Credit scores

Renters who pay on time deserve credit toward homeownership, and new data tools can make that possible, according to the owner of Burkentine Real Estate Group.

In order to believe in the idea of "competition" in credit scores, the Washington housing community must believe that large institutional investors who buy whole loans and mortgage-backed securities are really, really dumb, writes the Chairman of Whalen Global Advisors

Equifax will hold costs for scores from FICO rival Vantagescore through 2027 and offer other incentives meant to drive adoption of the alternative metric.

The truth is straightforward: the VantageScore 4.0 credit score outperforms the outdated FICO Classic credit score for mortgage, writes the chief data scientist at VantageScore.

VantageScore's claims of outperforming Classic FICO rely on flawed methods and biased comparisons that overstate its impact, according to analysts from AEI Housing Center.

The credit scoring agency's rollout comes after years of criticism from home lenders over its prices, with delivery costs rising over 40% in the past year.

FICO's claims about its 10T score highlight how its monopoly has stifled innovation and raised costs for homebuyers, according to the CHLA's Rob Zimmer.

VantageScore 4.0 is more predictive than Classic FICO, offering a measurable lift in identifying high-risk borrowers and avoiding losses, according to the chief data scientist at VantageScore.

VantageScore 4.0 offers no real edge over FICO and could add risks to housing finance, analysts at AEI's Housing Center argue.

MBA urges GSEs to drop tri-merge credit rule, calling it outdated and costly as FHFA weighs broader credit reporting and scoring reforms.

Pushing back on critics, VantageScore's Chief Strategist and Chief Economist says VantageScore 4.0 boosts competition and predicts risk better than FICO.

More details are out about the government-sponsored enterprises' acceptance of nontraditional credit metrics. But pundits say fiscal analysis is still tough.

Allowing the same three companies to control both credit scoring and credit reporting removes one significant check on manipulation or distortion of consumer data, writes the Director of Consumer Reporting and Data Advocacy at the National Consumer Law Center.

FHFA's surprise approval of VantageScore 4.0 raises concerns over data, implementation hurdles, and the politicized push to reform mortgage credit scoring, writes the Chairman of Whalen Global Advisors.

Private mortgage insurers must accept the FICO alternative as valid collateral before it can be widely adopted by the mortgage industry.

FHFA's move to greenlight VantageScore 4.0 while sidelining FICO 10T has sparked a high-stakes clash over the future of mortgage credit scoring.

The move their regulator Bill Pulte announced introduces competition for one metric but charges from three credit bureaus will remain in place.

Bill Pulte, regulator and conservator of entities that buy and securitize many mortgages, also reaffirmed he's 'not happy with" lenders' main score provider.

Although credit bureaus have collected this data for three years, it's only now being factored into assessments of consumer creditworthiness.

A federal housing official pledged to take near-term action on credit score costs as two legislators have urged him not to allow fewer credit reports.