Black Boxes That Are Credit Scores

The concept of a Black Boxes is actually derived from the science and engineering fields. Specifically, Black Boxes are defined as something that you can view externally, but have no understanding of how it works internally. The same concept can be applied to credit scores, as many consumers just take note of the three-digit score that they get, yet have no idea of how – and why – it is what it is.

A Google search will quickly provide you with how the FICO score is calculated, but consumer beware – there’s also a lot of misinformation about credit scores and scoring formulas on the Internet as well. You could say that the formula itself behind the credit score isn’t that big of a mystery. The mystery is how that formula is navigated and what parts of it are stressed by the consumer. This post is designed to help you better debunk the black boxes when it comes to credit scores.

Black Boxes that are Credit Scores In a Nutshell

As you likely know, your credit score is essential to getting approved for a mortgage, auto loan, student loan and more. But what you might not know is that there’s more than just one credit score. In fact, while the FICO score is the most popular, there are dozens of credit scores that lenders may choose from based on the data that is reported to the three major credit bureaus. Because of the various different credit scores, and the fact that new formulas are always coming out, this confuses people. It’s why we encourage consumers to pull their credit report at least once a year and pay more attention to the data – not necessarily the three digit number that they get. Understanding the data is what’s really important when it comes to determining whether or not you have good credit – and how you can improve your credit score.

A Credit Repair Plan

Say you want to buy a home, but your credit isn’t good enough to get approved for a mortgage. Or maybe you want to further elevate your credit score so you can lock in a lower interest rate. That’s where a credit repair plan is necessary, as you need to know what your current score is and how much you need to elevate it to meet your goal. This is the point where the “3 Ups” come into play:

  • Clean Up
  • Build Up
  • Pay Up

Before you can truly put a credit repair plan into place, you need to know why your score is what it is, and make a plan to clean it up accordingly. After this, you need to analyze ways that will allow you to build your credit back up. And then, finally, there’s likely to be debts that you have to pay off in order to get your debt-to-credit ratio to at or below 30 percent to really notice an improvement on your score.