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Where Vantage Score Fit Into Credit Reporting

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Scott Brown

Have you heard of VantageScore? This is the new type of credit scoring assessment being put in place by the three major credit bureaus. Because so many complaints were coming in from consumers and corporations dealing in credit alike, the three agencies began to see the merit of adjusting credit scores to be more meaningful and consistent.

One of the major issues faced by consumers and lenders was inequity among the three credit tracking agencies. Representatives from each worked together on VantageScore in order to ensure that credit scores are the same for each person through each of the major reporting agencies. This gives companies evaluating customers for credit-readiness the ability to trust in each of the three agencies. It also removes the need for companies to perform multiple credit checks on customers in order to determine an average credit rating.

One of the major issues facing consumers, is that until all three agencies transfer to the new system there will be come confusion in the actual reported scoring. Because the FICO system, currently in use, denotes a well-established credit record with a score of around 780 those receiving a 990 might be shocked. On the other hand, a FICO rating of 600 would be around 800 on the new scale. Reviewers of credit-worthiness must be prepared to receive and interpret both types of scores in the transitional period.

As of today, companies are able to purchase the VantageScore scores of potential credit customers. However, the three credit bureaus will not begin distributing personal scores to creditors until late 2006.

Due to massive scale credit reforms, this effort on the part of the executives from each of the credit reporting agencies is seen as a positive move towards unification and consistency by many analysts who have reviewed the new mechanism.

It is still too soon to determine how lenders of credit will adapt to and accept the new scoring method. However, it's great news for consumers who are tired of being confused when looking at three reports containing exactly the same information and a different end-number resulting from differing calculation methods and formulas.