In Search Of The Perfect FICO Score

When it comes to FICO, 850 is considered a perfect score. I’ve never met a single person with that score, though. According to Craig Watts, public relations director at FICO, getting a score of 850 is “rare.” He said as much recently to the good folks over at Marketplace. From Marketplace:Craig Watts: In rare circumstances it is possible to get a FICO score of 850.That’s the good news. Here’s the bad:Watts: For a broad section of the population, it probably isn’t possible, even if they do everything right.That’s because there’s not one formula for calculating your FICO score. There are ten. Each is a “scorecard,” that gives different items in your credit history slightly different weight. Your scorecard depends on where you are in your economic life.Watts: For example, if you are college student, you’re brand new to credit. The FICO formula is only comparing you to other people who also have very short credit histories.There’s a scorecard for people who’ve been through, say, bankruptcy — they may be printing extras of those these days. But here’s the point: every scorecard has its own score range. If your scorecard’s top range isn’t 850? You can’t get an 850, period. Now, what scorecard applies to you, or when you’ll move out of one and into another? That’s a secret. All Watts would tell me is how to get the best score possible.While reaching 850 would be a monumental achievement (assuming it’s possible), it’s a waste of time. Generally, a score of 760 or more will do anything that an 850 will do. Pay your bills on time. Keep your utilization low. Open accounts sparingly. Over time, those habits will get you to where you want to be. (Full disclosure: I have a financial relationship with myFICO.com; I get a commission if you purchase a score or product using one of the FICO ads on my site.)That said, I still found Marketplace’s story interesting.