I am confused about CE, my score and the simulator is different by 100 points and my eloan score matches the simulator score. One interesting difference, I did find is that under the Credit score analysis it says I have not had credit established for 5 years or more, whereas the simulator says 3 years. Please correct me if I am mistaken but I think fico uses the 3 year time frame also and I believe eloan uses the 3 year time frame also, could this be one of the reasons the CE score is lower. So now I am wondering if the CE score is a realistic score. Any thoughts? Cypri
Cypri, from what I can tell from my own experience, and from what I have read from prior posts on this issue, the CreditExpert simulator is not accurate. In some cases, the bar graph shows your actual score being higher than it really is, and in other instances, like mine, it is shown as lower. In a previous post, I posted my correspondence to Experian on this issue as well as their response thereto. They refused to address the discrepancy, merely stating that the simulator is just to show the general relationship between the various components of one's credit score. They wouldn't even answer my direct question as to why the darned bar graph doesn't accurately reflect my actual CreditExpert score.
Hi Chris did you get my e-mail? I know but I noticed that they are using 5 years instead of three years as the simulator and I think fico uses the three year standard also. Guess what I might not have to sue afterall, Chris! I got a few surprises from TU yesterday, but EQ is still being stubborn. I am down to 2 negatives now on EX and I have opted-out for 2 years, it feels good to know I can control who can view my credit. Cypri
Cyprigirl I have opted-out for 2 years, it feels good to know I can control who can view my credit. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Keep us updated for an increase in F.I.C.O. If it is more than 20-30 or more points I will...but NOT for only 1-5 points...
I am afraid that all the GOOD OFFERS are by "PRM" inquiry... MOST of the "OFF THE STREET" offers are not as good...
I actually emailed credit expert....here is their response. Thank you for contacting CreditExpert Customer Service: Your credit score as reflected in the score analysis section is a real credit score. The simulator is for educational purposes only, it should not serve as a guide for changing your actual credit score. Instead, use the Simulator to better understand the relationship between score factors and credit scores. The simulator allows you to change your information to help you better understand your actual credit score. The score that you receive on your credit report is your actual score from Experian. Hope this helps....
Yes, it is a real score but not FICO. Corner them by asking, point blank, "Is it the FICO score?" and they will tell you no. Tom
My point is why is the criteria soo different, and Experian does use a fico scoring model for their actual score, but I think the CE model is somewhat different and it is confusing me as to what is the real score. I don't intend to continue paying $79 a year for service that may not be a true indicator of my credit score. Oh well this scoring stuff is madness anyway, I will just have to wait for my accounts to age and continue to pay my debts down and wait to see what happens. I am also curious to see how the opting-out will work. Cypri
Cyprigirl.... As I've stated in previous posts. My CE score is about 80 points higher than my actual FICO. That being said, I still think CE is a great tool for credit repair and the score can be used as a guide. Tom
Very true tom, however I think certain people have taken this site FAR too seriously. I agree it's a tool and a guide.
Re: Are you suggesting opting-out I have heard that from others on the board although I don't now for sure but I don't think it will hurt to try it out and see what happens, I am only interested in getting 4 particular cards (AMEX, MBNA, WACHOVIA and CITIBANK) over the next year. So all the other stuff can wait. If it boosts my score then i can only imagine the kind of offers I would probably get from CC wolves. Cypri
Re: Are you suggesting opting-out Hi Mist! That is where I do my banking. I am eligible to get a credit line and credit card, but I want to wait until my investigations are done, just to be on the safe side. They are a good bank I have not had any problems with them. Cypri
Re: CE Okay I found this on the Fair isaac website. Collectively these are called FICO® scores but they are also known as BEACON® at Equifax, EMPIRICA® at Trans Union and the Experian/Fair, Isaac Risk Model at Experian. Credit Expert makes no mention of the Fair Isaac Risk Model. So what are they using and if this isn't the model that Experian is actually using what is the point of the CE score. I do admit I like the option of viewing my credit report anytime but I think we should inquire as to why the scoring model is different. I knwo I will. Because my fico is higher than the CE score and that is with 3 collections due to be removed this week and I have no collection on EX and only 2 negative accounts. Ok I admit I am getting a little obessed with the score, but it keeps gnawing at me and I want to get to the bottom of it. Cypri
Re: CE Cypri, One thing you might want to check on Experian is what balance they show on some of your accounts. For example, on Equifax most of my accounts update very regularly every month. Not so on Experian where some of them only update every quarter. Therefore, my score is a bit less on CE than FICO. Creditors must pay according to how much access they have to a particular CB and how much updating they'll do. The same creditors who update monthly on EQ only update now and again on EX. Balances, I've noted over the last two months really affect score. Make a big payment somewhere and, after it is recorded and the amount owed lowers, your score really rises. I saw a very big movement by checking before and after our mortgage payment was recorded. Hope this helps. Also, I have heard that the "rapid-rescoring' people often simply get the CB's to update balances to hike the score. If you have one that you've paid down a bit but it's not showing that way you might want to fax them proof of the lower balance and insist it be updated on your report. Worth a try, I'd say!
Re: CE Mist, Actually I found that EX updates quicker than EQ. My creditors are pretty consistent, they report monthly on all three. But what I am saying is that the CE score is not the actual Experian score, i just want to know how do get my real experian score that uses the fair isaac model. That is what has me really confused. Cypri
Re: CE Cypri, why do you think that the score that Experian shows to you (on CE) is different from what it shows to creditors' inquiries? Is it possible that you compare scores on different days?
Re: CE Tonight I pulled my report and score from truecredit,com. This site claims to use creditexpert scoring. The score from this site using exp. is 693. The score on the credit expert site using the exact same report is 672, Go figure.
