European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 10, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 28 stars and stripes june 2007 your Money credit score scam or merely a loophole lenders upset Over tactic that allows people to piggyback on Good credit of others by Elf Finstone the associated press Only a Low credit score stood Between Alipio Estruch and a mortgage to buy a Span is style House in a few Miles West of fort Lauder instead of spending several years repairing his credit which he said was marred by two forgotten cell phone Bills and identity the 37yearold real estate agent paid to an in Terne based company to bump up his score almost the result was a Happy ending for but the growing prac Tice is sending Shivers through the mortgage Federal regulators Are also reviewing the and after being contacted by the associated press for this fair Isaac the Developer of the widely used fico said it will change its credit scoring system beginning later this year in a Way it contends will end this Little known but potentially High Impact mortgage loan the new fico score for Mula wont include authorized user accounts users on credit cards who Are not responsible for paying the balances but Are approved to make purchases with the or helped Estruch boost his score by arranging for him to be added As an authorized user on several credit cards of people with Stellar credit who were paid to allow this parents also use this practice when they add their children to their credit cards to help them build solid the pitch to those who Are essentially rent ing their credit history for pay is seductive you dont need to worry about users of this ser vice receiving duplicate cop ies of your cred it account numbers or any of your personal info its essentially free they Are Brian Kin Alipio Estruch is shown recently at his Home in Only a Low credit score stood Between Estruch and a mortgage on the Spanish style House in a few Miles West of fort instead of spending several years repairing his credit the 37yearold real estate agent paid to an Interne based company to bump up his score almost a re tired army officer in pulls in More than a month by lending out 19 credit i know the whole thing sounds kind of Odd and not very but it is for i dont know How Long before someone will decide its Brian Kinney retired army officer who gets paid to allow others to Benefit from his Good credit score Ance lenders Are that there taking on greater de fault risks by unknowingly offer ing lower interest rates than they otherwise would to applicants who artificially boost their credit their Trade group has complained to the Federal Trade commission and is talking with the credit re porting bureaus in Case the prac Tice becomes More wide Estruch paid in de Cember for three credit card and by his fico score jumped from 550 to in he closed on his four bedroom beige stucco House after obtaining a 30year fixed rate Mort Gage from a unit of american Home Mort Gage investment it carried another Home in new Estruch said Hes current on his mortgage companies like ice Are sprouting on the internet with Little overhead and no frills they Post ads on Community web Sites like Craig list and have sponsored links on Google and competitors of ice have even reached out to mortgage lenders and real estate flooding their email with Adver Jason who founded ice a year and a half said his company receives 100 to 150 new leads daily a number that has been those inquiries Lead to 10 to 20 new clients a ice charges for the first credit card with a Dis count for additional the cardholder allowing the Piggy backing on his or her credit history can receive to per depending on the age and credit limit of each ice pockets the the effect on a credit score can vary depending on what else is in a clients but one Bor rowed credit card account can in crease a score Between 30 and 45 two Between 60 and 90 added and that helps lift the credit once the credit card company files an updated report to credit bureaus leading to a higher fico score the credit renter is removed from the account of the person allowing the piggyback the credit cards payment history remains on the authorized users credit re port and lenders have no Way of knowing How the credit Bor rower is related to the car hold a higher credit score can save a con Sumer an enor Mous amount of Money be cause it usually Means a lower mortgage inter est it also credit ratings a borrowers credit such As fair Isaac fico can make the difference Between qualifying for a loan or a higher score usually Means a lower interest rate on a interest rates and monthly payments on a 30year fixed fico payment card spots on two old Citibank a percent interest rate and re cards with Strong payment Histo quire no Down payment everything now is score drive and five Between 150 and whose fico score is i had a great mortgage Histo 205 according to above 800 on the scale of 300 to but i got Hurt because of my that because the computer about a 9t8 percent interest rate Money to get their finances Back 850 quit his Job working at a credit said who program that calculates scores is on a 30year fixed Mort in he they be Farmers insurance Agency and also works As a mortgage essentially tricked into believing Gage for an applicant acred can mean the difference be tween qualify ing for a loan or As in Estruche according to fair lend ers probably would demand about a percent interest rate monthly payment for principal and but a Borrower with a score be tween 760 and 850 seeking the same loan would qualify for about a 6 percent rate that would Cost just a month for principal and that savings of each month would total Over 30 the retired army officer in said those Bor rowing his Good credit history dont get his personal inform full credit card number or credit card expiration any sensitive data is handled through and Kinney adds the users himself by calling his credit card ice also destroys any duplicate cards that Are issued to the credit according to its instead of being worried about risks he May be Kin Ney said borrowers Are the ones vulnerable to scammers posing As those seeking a credit hike give the cardholder their names and social Security in the wrong could Lead to identity Kinney said he also receives cred it card offers in the mail for the credit borrowers on his opening up another possibility for but he throws them i know the whole thing sounds kind of Odd and not very legit but it is for Kinney i dont know How Long be fore someone will decide its Ille but in not counting on this for the Ginny a mortgage broker in and a credit expert for the National association of mortgage considers the practice mortgage and the Trade Organiza Tion is about to release a policy statement against these companies Are encouraging con Sumers to com Mit on a Standard Home theres a clause that says the consumer is not omitting pertinent facts that could Impact his or her ability to repay the Ferguson ices Labos Siere said he sees his Busi Ness As a second Chance for the rates calculated As of june source a consumer who has had Little Finan Cial education to make Good Deci people who Are our clients Are spending an incredible amount of uses the ice income to tide him had bought and sold two houses the credit renter has a better re it score Between 500 and Over until he starts his own insure up had bought and sold two houses the credit renter has a better re it score Between 500 and of regaining control of their lives and currently owns payment history when it sees the that would translate into a