VantageScore is embedded into some of the major platforms across the financial industry. It's the only scoring model embedded in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System & Registry.
A 2019 third-party market study found that VantageScores are widely used by credit card issuers, and secondly by both installment loan and fintech lenders. According to the study, nine of the 10 largest banks and 29 of the 100 largest credit unions used VantageScore credit scores in one or more lines of business.
Generally speaking, you'll need a credit score of at least 620 in order to secure a loan to buy a house.
Mortgage lenders typically use FICO Scores 5, 2 and 4 when determining whether or not to approve a loan. Additionally, one type of credit score to keep an eye on moving forward is the VantageScore, a score that was developed by the three main credit bureaus and currently serves as a competitor to FICO.
The FICO® Score versions used in mortgage lending and the more recently released versions, such as FICO® Score 9 and 10, have the same 300 to 850 range. VantageScore, a competing maker of credit scores, also uses that range for its latest VantageScore 3.0 and 4.0 model credit scores.
Fair credit scores fall at the lower end of the credit-scoring spectrum. For FICO, they generally range from the upper 500s to the mid-600s. Fair VantageScore® credit scores fall in the low- to mid-600s.
VantageScore has begun to get lenders' attention, and it is widely offered to (10)… Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA all use rely on FICO scores for evaluating credit, and as they go, so goes the mortgage industry.
Credit Score Range
At first, VantageScore credit scores featured a different numerical scale (501 to 990). However, VantageScore 3.0 and 4.0 adopted the same 300 to 850 scale that FICO uses. With both FICO and VantageScore models, higher scores are better.
VantageScore counts multiple inquiries, even for different types of loans, within a 14-day period as a single inquiry. Multiple inquiries on your reports for the same type of loan or credit, spanning more than a 14-day period, may have a greater impact to your VantageScore® credit scores than to your FICO® scores.
It is used by lenders and landlords. A VantageScore is a credit score jointly developed by the three major credit bureaus to predict how likely you are to repay borrowed money. It is used by lenders, landlords and financial institutions to evaluate creditworthiness.
FHA loans are generally intended for home buyers with lower credit, starting at 580. So they're likely not best for someone with a 700 credit score. With a 700 score, you're likely to qualify for a conventional loan with cheaper mortgage insurance and an even smaller down payment.
Going into 2022, the minimum credit score needed to get approved for a mortgage is 640, though it would be more accurate to say that anywhere between 620 and 680 would be considered a minimum, depending on the lender.
In South Africa, a credit score of between 650 and 669 out of 705 is considered to be "Good". Get into that band and you will get some brownie points from the lenders. If your score is below 528, it is considered "very poor".
Many consumers are more familiar with FICO scores, as VantageScore is a more recent development, so you may be wondering if a TransUnion credit score is accurate. TransUnion VantageScore is, in fact, accurate — based on that credit score model.
Navy Federal uses all three bureaus. They HP EQ FICO 9 when evaluating auto and lines of credit, HP TU FICO 9 for credit card apps, and they SP EX as well.
While most people are more likely familiar with the FICO model of credit scoring, Capital One credit monitoring from CreditWise uses TransUnion's VantageScore 3.0 model.
What Is a Good VantageScore? VantageScore's first two credit scoring models had ranges of 501 to 990. The two newest VantageScore credit scores (VantageScore 3.0 and 4.0) use a 300 to 850 range—the same as the base FICO® Scores. For the latest models, VantageScore defines 661 to 780 as its good range.
Credit Karma receives information from two of the top three credit reporting agencies. This indicates that Credit Karma is likely off by the number of points as the lack of information they have from Experian, the third provider that does not report to Credit Karma.
VantageScore. The FICO credit scoring model is the most commonly used credit scoring model by auto lenders and car dealerships, and is also the oldest and first-ever credit scoring model. It's estimated that 90% of auto lenders use the current FICO Score 8 model when making lending decisions.
What Is a Good VantageScore? A score from 750 to 850 is considered to be excellent or super prime, while scores between 700 to 749 are considered to be good. Scores between 650 and 699 are viewed as fair, scores in the 550 to 649 range are poor, and 300-549 are very poor scores.
Though Credit Karma does not currently offer FICO® scores, the scores you see on Credit Karma (VantageScore 3.0 credit scores from TransUnion and Equifax) provide valuable insight into your financial health. It's important to keep in mind that no one credit score is the end-all, be-all.
If you've had late payments on your credit cards, they will have about the same impact on both your FICO and your VantageScore. But if you've had late payments on your mortgage, you might find you have a higher FICO score than VantageScore.
The FICO system reports scores on a range from 301-850, with higher scores signaling better credit. The VantageScore system operates in a similar manner, but uses a range from 501-990. So while a score of 770 represents excellent credit under FICO, it's a fairly middling score under the VantageScore system.
Any score between 700 and 749 is typically deemed "good," while scores from 650 to 700 are "fair." Excellent scores are usually those over 750. While you can likely qualify for a home loan with a rate lower than the median, a higher credit score typically means better interest rates and loan options.