Credit scores recently reached a record high and given changes to the industry, they could continue to rise. According to Fair Isaac Corporation (creator of the widely used FICO score), the average score hit 700 during the spring, the highest since at least 2005. As a reminder, FICO scores range from 300 to 850 and borrowers with scores above 750 are generally considered excellent, while scores below 650 are considered poor. The three most important factors that determine your FICO score are: payment history, total debt outstanding, which takes into account how many accounts you have and how close you are to your credit limit and the number of hard credit inquiries made on your behalf from mortgage, auto or student loan companies.
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It’s a tough sell to recommend a financial book as summer reading, but the following will not feel at all like homework. I have interviewed these authors on my podcast, “Better Off”, so feel free to listen for a preview. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly Wall Street
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By now you have seen the headlines, but to understand the full impact of the Senate Health Care bill (Better Care Reconciliation Act), here is a Q&A that dives into some of the numbers of the current version of the plan. What is Medicaid? Medicaid is the country’s largest government health care program, covering about 20 percent (74 million) of all Americans, including:
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