In case you missed it - 2020

FICO Score scoring changed to F10

The new version, FICO 10 Suite, has been largely adopted by many lenders. Recall all the TV Ads promoting the ability to track your FICO score. With this model, personal loans are treated as a separate category of debt.

One of the notable changes means that, if someone consolidated their credit card with a loan, and then continued to run up debt, that will hurt their score.

A Longer-Term View of Credit

A version of the new model, called 10T, evaluates credit card usage trends over 24 months rather than provide a monthly snapshot. With this formula, someone who carries a high credit card balance for a month or two after, say, a vacation trip, then pays it off is less likely to see a lower credit score than before. By contrast, someone who fails to pay off balances consistently is penalized. Based on the impact of past changes in scoring models, FICO 10 shifts the average score a modest amount, perhaps 20 to 25 points.

The changes came as a result of credit scores rising -- the average score reached an all-time high of 703 2019, according to a report from Experian. Scores in the 670 to 739 range are considered good; scores between 740 and 799 are very good, and 800-plus is exceptional.

One reason for the rise in scores is that negative credit indicators, such as bankruptcies and unpaid debts, fall off credit reports after seven years. That's happened for many consumers given the long economic recovery since the Great Recession in 2008-2009. Besides, "Trending data has better predictive value in terms of assessing risk."

MORE ON CREDIT SCORES

• Why It's Still So Hard to Fix Credit Report Errors
• More From Consumer Reports
• What's a Good Credit Score?
• Smart Strategies for Millennials to Build Credit
• More From Consumer Reports