Home ownership is a part of achieving the American dream. For many, the only thing standing between them and owning a home is a low credit score. Lenders rely heavily on FICO Scores when determining whether to fund a mortgage — low credit scores equate to high risk. Still, it isn’t impossible to get a mortgage with a low credit score.

A new version of FICO’s credit score formula will raise the scores of people with medical debts, or who paid off other debts in collection but people with unpaid debts on their record that aren’t related to health care would see their scores fall, making it harder for them to get a personal loan or credit card, or raising the interest rates they’ll have to pay, FICO said.

So, what is a FICO Score? It’s a number that is formulated based on your credit history helping lenders evaluate your credit risk. Your FICO Score is used to determine credit offers and interest rates — and now it’s free for you to view.

There are many misconceptions about credit scores out there. Every time you apply for credit, apply for a job that requires you to handle money, or even apply for some apartment living, your credit score it checked.

Borrowing money today requires impressing an increasingly hard-to-please crowd. With creditors of all kinds more cautious than ever, you need an A+ application to land the best terms — and that means an A+ credit score, the number lenders use to judge your risk of default.