Trying to get Credit Information Updated in Time

Hanger_boy89 · 2 December 2016 at 7:05PM

I will be looking to apply for a mortgage in the next year, and have some credit card debt and a loan that I will be paying off in that time. I've seen online that it can take 90 days for updates (payments) to your cards to be reflected so that a lender can see this - is this accurate? If I were to go for a mortgage application and take proof, such as letters/statements that I have in fact paid these accounts in full, then would this suffice as evidence of no outstanding credit, or would I just have to wait for the companies to do their updates online?

Hanger_boy89 · 2 December 2016 at 7:21PM

Or is it that when lenders go to get information about your existing/outstanding debts, they'll be able to get the up-to-date information that your accounts have been settled, even if you only made the payment two weeks before?

Thrugelmir · 2 December 2016 at 7:40PM

I'd prioritise clearance of the debts as early as possible. You are saving for a deposit one assumes. So use that.

Hanger_boy89 · 2 December 2016 at 7:48PM

Actually I have a deposit already which will come from the sale of my property - I will have a LTV of between 31-35%. I'm just wondering about the credit thing as my Experian score is 749 (Fair) but this is largely due to my debt. I've never missed a payment or anything like that and the debt will be paid by the time I apply for the mortgage, but it's just whether the companies update their records to show this has been cleared before I apply.

kingstreet · 2 December 2016 at 8:28PM

In most cases, disclosing the credit and saying it will be repaid on or before completion is enough. You do not have to pay it off months earlier unless you are approaching Santander and you need it out of the way to maximise your borrowing.

Hanger_boy89 · 2 December 2016 at 8:31PM

Thank you. So I assume that the fact they will already have been paid before completion, and indeed before I even apply for the mortgage, would be enough even if it was only paid the month before?

kingstreet · 2 December 2016 at 8:35PM

As an example, if a client has paid something off in the last three months, we enter the commitment in the application and tick the "to be repaid" box so we can ensure that if the lender can still see it, it understands it will be repaid and shouldn't be included in affordability.

Then you don't have to worry about when you pay it off and when the system updates. Unless you want Santander, that is. In that case I would repay as early as possible and obtain credit files regularly until I am 100% sure the commitments are visibly £0.

Hanger_boy89 · 2 December 2016 at 8:49PM

Brilliant thank you. So the last part of my question is that when the lenders contact companies like Experian, what information are they looking to get from them?

kingstreet · 3 December 2016 at 5:16AM

Obtain a copy of your credit file.

The kind of information you can see there is what is obtained by a mortgage lender, although not to the extent you get.

Trying to get Credit Information Updated in Time

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