Why your credit score might be slipping even if you’re doing everything right

Inflation, interest rates, and student loan payments are reshaping financial stability.

[Image: fran_kie/Adobe Stock]

The K-shaped economy strikes again.

A new report from the Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO), creator of the credit score most lenders use, shows that the average American’s FICO score is now down to 714 – a two point decline over the course of the last year. 

The current slide in U.S. credit scores began in 2023, when the government ended the temporary pandemic-era freeze on student loan collection. Missed mortgage payments have also ticked up some, contributing to the slide in credit scores. Prior to the latest report, the average American’s credit score had already dropped to 715 between 2024 and 2025, which at the time was the most dramatic decline in scores since the Great Recession........

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