Starting next year, Experian will let you boost your credit score with a simple new option. It announced this week that in January it will start Experian Boost, a free, optional service that lets consumers supplement their credit report with information about their history of paying utility, cable and cellphone bills. This is different from the new UltraFICO score that was announced earlier this year.
Experian Boost
Experian Boost and the extra information may help improve consumer credit scores, by showing on time payments for recurring bills such as cell phones and other services.
Credit reports usually include your history of paying credit card bills and loans but leave out cell phone bills and other similar payments, unless the accounts are delinquent. The new service will reward consumers who pay those bills on time.
There’s one catch though. You must have an online bank account, and give Experian access to it. Using Finicity, a financial technology firm, they will look through your statements and identify eligible payments. The system uses read-only access, so it cannot alter a user’s data. “Data security is our No. 1 priority,” Mr. Wright told NYT. Customers ca revoke access at any time, if they no longer wish to continue.
According to Experian, 46 million U.S. consumers have “thin” credit files, meaning less than five loans or other accounts. By using Experian Boost, those consumers could see their scores increase immediately after they link their bank accounts. And around 1.5 million consumers with no scores could receive a score.
Last year, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion announced a plan to change how negative information is handled on credit reports. They started removing tax-lien and civil-judgement data.
Good Credit Score
Having a good credit score should be the goal for everyone. Yes it helps you to get more credit cards and earn tons of miles and points, but it save you even more in the long run as you look to buy a car, a house, or get a loan. It even helps when you’re looking to rent or even get a new job.
Sometimes people believe myth such as that carrying a balance is a must for a good score. It’s good to stay informed and check your score regularly.
