Analyzing The Credit Mix that Goes into Your FICO Score

Wayne the Credit Guy discusses the impact your “Credit Mix” has on  your FICO score in this article on CreditCardForum.com.

Excerpt:

If you want to keep things simple, credit can be broken into two categories that contribute to your account diversity: (1) Revolving lines of credit (ie, credit cards) and (2) installment accounts (student loans, mortgages, car loans, etc.), says Wayne Sanford, founder of Dallas-Fort Worth–based New Start Financial.

Why does FICO reward those who have both? Keeping up with installment loans demonstrates the reliability lenders like – but these loans also come with a big incentive to make payments on time (they’re often secured with your house or vehicle). Revolving accounts give you a lot more freedom to fail, since you don’t run the risk of losing the things you bought with them.