Kamala Harris: Credit scores should include rent, cell phones and utilities

[bluewater]

Senator Kamala Harris is calling for reforms to the way in which credit scores are calculated in order to boost black homeownership.

Senator Kamala Harris wants to add more data to how credit bureaus calculate credit scores as part of a broader plan to address the black homeownership gap in the U.S.

The Democratic presidential candidate from California unveiled her plan last week during an appearance at the Essence Festival in New Orleans, an annual music and culture festival sponsored by Essence magazine.

Harris called for amending the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require credit reporting agencies to include payments of rent, cellphone bills and utilities when calculating credit scores.

While alternative credit scores have been developed that do just that, the traditional FICO score, named after the Fair Isaac Corporation FICO, +1.05% typically considers payments on debt such as credit cards, mortgages and auto loans. (Experian EXPGY, -0.93% however, has a tool that will include certain utility accounts included in your credit report.)

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/kamala-harris-says-credit-scores-should-include-rent-cell-phones-and-utilities-2019-07-09

[highplainsdem]

1. The article explains others already introduced similar legislation in both House and Senate:

Legislation to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act has already received bipartisan support. A bill introduced in 2017 by former House Representative Keith Ellison, a Democrat from Minnesota, that would require this additional data in credit scoring managed to pass the House of Representatives. The Senate version of that bill, which was authored by Senator Tim Scott, a Republican from South Carolina, attracted both Democratic and Republicans co-sponsors, though Harris was not among them.

I wonder why Harris wasn't among the cosponsors of that bill?

[qazplm135]

2. what is your point?

Just because she didn't cosponsor a similar bill means what?

[StarfishSaver]

3. Not sure - but it only had 6 cosponsors and Manchin, Testor and Doug Jones were the only Democrats

so there's probably a pretty good reason that she, Warren, Sanders, Booker, and most of the other Democrats didn't sign on.

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/3040/cosponsors?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22Credit%22%7D&s=8&r=2&overview=closed#tabs

[Indykatie]

9. Other Dems Probably Didn't Want to Be Tagged for "Working Across the Aisle".

Sadly, that's one of the prices for purity in our current political environment.

[StarfishSaver]

10. I don't think that's what it is

Democrats frequently sign on his co-sponsors to Republican bills. There must have been something about this bill that kept them Even other Republicans didn't co-sponsor it.

[Politicub]

33. That's a strong accusation. Will you please do your research before you tar

democrats-who-are-not-Biden with your notion?

“Purity”, indeed.

[Kaleva]

7. Harris's proposal would require the reporting. The bill you cite, it would be allowed.

"Shown Here:
Introduced in Senate (06/11/2018)
Credit Access and Inclusion Act of 2018

This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to allow the reporting of certain positive consumer-credit information to consumer reporting agencies. Specifically, a person or the Department of Housing and Urban Development may report information related to a consumer's performance in making payments either under a lease agreement for a dwelling or pursuant to a contract for a utility or telecommunications service. However, information about a consumer's usage of any utility or telecommunications service may be reported only to the extent that the information relates to payment by the consumer for such service or other terms of the provision of that service. Furthermore, an energy-utility firm may not report a consumer's outstanding balance as late if the firm and the consumer have entered into a payment plan and the consumer is meeting the obligations of that plan.

Specified provisions of the Consumer Credit Protection Act that establish civil liability with respect to furnishers of information to consumer reporting agencies shall not apply to any violation of the bill.

The Government Accountability Office must report on the consumer impact of such reporting."

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/3040

"Harris called for amending the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require credit reporting agencies to include payments of rent, cellphone bills and utilities when calculating credit scores."

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/kamala-harris-says-credit-scores-should-include-rent-cell-phones-and-utilities-2019-07-09

[ucrdem]

21. That sounds like a better bill.

If it's required as in Harris's proposal it's going become one more hoop to hop through and give credit companies an excuse to lower credit scores. Making it optional is a much better idea.

[StarfishSaver]

36. How do you figure it requiring them to do it will give them an excuse to lower credit scores?

And are you saying that Tim Scott's bill, which only got 6 co-sponsors and only 3 Democrats - all conservatives - signed on to - was better than what Harris is proposing? If so, why didn't Warren endorse it?

"Making it optional" is how Republicans "regulate." No, thank you.

[TeamPooka]

35. all bills on a subject are not the same. Republicans have a heathcare plan too.

[Watchfoxheadexplodes]

4. I know people LATE on all those

How in the hell would this help people barely getting by?

[Indykatie]

6. People Who Have Poor or No Credit Will Probably Also Have Bad Payment Records W/Utilities Etc.

[StarfishSaver]

11. Bad payment history isn't the only reason low income people have low credit scores

An important part of credit score is the type of credit, number of accounts and length of time the account has been open. If someone can't get a loan or a credit card, they're not able to build up the kind of record the that gives them a favorable credit history. So they end up going to payday lenders and check cashing places, which lend to them on a predatory basis and makes it more difficult for them to keep up and pay their bills. It's a pretty vicious cycle for low income people.

Expanding the types of credit that are reported to credit agencies will give people a better chance to build a credit history.

[The Mouth]

14. "Payday" lenders loan sharks

There are ways to establish credit, though, such as certain cards with initial low limits that are raised as you pay regularly.

[StarfishSaver]

19. That's very hard for people to navigate and to figure out the sharks from the good companies

And the payday lenders are right in their neighborhoods, so they have a captive audience.

[The Mouth]

28. No argument

But, building credit is kind of like building a house, I think. It takes time, knowledge, and discipline.

The basic idea if what Senator Harris is suggesting is fine, but even giving people 25 thousand bucks AND (somewhat) changing how credit scores are calculated will do little or no good for someone who isn't going to do whatever they have to to figure out how to navigate the world of credit. It's treacherous as hell, education is the only answer (in addition, of course, to making the game more equitable and helping folks a bit).

[Kaleva]

15. This would be a good read for you.

chrome-extension://oemmndcbldboiebfnladdacbdfmadadm/https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201505_cfpb_data-point-credit-invisibles.pdf

[The Mouth]

18. How to build and keep credit

is something that should be taught in EVERY school

how can people play the game if they don't know the rules?

[Kaleva]

20. There are many subjects that ought to be taught in our schools.

Not everyone needs advanced mathematics or other such courses.

[Igel]

54. A lot are beginners.

I was rejected for my first credit card because I had no record. The issuer was the bank that I'd had an account with for over a year, and where my employer had done business for 5-6 years.

No credit history, no credit.

So I went to a furniture store--I needed furniture anyway--and bought a sofa. A friend co-signed. I paid off the loan over the course of 6 months, not a lot of interest there.

A month after I paid off the loan I applied for a credit card with the same bank. And got it, because *then* I had a credit history. Then again, I asked the bank manager (who I dealt with because of my job) the reason, and she said "no history at all." And I knew how to acquire a history. When I took out the furniture loan I even knew to ask if they reported to credit bureaus. (How did I know this? High school and friends and parents.)

[StarfishSaver]

58. Fortunately, you knew what to do. Many people don't

It also sounds like you were purchasing something you didn't desperately need. Many people who need something urgently and can't get traditional credit (and don't know how the system works as you did), fall prey to lenders who will give them credit with predatory rates and conditions. As a result, they end up trapped in a vicious cycle that can destroy their financial future..

[StarfishSaver]

8. It helps because it allows people to begin building a credit profile

Lots of people can't qualify for credit, not because they don't pay their bills, but because they can't get the kind of credit that helps to build a credit profile, such as credit cards, mortgages, etc. There are plenty of people who pay their bills on time, but still have a low credit score or no credit score because they don't have the "right" kinds of credit.

This would let them begin building a credit profile that can give them the starting foundation they need to establish and solid credit record.

[Kaleva]

12. From the article:

"There are an estimated 26 million people who are “credit invisible” and another 19 million who are said to have “unscorable” files, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. These people don’t have enough bank or credit-union accounts to have a credit score by today’s standards."

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/kamala-harris-says-credit-scores-should-include-rent-cell-phones-and-utilities-2019-07-09

The proposal is to help those who make their utility and rent or lease payments but are still "credit invisible".

[StarfishSaver]

22. To many of these people aren't just "credit invisible" - they're just invisible

And too many people assume that low-income people don't pay or are late layers when they are usually as responsible, if not more so, than other demographics. But they can't get reasonable credit. I like that folks are thinking of how to change the credit process to catch up with the 21st century economy.

[Kaleva]

24. I'm not much above the poverty level and I pay my bills on time each and every month.

[StarfishSaver]

25. Exactly

The notion that lower income people don't pay their bills while people with money are more creditworthy is a crock.

If I were issuing credit, I'd probably be much more willing to extend it to you than to anyone named Trump, no matter how much money they claim to have. (Although you probably actually have more money than they all do put together).

[The Mouth]

29. My understanding is that

on time payment is a majority of the score.

It's more a measure of how well and wisely you use credit rather than how much.

Payment history and percentage of credit used are 65% of the total. Length of history is another 15 percent

[StarfishSaver]

31. The problem is not nust that their length of history or type of credit lowers their score

It often means they don't have a sufficient profile to even get a decent score or to qualify for credit, reducing their financial options and ability to use credit to build wealth.

[The Mouth]

13. Would people 'barely getting by'

be well advised to buy a house?

good first step, though.

[Kaleva]

16. This is for people who are credit invisible or have unscorable files

[The Mouth]

17. yeah

I agree. Edited my post since what you say makes sense.

Getting good credit is HARD, losing it is easy.

[ucrdem]

23. Seriously.

This is the type of thing Wells Fargo would love.

[Green Line]

26. Yes they would

It can get us into another housing mess. Bad idea in my opinion.

[ucrdem]

27. She doesn't have much by way of accomplishments to run on.

[StarfishSaver]

34. No.

It's a myth - promulgated primarily by right wingers - that opening up credit andand the Community Reinvestment Act caused the housing crisis by making it easier for lower income people to buy homes. It actually had little to do with any of those things.

In fact giving lower income but credit worthy people more opportunity to obtain credit in the conventional market helps to reduce the likelihood of another housing bust because it allows more people to qualify for tightly regulated loans and credit and not have to resort to the predatory market.

Elizabeth Warren knows that and some of her best work has been to busy those myths and change the way money and credit operate.

Lots of people who can't qualify for credit not because they don't pay their bills but because they can't get the kind of credit that helps to build a credit profile.

[disenfranchised]

57. How could this get us into another housing mess?

All this bill does is try to bring more qualified buyers into the market. People should not have to borrow money as the only way to prove that they can pay their bills on time.

A big reason for the housing crisis was stated income loans, low down payments, and HELOC's. This has nothing to do with that.

[StarfishSaver]

32. No, actually not

And having a good credit score is about more than just being able to get credit cards and mortgages. It affects people's ability to get jobs or qualify for insurance or be approved for rental property and many other things that people with more assets take for granted as a given.

[5starlib]

42. I don't undestand the rationale either! How is this helping poor people?

It'll just make my credit even worse! I never pay my water bill on time. My gas bill can go 2-3 months before a cutoff notice, then I'll pay. Why is reporting this to credit helpful to me??

[Igel]

55. It helps some, it hurts some.

But politicians seldom focus on who's hurt; they dwell on all the wonderful outcomes that'll follow.

Poor people and young people often have no credit because they don't interact with the institutions that provide the basis of a credit report. They don't have bad credit, they have no credit. That's a different sort of critter, and this bill will fix that.

If you have a bad history of paying bills, it'll show you have a bad history of paying bills. That's also useful information in establishing a credit history.

The goal shouldn't be to give everybody a good credit history, it should be to give everybody an *accurate* credit history.



However, it should also be sensitive to the reporters and not assume that all of them are fully electronic, have in-house CPAs and lawyers, with thousands of customers. In the rush to get votes and dwell on all the glories of a bill, there's often a lot of collateral damage.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

46. I don't see how you can legislate to make a business, the reporting agency, consider someone...

..... credit worthy. Either they think, based on their models, you are credit worthy or not.

The concentration should be on changing FHA, Fannie, Freddie and HUD guidelines.

And yes, I agree with you that phone bills and rent histories aren’t going to help people who are struggling.

Once again we are trying to legislate away a symptom of a broken system.

[mcar]

5. I like this idea

We have been diligent about making mortgage, credit card and car loan payments on time but ran into trouble with medical bills when I lost my job in 2013. Our credit score has suffered as a result.

[aikoaiko]

30. When I do credit checks things like not paying rent or cell phone bills show up already.

[SouthernProgressive]

50. No, they don't.

Only if they are sent to collections. Apartment complexes are the number one area where this is actually done. Apt complexes normally report. They only report if they decide to go for collections. They do not report on time or late payments. Only non-payment and only if they want to. Most landlords do not report. I have ran thousands of credit reports on potential renters and it is extremely rare, outside of an apartment complex, to find an eviction on someones criminal report and a collection for rent on their credit report. Most individual investors deal with the loss and move along. They don't want to incur an additional loss in order to report.

What you are talking about is when it's sent out for collection. Not on time or late payments.

Someone can also be up to three months late on a cell phone, through some companies, and never show anything on their credit report. They normally don't report until it's 90 days in arrears and service is shut off. So if they paid their bill one and a half months late it wouldn't show up on their credit report at all.

What is being discussed here would be a nightmare and harm a lot of good people. It would also be a nightmare that helps a lot of good people. It would be an additional way to help or harm your credit.

I currently have a family I rent to who are consistently late on rent. They do ok but life is really tough on them. I do not ask for late fees and have often helped them out with things. I have great respect for them. Under the rules being discussed, their credit report would show that they have been late 27 out of 28 months. Say they got a new source of income. A better job. Something broke in a good way for them. I would have done such damage to their credit that it would take them a considerable amount of time to correct things. That includes the difficulty of finding a new rental knowing all of their lates would show up on the report.

[aikoaiko]

51. You're right, it's when accounts are reported delinquent

[SouthernProgressive]

52. +1 NT

[W_HAMILTON]

37. That seems like that would hurt more than help.

The same types of people that don't have a decent credit history are probably the same types of people that have missed a rent/utility/cell phone payment at some point. If credit history is negatively impacted by those missed payments like they are for missed credit card/mortgage etc. payments, it seems like it would hurt more than help.

[Kaleva]

38. The proposal deals those who are credit invisible or have unscorable files

"There are an estimated 26 million people who are “credit invisible” and another 19 million who are said to have “unscorable” files, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. These people don’t have enough bank or credit-union accounts to have a credit score by today’s standards."

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/kamala-harris-says-credit-scores-should-include-rent-cell-phones-and-utilities-2019-07-09

The proposal is to help those who make their utility and rent or lease payments but are still "credit invisible".

[5starlib]

43. Well deal with those people then! Her proposal will hurt people as well...

Like me.

[Kaleva]

47. And how does it hurt people?

[StarfishSaver]

39. That's not true

Lower income people aren't more likely to not pay on time than anyone else - in fact, they are usually more conscientious about paying their bills. But because they don't usually qualify for the kinds of credit that gets scored - mortgages, credit cards, etc. - they have trouble building up a credit history that can enable them to qualify for credit at reasonable rates.

One of the reasons lower income people get pushed into the secondary, predatory market (besides criminal level predation) is that they can't build up the kind of credit score that can qualify them for more traditional products, even though they have sufficient income and good payment histories.

[Indygram]

45. Lower income people often CAN'T pay on time

I know this because I AM one. I have been homeless at least 5 times due to sudden loss of income or situation beyond my control. This idea is flipping STUPID. It will harm single mothers especially. I HATE this idea with a fiery passion.

[Kaleva]

48. I get $1192 a month SSDI and I pay my bills on time every month.

Here is my budget:


$1192.00 SSDI
$140.05 Veteran Pension

$1332.05

----------------------------
$10.00 VA Co-pay

$10.00
------------------------
$40.00 Electricity (averaged out over 12 months)
$13.99 Amazon Prime
$11.99 Hulu
$10.00 Great Courses Plus
$25.00 Cell phone with unlimited text and talk
$40.00 Natural gas for heating, hot water and cooking (averaged out over 12 months)
$43.00 water & sewer
$67.00 Land line and internet

$300.43
------------------------
$140.00 Property taxes and homeowners insurance

$140.00
---------------------------
$37.00 Credit card payment
$40.00 Credit card payment
$54.00 Credit card payment

$91.00 (the credit cards should be paid off by the end of the year)
---------------------------
$200.00 Food, personal hygiene
$100.00 Miscellaneous, clothing
$25.00 Donation to Kamala Harris campaign
$5.00 DU

$330.00

$1332.05 - $871.43 = $460.62 available for discretionary spending

[Indygram]

49. Good for you...my rent is more than your monthly income even before utilities

I wish I had the luxury of having anything for discretionary spending.

Were you a single mother who did not receive child support?

Did you ever have to pay child care expenses?

This idea is ignorant on so many levels, short sighted and harmful to the most vulnerable. It is out of touch.

[Kaleva]

53. Low income single parents can get quite a bit of financial help

Earned income credit can be a few thousand dollars. Medicare, WIC, assistance with paying utilities, subsidized housing, subsidized day care and so on. I assume you are low income enough to be eligible to receive some or all of the aforementioned help.

These single parents pay their bills on time but have little to no credit history. This proposal will help them.

[Indygram]

59. Oh my God....

Earned Income Credit is once a year, not every week or month.

Medicare is for ELDERLY people, not single mothers with kids. You are thinking Medicaid, which covers ONLY medical, not rent and utilities.

There is a MASSIVE shortage in affordable housing all across the country with waiting lists that can up to a DECADE or longer. Not everyone qualifies for subsidized childcare and it often does NOT pay all costs.

I can tell you have never had to wash laundry in the bathtub and wring the clothes out until your hands bled because you didn't have money for the laundry mat or wipe your ass with coffee filters or old newspapers because you chose to pay the electric bill right before it got disconnected instead.

You have NO IDEA what you are talking about.

[Kaleva]

60. You can see by my budget that I don't own a car. Do you?

I've kept my thermostat down to 55 all winter to save on gas. I've scooped out water from my bathtub to put into a bucket for flushing the toilet. I've walked to church dinners to get a free meal. I took Navy showers (turning on the water just long enough to get wet, turning it off while washing and then back on again to rinse off.) I hung my clothes in the basement because I didn't have a dryer. I've saved the rinse water from my washer to reuse as wash water for the next load.

At least you had coffee filters. I put my coffee grounds directly into a pot of boiling water on the stove. I then poured the coffee through a strainer to catch the grounds.

I know what I'm talking about. And yet I was never in any danger of having anything disconnected because I always paid my bills on time.

Your right about Medicaid. But Medicaid does cover medical, dental and vision.

[Kaleva]

62. My efforts at frugal living Mon Aug 27, 2012, 09:08 AM

"My natural gas water heater has been on pilot only for over 2 1/2 weeks now and I haven't run out of hot water yet. I wash my clothes in cold water only (edit: which I started doing at the end of last month or beginning of this month), take a shower every day and wash my dishes with about 7 gallons of water every couple of days. The pilot flame alone puts out enough heat to heat the water and keep it hot.

All the lights in my house are cfl types and I make sure they are turned off when I don't need them. The only two things I have in this house that have power to them 24/7 is the fridge and charger for my cordless phone. The coffee maker, tv, Netflix & DVD player box, wireless router, microwave and laptop are all unplugged from the outlets when not in use. I stopped using my electric dryer the last time I did laundry. I really need to get one of those clothes dryer racks as i hung my clothes off of nails in the basement to dry.

I cleaned out the pantry in the basement, washed down the shelves, and put up insulation in the ceiling and interior walls. I'll be using that as a cold storage room this winter for the apples I get from my apple tree.

Been working on my garden of 160 square feet to get it ready for next year. I have the bins ready for my worm composter but as i donated to DU this month, I put off getting the worms till next month. In the meantime, I've been cutting up cardboard boxes, heavy brown paper, flyers and any other non-glossy papers I have into very small pieces to use as worm food and to work into the garden beds. I've also been saving kitchen scraps for the same. I have three big maple trees in my yard and I'll use my mulching push mower to chop the leaves to work into the garden bed and put the rest into a pile for use as a mulch next year.

Since yesterday, I've been collecting my urine to use as a fertilizer for the lawn, the shrubs I have and for the garden bed. I'll also use it on the few indoor plants I have.

Going to have a small indoor garden this winter and I'll start small with radishes and with the chives I'll transplant from outside to ice cream pails I have saved to be used for indoor growing. I cleaned out enough room in my spare bedroom and set up a table for the plants to be set there.

The water I have saved from taking a shower has provided more then enough to be used to flush the toilet. I put in a plug in the tub drain before taking a shower and then bail the water out of the tub into a 13 gallon plastic container after the shower. Following Fumesucker's suggestion, I'm going to save the rinse water from washing my clothes to be used as wash water the next time I do laundry. doing that and with using grey water to flush the toilet, I ought to save about 400-500 gallons a month. Next spring, I plan on using a bio-compatible detergent so I can use the excess water from showering not needed to flush the toilet, the water from the bathroom sink and the wash water from the clothes washer to water the garden, shrubs, apple tree, and lawn as needed.

I'm hoping that by using an indoor worm composter, collecting my urine and by using grey water, I'll be able to water my garden, fertilize it and have compost for it without any extra cost on my part and use the excess on the rest of the yard.

Next month I'm going to do much of my grocery shopping on line. I have no vehicle and the nearest stores that have decent prices are over 40 miles away. I'll continue to use the local store for fresh produce, bread, and dairy products.

As for tv, Netflix alone has been fine. $7.99 a month provides me with all the movies and tv shows I care to watch and I haven't rented a movie in months.

Things to do in the near future:

Quit smoking. That alone would save me $80.00 a month. I'm smoking the cheapest stuff I can get but quitting would provide me with the money to pay my property taxes, fire insurance and still have money left over for other things for the house.

Purchase a reel push mower. My gas powered mulching mower is near the end of it's long life. I'd like to keep it around for many more years to use to mulch up the leaves in the fall.

Put in a flue pipe for the woodstove in the basement. The old flue was rusted out and I threw it away. As my ex wants to replace her current fuel oil furnace with a high efficiency LP gas furnace and wants me to do the job (it's the work I did before I went on disability), I'll use the flue and elbows from that fuel oil furnace for my woodstove so that wont cost me anything. I have a bunch of scrap wood left over from remodeling my kitchen after it was wrecked from water damage last winter after my then wife's relative who was living here turned the heat off without telling me about it. The wood is in my garage so I can use it to burn to help cut down heating costs this winter.

Replace windows and doors as I can. The front door pretty much just keeps the wild animals out and prevents snow from drifting in during the winter. The windows, other then the new ones I put in the kitchen, are single pane. This winter I'll be putting on that 3-M plastic window insulation on all the old windows.

Learn how to preserve foods. I can borrow a pressure cooker and my ex knows how to do it. As we still get along quite well, maybe we can work together on such a project.

Things I've learned so far:

Frugal living can be labor intensive. Ten years ago, I could have done all this with no trouble at all but some of it now really kicks my ass. But truthfully, I'm having fun doing it. I look at it as a challenge. To be able to live well on $1071.00 a month (plus the $19.00 in food stamps I get).

Being single and a person who enjoys the simple things in life, my costs aren't that high and the savings I get from what I'm trying to do aren't that much. My food bill is averaging out to be about $4.50 a day. My water bill for this month was $16.00 and that's before I started using grey water to flush the toilet. My electric bill for this month is $19.00. I haven't got my gas bill yet but for last month it was $13.52 so that was before I turned the gas water heater to pilot only (edit) and before I started washing clothes in cold water only. Those costs don't include the standard costs for having the services provided to the house. Costs I can't do anything about unless I decide I can do without fancy dancy water, electricity or gas all together.

Edit: While some of my expenses are quite low, money is still very tight as I'm paying off bills. "

https://www.democraticunderground.com/11281493

[ecstatic]

40. It wasn't until I bought a home that my credit score took off.

So in that sense, the system really is rigged. Prior to buying my home, I had a perfect record (and still do), but my score didn't reflect that. Also, one change I made that really put me over the top was doing all my spending on my rewards cards and paying the statement balance every month. That's kind of counter intuitive. I think most people think credit cards are bad and they'd expect using them to ding their score. Go figure.

I think the most important thing that would help people is education of how the game is played so everyone can be on the same page.

[Igel]

56. When I went for my first mortgage,

the mortgage broker looked at my credit score and suggested I more than double the amount I was asking to borrow.

Somebody up-thread said that it's payments, even on small amounts, that matter--not the amount owed. I'd argue that for a decent credit score, on-time payments matter. But if you want a really good score, size and time matter. Showing that you can manage multiple credit lines of $20k over 20 years is better than showing you can manage $1000 in debt for 18 months.

[5starlib]

41. How will this help low income people? I don't understand...

I'm late on my utilities many times cause I know they have a grace period and it's not reported to credit agencies. I don't even pay my water bill until I get a cut off notice. This would make my situation worse.

[Indygram]

44. It's already optional to add that but I HATE this idea

As a single parent who did NOT get child support I struggled so hard to pay my bills on time and was homeless more than I care to admit as a result. This policy would have completely destroyed any shot I had at ever building up credit.

This would actually REALLY hurt minorities too. Apparently she has never had to struggle financially in her life. Terrible, terrible idea.

[Aaron Pereira]

61. Seems like a great way to help black families into a first house.

People who pay their non-mortgage monthly bills on time should be rewarded with a better credit score instead of punished with invisibility. Those who can't pay their bills shouldn't be considering a home mortgage in the first place.