Your credit score is a measure of factors that may affect your ability to repay credit. It’s a complex formula that takes into account how you’ve repaid previous loans, any outstanding debt, and your current salary.
A credit score is dynamic and can change positively or negatively depending upon how much debt you accrue and how you manage your bills. The factors that determine your credit score are called The Three C’s of Credit – Character, Capital and Capacity.
Character:
From your credit history, a lender may decide whether you possess the honesty and reliability to repay a debt. Considerations may include:
- Have you used credit before?
- Do you pay your bills on time?
- How long have you lived at your present address?
- How long have you been at your present job?
Capital:
A lender will want to know if you have valuable assets such as real estate, personal property, investments, or savings with which to repay debt if income is unavailable.
Capacity:
This refers to your ability to repay the debt. The lender will look to see if you have been working regularly in an occupation that is likely to provide enough income to support your credit use.
The following questions may help the lender determine this:
- What is your current salary?
- How many other loan payments do you have?
- What are your current living expenses?
- What are your current debts?
- How many dependents do you have?
FAQs
The three C's are Character, Capacity and Collateral, and today they remain a widely accepted framework for evaluating creditworthiness, used globally by banks, credit unions and lenders of all types.
What are the 3 C's of credit? ›
The factors that determine your credit score are called The Three C's of Credit – Character, Capital and Capacity.
What are the 3 C's when a creditor evaluates a credit application? ›
Students classify those characteristics based on the three C's of credit (capacity, character, and collateral), assess the riskiness of lending to that individual based on these characteristics, and then decide whether or not to approve or deny the loan request.
What are the three C's of credit according to the workbook? ›
For example, when it comes to actually applying for credit, the “three C's” of credit – capital, capacity, and character – are crucial. 1 Specifically: Capital is savings and assets that can be used as collateral for loans.
What are the three C's of credit questions? ›
Character, capital (or collateral), and capacity make up the three C's of credit. Credit history, sufficient finances for repayment, and collateral are all factors in establishing credit. A person's character is based on their ability to pay their bills on time, which includes their past payments.
What do the 3 C's mean? ›
We are all innately curious, compassionate, and courageous, but we must cultivate these values — the 3Cs — as daily habits to foster the independent thinking, free expression, and constructive communication that will enable our society to reach its full potential.
What does 3 C's stand for? ›
The 3 Cs of Brand Development: Customer, Company, and Competitors.
What are the 3 C's of credit Quizlet? ›
The factors that determine your credit score are called The Three C's of Credit - Character, Capital and Capacity.
What are the different C's of credit? ›
Lenders also use these five Cs—character, capacity, capital, collateral, and conditions—to set your loan rates and loan terms.
What are the 5 C's of credit? ›
Called the five Cs of credit, they include capacity, capital, conditions, character, and collateral. There is no regulatory standard that requires the use of the five Cs of credit, but the majority of lenders review most of this information prior to allowing a borrower to take on debt.
The lender will typically follow what is called the Five Cs of Credit: Character, Capacity, Capital, Collateral and Conditions. Examining each of these things helps the lender determine the level of risk associated with providing the borrower with the requested funds.
Which of the 3 C's is the major reason for authorizing a credit check? ›
The 'Character' component is the major reason for authorizing a credit check. Lenders want to assess your past behavior in handling credit and determine if you are likely to repay the loan.
Which of the 3 Cs of credit is based on the borrower's income and expenses? ›
Capacity. Can you repay the debt? Creditors ask for employment information: your occupation, how long you've worked and how much you earn. They also want to know your expenses: how many dependents you have, whether you pay alimony or child support and the amount of your other obligations.
What are the 4 C's of credit? ›
Character, capital, capacity, and collateral – purpose isn't tied entirely to any one of the four Cs of credit worthiness. If your business is lacking in one of the Cs, it doesn't mean it has a weak purpose, and vice versa.
What are the 3 C's of mortgage lending? ›
The Three C's
After the above documents (and possibly a few others) are gathered, an underwriter gets down to business. They evaluate credit and payment history, income and assets available for a down payment and categorize their findings as the Three C's: Capacity, Credit and Collateral.
What are the 4 C's of credit granting? ›
Standards may differ from lender to lender, but there are four core components — the four C's — that lenders will evaluate in determining whether they will make a loan: capacity, capital, collateral and credit.
What are the 5 C's in credit? ›
Each lender has its own method for analyzing a borrower's creditworthiness. Most lenders use the five Cs—character, capacity, capital, collateral, and conditions—when analyzing individual or business credit applications.
What do the 5 C's of credit mean? ›
The lender will typically follow what is called the Five Cs of Credit: Character, Capacity, Capital, Collateral and Conditions. Examining each of these things helps the lender determine the level of risk associated with providing the borrower with the requested funds.
