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If you have ever applied for a loan, you have undoubtedly sat there having heart palpitations while your credit report is being run to determine your FICO score. You are thinking back on those late payments you made while you were in college 10 years ago or the $275 credit card bill that you just chose to ignore when you were 21-years-old (and obviously had more pressing things to think about…).

Well, the current FICO scoring system as we know it is getting an overhaul, and the result is FICO 08. FICO 08 will be complete this spring and is designed to help lenders reduce loan default rates by 5-15%. The good news is that the new system is designed to cut consumers a little slack on the occasional late payment but will come down harder on habitual offenders.

Scores will range from 300-850 and will take into consideration the same factors as the old version including payment history, length of credit history, amount of debt, ratio of debt to available credit, and recent new credit.

So if you haven’t done it lately, now might be a good time to get a free copy of your credit report and strategize on how to best manage your debt and credit history…or you could always go run a marathon instead – it might be less painful.