I think Woz probably relies on investments rather than wages for income, so holding a joint account means something a little different than it would for most people.

But I understand your point.

It's also a corner case the credit rating systems don't handle. I am reminded of many years ago when I had no credit but good income, and none of the credit card companies cared about that last point enough to trust me. These are imperfect systems.

FICO is trying to fix that with Experian Boost (https://thepointsguy.com/news/how-utility-bills-might-improv...). It will let you opt in to using utility and phone bills as part of your credit score.

But this is also far from perfect. If times are tough or you’re just irresponsible, you’re going to pay your utility bills because of the extreme inconvenience of having your utilities cut off but you may not pay your phone bills.

and also only works by giving them access to your checking account. anyone who uses credit cards to pay bills doesnt get a boost. doesnt seem worth losing the points over, id rather have 2% off my bills (unless the boost had a material impact on a mortgage rate, but then you would have to pay your bills for years with checking, hoping boost is still around.)

If you have credit cards, you’re already building credit so you won’t need it.

you dont gain additional credit for paying your bills on a cc, if anything its slightly stunning your utilization.

That’s what I just said. If you already have credit, you won’t need the Credit Boost of letting them see your checking account. It’s meant for people who don’t have credit.