How long will my credit rating take to recover?

Superheavy

Hey folks,

I'll preface this with the usual disclaimer on so many posts across these forums, that "basically, I'm not totally sure if this is the right part of the forum to post this, but most of the post does relate to Credit Cards.....so go easy "

Essentially, my query is that around a year or so ago, I uprooted from one area of Wales, and moved in with some friends, leaving behind a flat which I'd bought, and for which I had accepted an offer on....which seemed perfect at the time. However, prospective buyer dropped, out, a few months unemployed, left me borrowing quite a bit on credit cards.

Now, fast forward a few months, and I get a slightly lower offer on my flat, accept it, and finally get the funds through from that sale. (Which in this climate was a true godsend indeed!). Anyhow, at this point, I'd missed one mortgage payments, and two or three payments on four out of five credit cards....along with a truckload of overdraft charges.

Anyhow, everything got paid off except for around £1000 which is on a 0% BT from around a month before everything got a little crazy, and I'm paying that off gradually with payment well above minimum.

I realise this has been a roundabout way of getting to my question, which is indeed quite straightforward, and basically is how long does it take for my credit rating to recover?

I'm assuming that those few months have affected my credit rating, but now I'm back on regular payments, clearing that debt, and only having one other card which I pay in full each month, how long till my credit rating is back on a sure footing. I am getting copies of my credit ratings from the CRA's, just wondering what sort of timescale the improvement in credit rating takes. And if I'm asking how long a straight line is....just tell me straight up.

CLAPTON

depends whats on your credit records.

Sammy_Girl

Any defaults will stay on your credit file for 6 years before they drop off.

Paul_Herring

how long does it take for my credit rating to recover?

As previously stated, those missed payments will remain on file for 6 years, however different creditors treat such things differently - some will ignore anything older than (say) 1 or 2 years, some may ignore them if the total number is below a certain threshold, others will (in the current economic climate) treat at least one as a reason for refusal.

In short there is no single 'credit rating' and different companies will treat those late payments differently, and the longest it will take is 6 years provided you have no more late payments recorded in the interim.

evmundo

Its not just about repaying your dept. You will have to find the best tactic for rebuilding your credit score.
I had a CCJ 7 years ago and i am not even close to repairing the damage.

thriftymomma

evmundo wrote: »

Its not just about repaying your dept. You will have to find the best tactic for rebuilding your credit score.
I had a CCJ 7 years ago and i am not even close to repairing the damage.

But the ccj should have dropped off now - as long as you haven't got into anymore trouble since, you should be well on your way.

Superheavy

Thanks folks,

I guess I'll just have to wait and have a look at what turns up on the credit files. Now that I'm back on a stable footing, starting to think about getting the best deals possible, but I guess if I apply periodically the searches won't look too bad on the file.