Improve credit score

vindaloot

My partner is looking to get a mortgage but the broker has advised she will need an improved credit score from 743 to over 800.

She has never missed any payments and her credit report is showing she's using 92% of her available credit and is not on the electoral register. First thing we have done is pay off the credit (400 overdraft and 450 credit card balance) and filled out the form to get her on the electoral register.

My Q is how many points will this increase her credit score and how long before we can reapply for DIP. Her initial DIP got rejected as her credit score was not high enough. Thanks.

DVardysShadow

No real world lender actually takes a blind bit of notice of the Experian credit score. Its sole purpose is to part people from their money.

Real world lenders calculate their own credit scores from information on the credit record and from elsewhere, using their own methods. Having said that, a low Experian score tends to point to the issues your broker has identified. But your broker is misleading you if she has told you that lenders actually use the Experian score.

Just deal with the issues and allow time for the updates to get into the record. Using 92% of available credit these days would be considered bad. Worse probably than having twice as much credit and using 46% of available - as the actual amount itself is trivial.

ACG

They may have used that score as an example - once your on the electoral roll and brought down your balances, let it update and you should be fine.

Dave_Ham

I actually thought this was a joke initially...

Shocking - no lender looks at the scores, moreover the data within them.

Electoral Roll is absolutely critical for a credit scoring system to work and therefore plays a major role.

Get the credit cleared, get on the electoral roll and the world will be a different place.

Oh - and give that broker the boot for talking rubbish

paulmapp8306

Completely agree.

We had issues initially as I was on the Electoral register but my wife wasnt.

This was due to me being int he forces serving in Northern Ireland. We are entitled to be registered at either a parents address OR the last UK Mainland address for voting purpsoes (as NI politics is completely different) BUT from a credit perspective they dont look/care about the legalities.

So - we got the wife on the local register - secured the mortgatge then moved her back again. Job done.

that Electoral register is the big one IMO, though it may take a couple of months for the information to update on the credit file.

vindaloot

Thanks for the updates guys.

How can I get the update from the electoral register done on my credit file quicker - as we have put an offer in for a place already. Don't think the seller or estate agencey will wait few months :-(

Dave_Ham

You cannot really move it any quicker as they run pre-defined updates.

I suggest you print off your Experian and Equifax reports and get them to a better mortgage broker if this house is "the one"

A more experienced broker will look at the content and then approach a more sensitive bank to this sort of lending.

From what you have said, I would fancy it is achievable.

Good luck...