SmartMove's Residential Score

[Dana R.]

After some trepidation, I used Transunion Smartmove for the first time to do a tenant background check.

And, I'm a bit confused by their report.

I paid for their QuickCheck Plus version, the more expensive version, and it promised a full credit report.

But, there's no FICO credit score. Instead, they're giving me their own brand new and proprietary rating, their residential score.

I've got no reference to what this residential score means. A traditional credit score had its issues, but at least I understand what the credit score meant. When it promises a full credit report, I was also expecting a credit score.

When Smartmove gives you their residential score, they also give you a recommendation whether or not to accept a applicant. Do you trust these recommendations?

I also wish there were more explanations for the report. I'm reading their report, and trying to guess what it means because there's not a lot of help on their FAQ or anywhere else on their website.

Other credit scores are more thorough in explaining their report. For example:

http://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/credit-...

On Smartmove, for the late payment summary, it says 3 months but there are 0s over 30,60,90. and 120 days. Does it mean that there were no late payments in the last 3 months or that there were 3 months when there were late payments?

Is there any reason why I should stick with Smartmove instead of a more traditional credit report?

Does Smartmove capture more problems than other services? The applicant brought in his own credit report powered by appfolio, and I did notice that Smartmove showed more problems than the applicant's report.

But, if I gone with a more traditional credit report, would those reports have also caught similar problems too?

[Michael Seeker]

Hey @Dana R. - I started out using TU Smartmove because of the BP discount, but after about 6-12 months figured out the same thing you're pointing out here.  I actually thought their residential score was the credit score for the longest time.  It's very misleading!

I went back and forth with a rep on what the scores mean and it took a while before they finally sent me this:

901-999 A Super Prime

801-900 B Prime Plus

701-800 C Prime

601-700 D Non-Prime

501-600 F High Risk

I immediately started looking for a new company for checks and have settled on www.tenantbackgroundsearch.com.  They are cheap and give you all the info you need.  The website is a bit clunky, but I've been using for a while now with great results.