[BrandoElFollito]

This credit score system in the US always made me curious. Say some point I had a proposition to move to the US and I asked the company offering the job how they will ensure that I immediately get the best possible score. They said it was not possible because it was a personal score.

I told them that I will certainly not start to build a credit score at 40 yo so they will have to find someone else.

[listenallyall]

You refused a job because the company would not assist you in obtaining a perfect ("best possible") credit score?

a) nobody has a perfect score b) FICO algorithms are proprietary from third-party companies, how would your potential employer have any influence?

[BrandoElFollito]

Yes, and this is when I discovered this system which looks quite crazy to me.

I am coming from abroad with experience nedded in a US company (and therefore in the US at large) and I start my finance as if I was 18.

Then if there is a problem with my PII I have to worry about why it was lost. The company that lot it is going to give me a year of some kind of monitoring.

Well, no. I am not really interested to depend on some proprietary system that can make my life difficult just because someone fucked up. Or go through hoops to build it without consideration of my past outside the US or my job.

[alistairSH]

Honest question, what do other nations do to determine credit-worthiness? There has to be some sort of risk assessment on the part of banks and other financial institutions. And that risk assessment would have to be made for immigrants there as well, presumably with less/zero data?

FWIW, as much as Americans complain about the credit score system, it's mostly not a problem (for most people, most of the time). It's not hard for a middle-income person to earn and maintain a top-tier score (800+) and the lowest possible APRs when borrowing.

And assuming a prospective employer would assist you with finding housing, it's not hard for an immigrant to begin building their credit score. Just make sure your landlord reports rent to the credit agencies and take out a credit card. 3-6 months later, you have a decent score.

Identity theft is a real problem, but that extends well beyond the credit agencies.

[BrandoElFollito]

You go to a bank (people often go their bank with some expectation of a better rate) or you use check online comparator to see what deal you can get.

Then the bank will look at your current funds, the job you have, the earnings you have and after some abracadabra they will say yes or no.

There is no building of trust the assessment is on what you have and what you are capable of.

The credit is usually 1/3 of your salary (at least in France) and you novadays have to provide about 20-30% of the total amount.

[alistairSH]

It's also worth noting there is no singular credit score in the US. There are (at least) 3 agencies that generate credit reports. The "score" is usually the FICO score, but there are versions of FICO Score, and other scores.

In France, how doe a lender know if you have other loans/debt outstanding? Or if you have a history of non-payment? Those two make up the majority of a credit score (35% payment history, 30% debt burden). And the credit score is just one piece of an overall credit report.

[BrandoElFollito]

There is the "trust" component first: in your request, you list all your credits and the fact that you have failed a payment.

Then you provide the bank with your last three bank statements and your salary. They match the money movements with what they expect to see (a salary coming in, a payment going out, ...)

Finally, there is a centralized database of failed payments.

It works well, we do no have special problems with credits and how they are paid off (what helps is that there are compulsory insurances and protections for the credit-taker)

[listenallyall]

Honestly, I have no idea how other countries' banks make loan decisions. But I wouldn't be surprised if "after some abracadabra" involves reviewing some kind of centralized credit history.

[BrandoElFollito]

(copied from a sibling comment)

There is the "trust" component first: in your request, you list all your credits and the fact that you have failed a payment. Then you provide the bank with your last three bank statements and your salary. They match the money movements with what they expect to see (a salary coming in, a payment going out, ...)

Finally, there is a centralized database of failed payments.

It works well, we do no have special problems with credits and how they are paid off (what helps is that there are compulsory insurances and protections for the credit-taker)