Inez Cromwell checked her credit score before applying for a home improvement loan. She was in the 750 range which would qualify her for a 3.5 percent interest loan.
But when a different bank pulled up her FICO number the interest rate nearly tripled. The difference between the two scores was close to 100 points!
Banks and consumer reporting agencies generally consider the same factors but the weight they give each and the formula for calculating a score often differ.
Consumer Reports says it is another reason consumers must be vigilant in checking their reports for inaccuracies. You can pull a credit report free once a year here.
You can purchase your fico score through the website, myfico.com. But you may not need to as your bank, credit card company, or financial services company will likely provide a check for free. Discover, the credit card company, offers free FICO scores even to non-card holders.
Also, keep in mind it takes about a month for creditors to report new information like your payment activity which could also factor into your FICO. We asked Credit Karma how they factor a score. They use Vantage 3.0, a collaboration among all three credit bureaus.
