Trended Credit Data: Credit behavior over time reveals new patterns.

November 29, 2017

Much has been said lately about the use of trended credit data in the credit scoring industry. Indeed, its value has been shown and our latest white paper, “Trended Credit Data Attributes in VantageScore 4.0,” can tell you the reasons why. With a detailed explanation and specific examples of trended credit data, this white paper helps define the need for and the importance of trended credit data to the credit scoring industry as well as for use in the newest VantageScore model: VantageScore 4.0.

The white paper highlights:

How Trended Credit Data Benefits Lenders and Consumers

  • When supplemented with traditional, static credit data, trended credit data has been shown to provide up to 20 percent lift in incremental predictive performance among Prime and Superprime consumers (compared to the use of only static data attributes).
  • Trended credit data may be used to determine patterns in credit behavior history, such as trends in balance increases or decreases, the frequency of payments made above the minimum agreed amount due, and the number of times a consumer is over his/her revolving credit limit. Use of those attributes is especially valuable in improving the predictive performance of VantageScore 4.0 for Prime and Superprime consumers, for purposes of both new originations and existing accounts.
  • While 58 percent of Americans carry revolving credit card debt from month to month, trended credit data allows lenders to better assess the risk presented by those consumers who are paying down their outstanding balances, information that is unavailable if a score merely analyzes a consumer’s balance “snapshot” from the prior month.

How VantageScore Paves the Way for Greater Usage of Trended Credit Data

  • VantageScore is the first and only tri-bureau model to incorporate trended credit data from all three national credit reporting companies (CRCs) — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
  • Because of VantageScore’s patented leveling process, VantageScore 4.0 is the only model that is identical at each CRC, ensuring that the trended attributes are consistent across all three CRCs.
  • Trended credit data attributes derive from the same credit fields that the CRCs have provided for decades (i.e., loan amounts, credit limits, balances, minimum payments due and scheduled payments).

VantageScore 4.0 is scheduled to be available for commercial use from all three CRCs this fall.

To download the white paper for more details on the study, visit www.vantagescore.com/trendedcreditdataWP.

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