The enhanced version of Boost is designed to give these users more visibility into the financial information lenders assess when reviewing credit applications, per the release.
“Millions of people responsibly manage financial commitments such as rent, household bills and everyday spending, yet many have limited understanding of how this information may be viewed as part of a lending decision,” the release said. “While traditional credit information remains an important part of the process, lenders increasingly look beyond a credit report to build a broader picture of an applicant’s financial circumstances.”
Boost will offer people insights into the ways a lender might see how everyday financial behaviors, such as rent payments, buy now, pay later commitments and household bills, could impact their financial profile before they apply for products such as loans, credit cards or mortgages, according to the release.
In addition, users will get personalized insights into what might be helping or hindering their financial profile, along with steps they can take to strengthen their eligibility, the release said.
Experian Boost will also help U.K. tenants by letting them add rent payments to their credit reports, which means they could increase their credit scores and gain greater access to credit, according to the release.
Meanwhile, consumers hoping to build credit can face a tough cash decision, PYMNTS reported Oct. 28. How much money can they afford to set aside before using a secured card?
The PYMNTS Intelligence report “Secured Credit’s Next Turn: Unlocking Growth With Dynamic Funding” found in March that subprime applicants face a credit card denial rate 2.3 times greater than that of super-prime borrowers.
“Secured credit offers another route to establishing a repayment record,” PYMNTS reported. “Its usefulness, however, depends partly on whether consumers can manage the deposit alongside their other expenses.”
Another PYMNTS Intelligence report, “Keeping Up Gets Harder: Debt Confidence Falls Among Bill Payers,” found in October that 32.5% of consumers living paycheck to paycheck without issues paying bills encountered an unexpected expense of $1,200 or more in the 90 days before being surveyed, compared to 27.1% in August. The increase was more than twice the one seen among consumers who do not live paycheck to paycheck.
