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FinanceFair Isaac

Why your credit score might soon get a boost

By
Benjamin Snyder
Benjamin Snyder
Managing Editor
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By
Benjamin Snyder
Benjamin Snyder
Managing Editor
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 8, 2014, 2:04 PM ET
Finance
contract armin harrisKyle Bean for Fortune
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Worried about your credit score? Well, good news is on the way.

Fair Isaac, which is in charge of tabulating the popular FICO credit scores, is about to recalibrate the way it calculates credit scores. That may mean it’s easier for millions of Americans to get loans.

The company said Thursday it plans to dismiss late bill payments as a negative to consumers’ score, if those bills have been paid or settled with a collection agency. Additionally, unpaid medical bills will have less of an effect downgrading scores going forward.

The new formula is slated to take effect in the fall.

The new structure could see consumers with median scores have them bumped up as high as 25 points, if the only late payment they have relates to an unpaid medical debt, according to the company. Scores fall on a scale between 300 and 850 points.

In May, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found that consumers’ credit scores are “overly penalized” for medical debt, in part prompting Fair Isaac’s change.

Fair Isaac (FICO) said in a release that the new modeling techniques for the FICO scores are “more predictive of a consumer’s likelihood to repay a debt than previous versions.”

Jim Wehmann, executive vice president for Fair Isaac’s scores division, said that the updated system will also help U.S. lenders “more consistently” and “precisely” assess new applicants in the future.

The last updated version of the credit score system was introduced in 2008.

About the Author
By Benjamin SnyderManaging Editor
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Benjamin Snyder is Fortune's managing editor, leading operations for the newsroom.

Prior to rejoining Fortune, he was a managing editor at Business Insider and has worked as an editor for Bloomberg, LinkedIn and CNBC, covering leadership stories, sports business, careers and business news. He started his career as a breaking news reporter at Fortune in 2014.

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