fico score

Americans are getting more educated about credit scores, and younger people are the most well-versed of all. But that doesn't mean there aren't some gaps in their knowledge. So what should you do to keep on top of your credit? Here are a few free tips.

The number of consumers in the top credit score range has reached its highest level since fall 2008, a report by FICO Labs shows, which could indicate more Americans are working to better their personal finances.

If your credit reports are riddled with numerous late payments or major black marks – like a recent foreclosure or a fresh bankruptcy filing – it probably comes as no surprise that you'll have a tougher time getting a loan than someone with perfect credit. But what about those of you...

When I wrote recently about five surprising things that hurt your credit scores – things like renting a car with a debit card or financing the purchase of furniture – many people were shocked to learn that innocent, everyday actions can wind up blemishing their credit reports. In...

We all know that making late payments or having credit card accounts in collections can hurt your credit scores. But you might be shocked to learn that a lot of other seemingly innocent actions can also negatively impact your credit rating. Here's a list of five surprising things that can lower...

Naomi Allen, a state government employee in Ohio, thought she was doing the "right thing" when her marriage dissolved in 2007. As the more financially savvy of the couple (she'd helped her then-husband raise his credit score several years back after discovering it was too low to qualify for a...

If you thought it was hard to qualify for loans and obtain credit in 2010, wait until 2011, when lenders start using freshly updated, more rigorous versions of two popular credit-scoring systems. Fair Isaac, creator of the widely-used FICO score, recently rolled out an enhanced version of one of...

Thursday, Fair Isaac, the developer of FICO scores, unveiled its "new-and-improved FICO score," according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription required). It's a new way of coming up with your credit score, and TransUnion LLC, one of the three major credit bureaus, is right out the gate in using...

Fair Isaac Corp, the company that created FICO credit scores, is changing its calculations in 2008 (subscription required). The company says that the new scores will be better at predicting the likelihood of defaults on debts. They say the new system will reduce default rates by 5% to 15%.The new...