Transunion

Efforts to persuade regulators to allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to use alternative credit scores would stifle competition between the credit bureaus and FICO and do little to expand access to credit, according to industry analyst Chris Whalen.

Millennial credit scores are lower than when Generation X consumers were coming of age, reflecting changes in credit consumption and other consumer behaviors.

Despite rising home prices and a market where many older homeowners are loath to sell, home equity line of credit lending remains muted in all but one corner of the industry: credit unions.

Borrowers with variable-rate debt affected by Federal Reserve rate hikes showed they could handle December's 25-basis-point increase, but that could be changing as short-term rates continue to rise.

As financial institutions look closer at the increasingly detailed consumer credit data available, they are learning consumers are more apt to pay off personal loans before mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.