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Your Score: An Insider's Secrets to Understanding, Controlling, and Protecting Your Credit Score
The most comprehensive insider’s look at what every consumer needs to know about their credit score—and most importantly, how to fix it
If you, like so many millions of Americans, are terrified by the daily headlines regarding Equifax and identity theft, and how all of this can directly affect your basic credit score, then this book should be considered as mandatory reading.
Like it or not, a healthy credit score is essential if you want to participate in today’s financial world. But very few people actually understand how their credit score is determined. Worse yet, most don’t know how their score is used by all kinds of companies and banks to dictate financial terms that will strongly affect their daily lives.
When consumers interact with the world of credit, they do so from a position of weakness. In Your Score, Anthony Davenport aims to change that. Finally, here is a road map for navigating the confusing world of consumer credit. Drawing on the real stories of his own firm’s high-profile clients, as well as the stories of middle-class Americans, he reveals the hidden credit pitfalls that await even the most careful consumer and shares smart strategies to avoid them.
An accessible but detailed manual, Your Score finally lets readers take control of their credit score, understand how to play the game, and gain an insider’s knowledge of how to better navigate the most important financial decisions of their lives.
If you, like so many millions of Americans, are terrified by the daily headlines regarding Equifax and identity theft, and how all of this can directly affect your basic credit score, then this book should be considered as mandatory reading.
Like it or not, a healthy credit score is essential if you want to participate in today’s financial world. But very few people actually understand how their credit score is determined. Worse yet, most don’t know how their score is used by all kinds of companies and banks to dictate financial terms that will strongly affect their daily lives.
When consumers interact with the world of credit, they do so from a position of weakness. In Your Score, Anthony Davenport aims to change that. Finally, here is a road map for navigating the confusing world of consumer credit. Drawing on the real stories of his own firm’s high-profile clients, as well as the stories of middle-class Americans, he reveals the hidden credit pitfalls that await even the most careful consumer and shares smart strategies to avoid them.
An accessible but detailed manual, Your Score finally lets readers take control of their credit score, understand how to play the game, and gain an insider’s knowledge of how to better navigate the most important financial decisions of their lives.
202 pages, Hardcover
First published January 9, 2018
94 people are currently reading
224 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
May 30, 2024
Why... Oh why... Isn't this taught in schools?
Coming from a family that's strictly anti-debt, I thought credit cards were bad and debt was the worst thing ever. That is until I learned about what credit actually was and the difference between good and bad debt. How did I find this out? School? Nope. Parents or friends? Nope. Books? Nope. YOUTUBE. I found out about how credit works through YouTube!
It's ridiculous how hush hush this topic is throughout people's lives. As stated in the book, people get a rude awakening when they try to get an apartment or mortgage and are denied because they have plenty of money in the bank but no credit history. Or when people figure out that their identity has been stolen and are thousands of dollars in debt. Davenport talks about all of this on the book in an easy to understand way.
A healthy credit is essential for a healthy financial life and I strongly believe anyone who is curious to what credit and credit cards are all about, are (god forbid) in a lot of bad debt, or plan to get a mortgage some day should read this book. Or listen like I did. 🎧
Where to get a copy: 📚
Amazon* - Barnes & Noble - Books-A-Million
ℹ Disclosure:
*This review contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something I may earn a commission. All proceeds will be donated to a local animal shelter at the end of the year. Thanks. :)
Coming from a family that's strictly anti-debt, I thought credit cards were bad and debt was the worst thing ever. That is until I learned about what credit actually was and the difference between good and bad debt. How did I find this out? School? Nope. Parents or friends? Nope. Books? Nope. YOUTUBE. I found out about how credit works through YouTube!
It's ridiculous how hush hush this topic is throughout people's lives. As stated in the book, people get a rude awakening when they try to get an apartment or mortgage and are denied because they have plenty of money in the bank but no credit history. Or when people figure out that their identity has been stolen and are thousands of dollars in debt. Davenport talks about all of this on the book in an easy to understand way.
A healthy credit is essential for a healthy financial life and I strongly believe anyone who is curious to what credit and credit cards are all about, are (god forbid) in a lot of bad debt, or plan to get a mortgage some day should read this book. Or listen like I did. 🎧
Where to get a copy: 📚
Amazon* - Barnes & Noble - Books-A-Million
ℹ Disclosure:
*This review contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something I may earn a commission. All proceeds will be donated to a local animal shelter at the end of the year. Thanks. :)
March 7, 2018
I’d recommend this to anyone getting ready to buy a house or trying to raise their credit score. I thought I was pretty informed about what made up my score but wasn’t aware of just how much the credit bureaus are against consumers. The majority of credit profiles contain incorrect info and it’s a total pain to get it fixed bc they make money off of your score taking a hit due to incorrect info.
I’ve been using credit karma for years and was recently made aware of a huge difference between that score and my real FICO score, which is what prompted picking up this book. I feel a lot better knowing what is causing the discrepancies and how to get it fixed. It’s much better to be prepared.
I’ve been using credit karma for years and was recently made aware of a huge difference between that score and my real FICO score, which is what prompted picking up this book. I feel a lot better knowing what is causing the discrepancies and how to get it fixed. It’s much better to be prepared.
January 21, 2019
If you want to have control over your your credit, and your credit score, I highly recommend this very lucid and informative book. My credit score is above average, but I read personal finance books like this one to discover insights and ideas for how to make my money stretch.
Now as someone who maintains a budget, I use a credit like a debit card because I want to get the reward points. I pay off my credit card balance two or three times a month, and single purchases of more $300 are paid off within a few days. In other words, I don’t charge in anything on my cards that I don’t have money in the bank to cover.
I’m lucky that I no longer carry credit card debt, and I seriously plan not to ever again. Interests paid on credit card debt just makes the banks and investors richer, and it makes you the debtor poorer.
One of the things that the author doesn’t point out enough is that you should make use of the automatic payment schedule if your bank or credit card company offers it. That will insure that you don’t miss payments.
As you will learn from this book, missing a single payment or being late with a payment can knock down your credit score by one or more points.
This book doesn’t discuss how to budget money to get out of debt, but it does explain what to avoid in order to improve and maintain your credit score.
Now as someone who maintains a budget, I use a credit like a debit card because I want to get the reward points. I pay off my credit card balance two or three times a month, and single purchases of more $300 are paid off within a few days. In other words, I don’t charge in anything on my cards that I don’t have money in the bank to cover.
I’m lucky that I no longer carry credit card debt, and I seriously plan not to ever again. Interests paid on credit card debt just makes the banks and investors richer, and it makes you the debtor poorer.
One of the things that the author doesn’t point out enough is that you should make use of the automatic payment schedule if your bank or credit card company offers it. That will insure that you don’t miss payments.
As you will learn from this book, missing a single payment or being late with a payment can knock down your credit score by one or more points.
This book doesn’t discuss how to budget money to get out of debt, but it does explain what to avoid in order to improve and maintain your credit score.
January 1, 2018
This book should be mandatory reading for anybody graduating high school. It teaches you how to understand credit, your credit score and the impact of numerous problem you can encounter in the world of credit.
Having read a lot about credit, particularly in terms of credit cards, the impact of these and their issues, I thought myself reasonable well-founded in the subject.
But boy, I was wrong. This book demonstrated to me that I had a lot to learn and there are numerous things I can do for myself to improve my credit, fix current and potential problems and what to avoid in the future. It has sections on credit cards, mortgages, school loans, identity theft and much more. It is jam-packed with knowledge and it provides you with lots of actionable advice.
This book is a relatively quick read, but it isn't short on quality.
Having read a lot about credit, particularly in terms of credit cards, the impact of these and their issues, I thought myself reasonable well-founded in the subject.
But boy, I was wrong. This book demonstrated to me that I had a lot to learn and there are numerous things I can do for myself to improve my credit, fix current and potential problems and what to avoid in the future. It has sections on credit cards, mortgages, school loans, identity theft and much more. It is jam-packed with knowledge and it provides you with lots of actionable advice.
This book is a relatively quick read, but it isn't short on quality.
February 22, 2018
I wish this was taught in about 8th grade...
March 6, 2019
Very informative! In this book he shares personal experiences and it was very easy to connect to. This book should be read and taught in high school.
July 19, 2020
Interesting book I read it after a Dave Ramsey book. Financially book week.
March 9, 2020
What you don't Know Can Hurt You: Check your credit (Experian, TRansUnion, Equifax) before you make a big purchase. Some jobs do a credit check before hiring. MyFICO.com (trimerge report)
What's in Your Score? Fair, Isaac, and Compan (FICO). FICO broken down: Payment History 35%, Types of Credit 10%, Variety of credit 10%, Length of credit History 15%, Amounts owed 30%. Variety: mortgage, car loan, credit cards.
BUilding the Perfect credit Profile: Mortgage is most important, then car and student loans, then credit cards.
Gaming the System: Contact bureaus to have mistakes removed. This is all done by online forms and mail HAND written letter so it doesn't get scanned. Fixing Mistake with Creditor: Ask for forbearance (3 months of not paying). Sometimes they ding your credit and just wait for you to notice. They cannot collect on anything over 10 years. Ask them to verify that the debt is yours. Communicate with them only through written letters. Get it in writing that they will remove it from your credit score when you pay it. If they voilate HIPAA, that gives you even more bargaining power: debt exchanged for HIPAA violation forgiveness.
Five Biggest Credit Mistakes: be aware of credit situation and have a plan for taking care of it.
Preparing Your Credit Score for a New Home Purchase: checking credit before mortgage/big purchase. Being 1-2 teirs down can cost you $350/month on your mortgage loan.
Care and Feeding of Credit Cards: Use all cards each month (Netflix bill?) and pay them off. Use about 20% of available credit.
Identity Theft: Check one of the big three credit scores every three months. Penalties for identity theft are not stiff and likely they will not be caught. Medical identity theft is also a problem: they use your insurance card to get their medical care and then don't pay the bill. Credit monitoring usually doesn't happen (even when you pay for it).
Newbie Credit:Have someone add you to their account, then you get the good credit with the length of the original creditee.
Student Loan: These are federal loans and cannot be forgiven; they always stay on your credit report.
Disaster/Bankruptcy: If you get divorced take ex off of all credit cards (otherwise they can spend and leave you with the bill and it affects your credit score). Morgage companies will sometimes change your terms if it helps avoid a foreclosure. If you know you are going under, declare bankruptcy (10 year penalty on credit report) so you can start healing your credit score more quickly. Afterwards, follow Newbie credit rules to rebuild credit.
What's in Your Score? Fair, Isaac, and Compan (FICO). FICO broken down: Payment History 35%, Types of Credit 10%, Variety of credit 10%, Length of credit History 15%, Amounts owed 30%. Variety: mortgage, car loan, credit cards.
BUilding the Perfect credit Profile: Mortgage is most important, then car and student loans, then credit cards.
Gaming the System: Contact bureaus to have mistakes removed. This is all done by online forms and mail HAND written letter so it doesn't get scanned. Fixing Mistake with Creditor: Ask for forbearance (3 months of not paying). Sometimes they ding your credit and just wait for you to notice. They cannot collect on anything over 10 years. Ask them to verify that the debt is yours. Communicate with them only through written letters. Get it in writing that they will remove it from your credit score when you pay it. If they voilate HIPAA, that gives you even more bargaining power: debt exchanged for HIPAA violation forgiveness.
Five Biggest Credit Mistakes: be aware of credit situation and have a plan for taking care of it.
Preparing Your Credit Score for a New Home Purchase: checking credit before mortgage/big purchase. Being 1-2 teirs down can cost you $350/month on your mortgage loan.
Care and Feeding of Credit Cards: Use all cards each month (Netflix bill?) and pay them off. Use about 20% of available credit.
Identity Theft: Check one of the big three credit scores every three months. Penalties for identity theft are not stiff and likely they will not be caught. Medical identity theft is also a problem: they use your insurance card to get their medical care and then don't pay the bill. Credit monitoring usually doesn't happen (even when you pay for it).
Newbie Credit:Have someone add you to their account, then you get the good credit with the length of the original creditee.
Student Loan: These are federal loans and cannot be forgiven; they always stay on your credit report.
Disaster/Bankruptcy: If you get divorced take ex off of all credit cards (otherwise they can spend and leave you with the bill and it affects your credit score). Morgage companies will sometimes change your terms if it helps avoid a foreclosure. If you know you are going under, declare bankruptcy (10 year penalty on credit report) so you can start healing your credit score more quickly. Afterwards, follow Newbie credit rules to rebuild credit.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 23, 2018
In Your Score, Anthony Davenport with his background in the credit industry excels in writing about credit pitfalls. This is where the book shines, and for that alone I give it four stars. It becomes abundantly clear that the banks, the credit card companies and the credit bureaus serve themselves rather than us. We can all benefit from the compelling knowledge that the book provides, people in the lower half of the FICO score spectrum probably more so. The author without a doubt has solid expertise in the areas of student loan, mortgage, car loan, bankruptcy, divorce and credit cards.
This is the meaty stuff that credit reports are made off and which the first chapters on your score appear to lead up to rather than being a book on the topic (p115). Some score statistics are relied upon such as Experian (p25) and Credit Karma (p37), but there is for instance no explicit mention of FICO versions such as FICO 8/9 vs the older mortgage ones (p16), and the median score of 720 would have been more useful than the average score of 680 (p25, p85). It may be questioned that the hit of an inquiry disappears within a few months (p11) and that the new credit period is as much as two years (p24). To start the top tier at 740-760 is overstated (p75), and in the case of reason codes at 850, two rather than four are often shown (p31).
For credit cards, it is unclear what it means to pay off a card in full at the end of the cycle (p19) and why zeroing out your balances every month is a great habit (p93); a distinction between statement date and due date would have been appreciated. It’s not obvious when credit card debt becomes such (p20, p106), one definition could have been once a balance is carried over and you pay interest. The impact of late payments isn’t consistent (p8, p17). Eleven cards may be too much (p43), but that’s a symptom, not the problem. The rosy view on the authorized user approach is not uniformly supported among the various FICO versions (p143).
To talk about protecting your credit score from identity theft is of course a stretch (p111), as it’s the underlying credit information that’s sensitive; the handy credit score is merely a number that gets updated at the slightest change in your credit and, being a snapshot in time, has no history. On credit counseling (p182), there is no mention of the benefit of fee-only financial planners, just as senior fraud is not touched on. There’s no ending chapter for wrapping things up. But all of this amounts to just one star away from the top, and overall I can recommend the book.
This is the meaty stuff that credit reports are made off and which the first chapters on your score appear to lead up to rather than being a book on the topic (p115). Some score statistics are relied upon such as Experian (p25) and Credit Karma (p37), but there is for instance no explicit mention of FICO versions such as FICO 8/9 vs the older mortgage ones (p16), and the median score of 720 would have been more useful than the average score of 680 (p25, p85). It may be questioned that the hit of an inquiry disappears within a few months (p11) and that the new credit period is as much as two years (p24). To start the top tier at 740-760 is overstated (p75), and in the case of reason codes at 850, two rather than four are often shown (p31).
For credit cards, it is unclear what it means to pay off a card in full at the end of the cycle (p19) and why zeroing out your balances every month is a great habit (p93); a distinction between statement date and due date would have been appreciated. It’s not obvious when credit card debt becomes such (p20, p106), one definition could have been once a balance is carried over and you pay interest. The impact of late payments isn’t consistent (p8, p17). Eleven cards may be too much (p43), but that’s a symptom, not the problem. The rosy view on the authorized user approach is not uniformly supported among the various FICO versions (p143).
To talk about protecting your credit score from identity theft is of course a stretch (p111), as it’s the underlying credit information that’s sensitive; the handy credit score is merely a number that gets updated at the slightest change in your credit and, being a snapshot in time, has no history. On credit counseling (p182), there is no mention of the benefit of fee-only financial planners, just as senior fraud is not touched on. There’s no ending chapter for wrapping things up. But all of this amounts to just one star away from the top, and overall I can recommend the book.
June 15, 2018
I randomly picked up Your Score when I saw it at the library. Even though I have an excellent credit score and I am fairly financially savvy, the book looked interesting, and I thought I may learn something new.
While I didn't really learn anything new, I did find the book interesting. However, living in Canada, some topics, such as medical bills, were not applicable, and while many fundamental concepts are relevant in both the US and Canada, such as utilization ratio and length of credit history, I couldn't be sure if certain things applied to Canada as well. In addition, living in Vancouver, where housing prices are absolutely insane and out of touch with reality, the portions of the book that spoke about mortgages and mortgage rates certainly did not apply. Also, if you are the type of person who always pays off their credit card bill in full every month and never carry a balance, the majority of the information about credit cards is absolutely irrelevant.
So in summary, while the book was interesting, don't bother if you're Canadian or have an excellent credit score and are already on top of your finances. But if you're an American who needs to improve their credit score, or would just like to learn more about an interesting topic, it's worth a read.
While I didn't really learn anything new, I did find the book interesting. However, living in Canada, some topics, such as medical bills, were not applicable, and while many fundamental concepts are relevant in both the US and Canada, such as utilization ratio and length of credit history, I couldn't be sure if certain things applied to Canada as well. In addition, living in Vancouver, where housing prices are absolutely insane and out of touch with reality, the portions of the book that spoke about mortgages and mortgage rates certainly did not apply. Also, if you are the type of person who always pays off their credit card bill in full every month and never carry a balance, the majority of the information about credit cards is absolutely irrelevant.
So in summary, while the book was interesting, don't bother if you're Canadian or have an excellent credit score and are already on top of your finances. But if you're an American who needs to improve their credit score, or would just like to learn more about an interesting topic, it's worth a read.
June 30, 2018
When most people think of credit and how to improve credit scores yawns and cringing begin, but do not fear Anthony Davenport does an excellent job giving an overview of credit in this book. This book provides basic information on factors that impact credit scores as well as tips on how to increase your score if needed. This book covers a wide array of topics including student loans, home buying, basic information on improving your credit score, and how to recover after experiencing bankruptcy. The best part of all is that this book is an easy read even for people who do not have previous knowledge related to these topics. The only negative about this book is that many of the topics are not covered in great detail, but there is still enough detail for the average person to learn a few good tips.
January 19, 2020
This has to be one of the best books I have read that explains credit scores in simple terms! The author also gives you great tips on how to improve your score if you have hit a rough batch, or are starting a fresh! All great things for young people to know today and honestly for some not so young! He even explains how those advertised credit rebuilding companies work...they don’t! They just take your money and save you maybe $1000. You still have the rest of your debt but now you are in worst shape! When I was starting out no one told us anything about credit scores, so I’m hard believer in making sure everyone I know has perfect credit!
October 23, 2022
Un libro escrito por alguien que demuestra ser un experto en la materia, alguien que estuvo en los dos lados de la mesa como dice él, trabajo para bancos analizando créditos y luego con su empresa ayudando a personas a mejorar su crédito. El libro tiene historias que grafican bastante al igual que los datos de encuestas, estas muestran como es el perfil de las personas en cada rango, interesante para hacerse una idea de que está bien y como hacer para tener un crédito excelente. Tambien tiene muchos pasos que ayudan a solucionar problemas que tengas en tu reporte de crédito, definitivamente es un libro recomendado para leer.
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January 30, 2019
I wasn't expecting to love this book. In fact, I thought it would be dry and boring, but Anthony Davenport makes credit scores understandable. It felt easy and helped ease a lot of the stress that I have about my financial situation and credit score.
Even if you're not worried about your credit score, you should look into this.
Even if you're not worried about your credit score, you should look into this.
February 10, 2021
Great info and resource for everyone over 18 years old. It's good to be proactive and know what can hurt or help your credit score. Emphasizes the importance of protecting your identity and how to navigate the waters when it has been compromised. I listened the audio version, which made it hard to jot down notes and follow ups, so I'll have to check out the authors web site.
Well worth the time.
Well worth the time.
November 21, 2022
I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! It’s not a boring business read, it offers fresh perspectives on how to work within the credit bureaus systems that are designed to entrap us, and inspires you to take the necessary steps to strengthen your credit score. Highly recommend!
April 17, 2023
A quick incisive read that taught me quite a bit about credit scoring. I thought that I knew most of how credit scoring works, but it turns out that my knowledge wasn't very deep or accurate. I don't like how this system works, but it's the system that we've got. Well worth the time to read, this is the kind of stuff that they should be teaching our kids in school. Recommended.
February 27, 2018
An excellent resource for anyone hoping to repair or build your credit. I am glad I picked this up! Learned a lot about how things effect your score for the good and the bad. I have a 2 year plan to be debt free and raise my score. The info in this book will definately help me to get there!
August 15, 2018
It was really dry and boring, as one might expect. But i chose the audiobook and the narrator had a soothing voice which helped. The information is important, and framed in an accessible way. Definitely helped me understand better.
January 6, 2021
Solid read for a full understanding of credit, and reassuring for folks that know a bit about the credit game. There were a few great takeaways and hacks I took from this book. Credit can never be neglected, take time to study it in books or online.
October 1, 2022
I would read this financial book first. Credit score has such a huge impact in getting better interest loans that will save you a ton of money in the long term. This book talks about understanding credit score and the myths around credit score.
June 24, 2023
I would highly recommend this book. Unfortunately, credit scores aren’t something that are taught in schools (but they should be). This book gives a detailed breakdown of how your credit score works, do’s and dont’s, improving your score, etc.This is a really good and informative book.
May 10, 2018
An invaluable reference guide that you'll want to keep referring to over and over again. I thought I was financially savvy, but Anthony Davenport taught me that I didn't even know what I didn't know.
November 11, 2019
Largely 101-level info but also soe great insider details worth learning. Definitely recommended.
November 30, 2019
If you are interested I protecting your credit and your financial affairs read this book. Covers all aspects of your financial profile and how to fix problems
October 2, 2020
Lots of great but super dry information. This book had some really great credit strategies to help anyone where ever in the credit game they might be.
March 4, 2021
Anthony gives some solid advice throughout the book. I will definitely look to include some of the principles shared in my future classes.
July 11, 2022
An easy to read walkthrough on how to combat predatory lenders and the credit bureaus. Rented it then bought it the day I finished it. My Bible for when I go to buy a home.
February 16, 2023
US centric. Taught me nothing I didn't know already.
January 18, 2024
Useful info on a boring but important topic. I listened to the audiobook and found it repetitive. Most (all?) of this you can learn from a quick Internet search and save yourself some time. Would really only recommend this to someone who has no banking history in the U.S., or is trying to overcome debt trouble.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews