Realising credit history is in a mess

redding

deleted, see below

stator

The best advice is to pay all of your bills bang on time, without fail. Set up direct debits for them is the easiest way to achieve this.

Do you have a credit card? If so use it to purchase a small item every month and pay the balance on the credit card in full on the due date (set up a direct debit to make this easy).

Don't apply for too much credit, when you apply it is recorded on your credit file and will count against you for the next 12 months.

Also get a copy of your credit report and make sure everything is accurate.

If you want a mortgage then you will need at least 10% of the property value in a deposit AND enough money to pay all the fees. Open a regular savings account to get in the habbit of saving.

Other than that, if your credit history shows you have a good record of meeting all your payments then it just comes down to how much money you earn and how much money you already owe. So the options here are to earn more money or pay off your debts!

taz121

Hi there, its late and im off to bed but feel free to PM me and i can help you out, i've taken my credit 'score' from poor to excellent over a couple of years after Uni and generally not been close enough to my finances

preable

First thing to do is pay all your bill on time ect

samjef11_2

preable wrote: »

First thing to do is pay all your bill on time ect

Thats some good information not what good is your reply by any chance no offense by the way.

taz121

What Stator says but work through this logically starting with realising you need to fix this

1. Setup online/mobile banking
2. Consolidate credit card and store card debts to one card/loan and CLOSE the other cards, this is easier to manage and cheaper. Shop around for the best card transfer deal but if you think you will be refused consolidate to one of your existing cards with the best balance transfer deal. Also if you don't trust yourself, request a new PIN for CC and immediatly destroy it.
3. Banking - open another account with your bank just for bills and set up a standing order from your pay account that covers all debits, as said above get everything set up by direct debit unless you can be trusted (see point 4) Now your main account is what you have to spend each month and you will not have to worry about missing payments.
4. Pay variable direct debits such as phone bills over the net/phonbe when they arrive. Warning though, only do this if you know you will pay it, that way there your standing order will always cover your non-variable payments
5. Overdaft, its vital you chip away at this each month, even if its only by £10. Every £50 you clear call the bank and have them reduce your overdraft by that amount.
6. If the bank/credit card company increases your overdraft for 'being a good customer' call up and reduce it. i.e mine is always now set at £1000, enough for an emergency but not enough to get into serious debt.
7. Pay EVERYTHING on time and NEVER miss a payment, following step 3 should alleviate this concern
8. Get your credit report and analyse it thoroughly, if your not on the electoral role get on it now as this has a huge impact on how companies asses risk.look for anything innacurate and correct it
9. Start using your credit card for one purchase a month and pay it immediatley this will allow companies to see you can manage your credit
10. Don't apply for credit too often this makes lenders think you are in trouble and need money
11. Most banks allow you to 'save the change' everytime you use your debit card, this is a great way to save money that you really won't notice. You can usually set this up via your online banking
12. When you start to see some light at the end of the tunnel, try to save even just £20 a month, firstly as safety net if your in trouble and secondly to build for the future
13.IF you can clear your overdraft, ensure you always have £100 overdraft you DO NOT live in as a safety net to avoid bank charges
14. Close old bank accounts or anything at all you no longer use but is still 'live/active'
15. Shop around for EVERYTHING such as your car insurance, don't just accept the renewal notice
16. Get your bank to text you your balance every week if they offer this service and lastly,
17. LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS, if you do this you will avoid getting into a hole you struggle to get out of.

Hope this helps, but as i say PM me if you require anything else

samjef11_2

taz121 wrote: »

11. Most banks allow you to 'save the change' everytime you use your debit card, this is a great way to save money that you really won't notice. You can usually set this up via your online banking

Let me come to this bit I quoted above.
Most banks the only bank that does it is Lloyds tsb no other banks are doing as far as I'm concerned.

taz121

OK then i stand corrected

samjef11_2

taz121 wrote: »

OK then i stand corrected

Right I'm not attacking you by any chance even if it feels like it does.;)

taz121

samjef11 wrote: »

Right I'm not attacking you by any chance even if it feels like it does.;)

I never thought you were but have some love anyway!

:heart2:

samjef11_2

taz121 wrote: »

I never thought you were but have some love anyway!

:heart2:

Lol cheers