I'm thinking of a number between 300-850, or is it 501-990?

In 1958 Fair Isaac and Company sent a letter to the 50 largest credit granting institutions in America asking for an opportunity to present a new concept, credit scoring; only one responded. Cogitate on that. There was a period of time when applying for a loan didn't involve a credit score. A person wasn't confined to a range of numbers that deemed them worthy or not of borrowing money. Often, a freshly pressed suite, firm handshake, and a promise to repay were enough. And while those things still help, today it's all about the FICO score.

Which prompts this question, do you know yours? If not, I'm aware that there are quaint commercials promising a life void of selling fish to tourists, driving an ugly car, or even marring someone with bad credit, and all one must do to achieve this grandeur is order a credit report. The problem with that idea, however, is the scoring model.

In 2003, Congress passed an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1978 called the FACT ACT (fair and accurate credit transaction act), and while this law established a mandate for consumer access to the information in their credit report, it failed to address scoring. Therein lies the problem. While it is possible for a consumer to order a credit report from a non-banking company, the credit scores are usually generated with a scoring model such as Vantage (which offers a range from 501-990). On the other hand, mortgage lenders use scoring that stems from the FICO model with a range from 300-850. Thus, it's possible for someone to believe that their score is higher than it actually is.

If all of this seems unsettling, worry not. I provide every client with a copy of their FICO based credit report with actual scores from all three repositories: Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union upon loan application. What the banks see, you see. And since it's always important to remain apprised of ones credit, once a year, past clients can request an updated copy of their credit report.

So no matter how much a commercial promises to improve your life with their credit report remember, they're offering the wrong score.