| How
a Score Breaks Down | List
of FICO Score Factors |
What
a FICO® Score Considers
Listed in the hypertext
links below are the five main categories of information that
FICO scores evaluate, along with their general level of
importance. Within these categories is a complete list of
the information that goes into a FICO score.
- PAYMENT
HISTORY - What is your track record?
- AMOUNTS
OWED - How much is too much?
- LENGTH
OF CREDIT HISTORY - How established is yours
- NEW
CREDIT - Are you taking on more debt?
- TYPES
OF CREDIT USE - Is it a "healthy" mix?
Please note that:
- A score takes into
consideration all these categories of information, not
just one or two. No one piece of information or
factor alone will determine your score.
- The importance of
any factor depends on the overall information in your
credit report. For some people, a given factor may
be more important than for someone else with a different
credit history. In addition, as the information in your
credit report changes, so does the importance of any
factor in determining your score. Thus, it's impossible
to say exactly how important any single factor is in
determining your score — even the levels of importance
shown here are for the general population, and will be
different for different credit profiles. What's
important is the mix of information, which varies from
person to person, and for any one person over time.
- Your FICO score only
looks at information in your credit report. However,
lenders look at many things when making a credit
decision including your income, how long you have worked
at your present job and the kind of credit you are
requesting.
- Your score considers
both positive and negative information in your credit
report. Late payments will lower your score, but
establishing or re-establishing a good track record of
making payments on time will raise your score.
|
