Question
Which Credit Score Is My Real Credit Score?
Answer
Since you are on a real estate and mortgage related website I will answer your question from what is required to get a mortgage to buy a home or to refinance your current mortgage.
3 Credit Scores – 3 Credit Bureaus
Your real credit score is actually 3 credit scores. I know that this does not answer your question exactly, but this is how I have to answer it. There are three credit bureaus: Trans Union, Equifax, and Experian. Each of these companies has their own proprietary way of calculating your credit scores. They have each teamed up with the Fair Isaac Corporation to come up with their own slightly different way of calculating your credit score.
Fair Isaac Corporation is the company that came up with the original FICO score technology that is the basis for the credit scores that we have today. All three credit scores are relevant and important to mortgage lenders and creditors for determining whether you should get a mortgage.
To Get A Mortgage Use The Middle Score
Mortgage lenders use your credit scores to help them make a decision about giving you a mortgage or not. They look at all three scores - the scores determined by Trans Union, Experian, and Equifax - and use the middle score of all three of your scores. Underwriters do not average your three scores. They literally take your middle score of your three scores and use that in their decision making process.
Other Credit Scores and What They Mean
There are quite a few companies out there that now offer their own version of a credit score. In most cases these scores do not mean a thing when it comes to getting a mortgage. Some of the names of these other scores are VantageScores, PLUS Score, and CreditXpert Credit Score. See E Loans Free Credit Score Offer – Use For A Mortgage for more information free credit score offers.
Virtually, these scores do not mean much when it comes to getting a mortgage. These scores can be used to get a general idea about where your credit scores stand. They can also be used in conjunction with some of the services offered by the companies who offer these scores for raising your other “real” credit scores.
One final version of your credit scores are used by some car dealers and some large lending institutions. Some of these companies have developed their own proprietary credit scoring systems to help them make credit decisions in a more unified and standardized way. Chances are, if you heard what your scores were with these systems you wouldn’t know what they mean nor would be you able to relate them to your real credit scores given by TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax.
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