The New Credit Score In Town

As though finding out your credit score weren’t enough of a hassle, there’s now a whole new model to add to the mix. VantageScore is a joint venture of the three credit unions – Equifax, Transunion and Experian – designed to take away market share from the venerable leader of the pack, Fair Isaac (FICO).

According to credit expert John Ulzheimer, VantageScore works on a different scale than FICO – 501-990 as opposed to the standard 300-850, but the fundamentals of what make up the score remain the same. As long as you make your credit card payments on time, avoid taking on too much debt and don’t excessively shop for credit, your score will be fine no matter how it is measured, he said.

But it costs money to find out your credit score, whether it’s FICO or Vantage, so make sure you only pay for the one you need. Ask your lender or bank flat out which they use and only shell out the fee for obtaining that score. Pay no mind to the other.