Yesterday we posted about Google's recent ability to determine users' credit scores based on which websites they visit. There weren't a lot of specifics available how exactly this worked or how the information would be used, so we were happy to get Googler Sandra's take on it. Here's what she says.

We're always thinking up new ways to explain credit to our readers in easy-to-understand terms. Hence our latest effort: the Credit Score Butcher Chart, for all you ham lovers out there.

I did not expect to be thinking about a mortgage so soon, but when you live in a house as small and filled with people as I do, changing your living situation is pretty much first and foremost on one’s mind. So after buying my car, I started looking into what I'd need to do to get a mortgage.

In this week's Personal Finance Hour, Liz Pulliam Weston shares some interesting tidbits, personal anecdotes, and FICO facts that you might not know about credit scoring.

We get a lot of questions from readers asking "How can I raise my credit score?" Truthfully, there is no quick and easy fix, but there are some steps you can take that will help (some more quickly and dramatically than others).

As the credit crisis continues and the charge-off rate increases, credit card delinquencies are surprisingly on the decline.

It's Friday again, and that means it's time for the weekly SpendOnLife grab bag post. Here we share some of the week's more interesting tidbits from the world of credit and identity theft. Enjoy!

Credit score ratings are based on the information - both negative and positive - that’s available in your credit report. Here we discuss this information, and for how long it impacts your score.

Here, I've rounded up several variations of a credit score chart from different sources. These are to give you a general idea of what your score might means from a lender's point of view.

Thousands of people each month type in all kinds of "close-but-no-cigar" guesses and misspellings into search engine boxes and internet address bars in an attempt to find the authentic FTC-sponsored site, which is (drum roll, please...)

One of the key characteristics of the credit crisis is that credit card shopping has gotten harder. Not only have the minimum credit score requirements gone up, but some credit card issuers have stopped offering some of their most attractive perks, like credit card rewards. Indeed, finding a credit card in this economic landscape is different from the times when credit was flowing freely.

Each week we point you to interesting news tidbits, personal finance advice, and scam alerts that we think you’ll find interesting or helpful. Check here every Friday for informative and slightly off-the-wall takes on issues related to the economy, credit, and identity theft.

Sallie Mae just released its 2009 study, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards." The results show that, despite the credit crisis, college students are relying on credit more than ever before.

With unemployment at a 25-year high, many aren't able to cover all of their monthly expenses, including a home mortgage. One mortgage lender has decided to give a helping hand.