When you purchased or shopped for your TransUnion credit score you probably did not see an option for a true FICO score -- the most common credit score in the lending industry. But do not be alarmed, the TransUnion tally is a legitimate credit score. TransUnion sells credit scores that rate you based on the same factors as the hugely dominant FICO model.
About EMPIRICA Score
TransUnion sells EMPIRICA scores instead of a FICO score, but these basically rate you the same way. The Fair Isaac Corporation owns the FICO trademark, so TransUnion cannot sell a FICO score, but it created its EMPIRICA formula with the Fair Isaac Corporation, so it calculates risk on the same factors, with minute differences in the weight of those variables that probably do not cause more than a few points in variance.
Payment History: 35 Percent
Because credit scoring models rate your willingness to repay a debt, payment history is the most important factor and counts for 35 percent of your score. A few sub-factors fall within this category. Public records, such as judgments and liens, collection accounts, time since your last delinquency, and the total number of negative and positive accounts count for a large, but unknown weight in payment history.
Amounts Owed: 30 Percent
The amount of debt you hold can be the easiest category to tackle, because you can pay off debts immediately. In general, revolving, unsecured accounts affect this category the most, since you have more leeway to pay these accounts than a loan secured by property. Also critical to this category is the portion of your credit limit you use, or credit utilization. A high credit utilization can take over 45 points off of your score.
Age of Credit History: 15 Percent
The length of your credit history counts for 15 percent of your score overall. Generally, the longer your history the better, although if you have a short credit history the credit bureaus do not compare you to borrowers with a longer, more diverse credit history, so you can have a high score as a young borrower. TransUnion gives some weight to the oldest of certain types of accounts and looks at when you last used them.
Recent New Accounts: 10 Percent
The FICO scoring system dings your score when you have too many recent new accounts, so it pays to have many old accounts, which also boosts your length of credit history. You also receive a boost to this category when you improve your credit after severe incidents, such as bankruptcy. Credit inquiries, which dings your score up to five points, also fall into this category.
Types of Credit Accounts: 10 Percent
You should have a mix of installment and revolving loans to max out the types of credit used factor, which counts for 10 percent of your score. The presence of certain accounts, such as consumer finance accounts or high-interest short term loans, can lower your score.
Considerations
TransUnion reports certain items for a different amount of time than the other bureaus, which can lead to variance among scores from all three national credit agencies. Experian, for example, reports unpaid tax liens for 15 years, while TransUnion reports them indefinitely. TransUnion also sells variants of the FICO/EMPIRICA model specialized for certain loans. The TransUnion FICO Mortgage score, for instance, rates your willingness to repay a home loan.
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