Credit file

taylor2012

Hello

I have never missed payments, had CCJ's or been involved with debt collection agencies luckily and I am employed full time with a decent salary.

I was shocked therefore to discover that I have a low credit rating as I assumed this would be reserved for those with previous debt problems. I have had and paid off previous mortgages/car loand etc.

I am in my thirties and desperately need to improve my rating, is this a quick fix or will it take some time?

I have 2 credit cards, 2 loans and a mortgage but they are all uptp date and within limit and I always pay loan repayments and at least minimum card payment each month.

I have a plan to pay off my 2 loans by November this year and then I will tackle the 2 credit cards (took a battering over Christmas and holiday last year)

I still am puzzled though as I am now unable to swap by credit card balance to a 0% which will obviously mean that it will take me longer to clear the debt! I have checked my credit file and it is accurate (all green indicating accounts uptodate)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
:mad:

[Deleted User]

Have you actually been rejected for a BT offer or just assuming you will be because of your score?

Remember that the score means nothing to anyone - all a lender does is review your file and judge what kind of risk you are.

taylor2012

Deleted_User wrote: »

Have you actually been rejected for a BT offer or just assuming you will be because of your score?

Remember that the score means nothing to anyone - all a lender does is review your file and judge what kind of risk you are.

Hello,

Yes I have been rejected, sorry I should have said - I then checked my credit file which has led to my confusion.

[Deleted User]

My best guess would be your level of indebtness. What are your total card limits and balances, and how much on your loans?

taylor2012

Without adding too much info, 1 card is upto the limit (000's) and the other has around £1500 available. My loans have only a year to run - one with a balance of £3500 and the other £2500. Both of which have been paid monthly on time without fail which must count for something.

My mortgage is low LTV (about 40%) and as I said all payments upto date. I understand the cards will impact until I can clear them but assumed that as long as I paid at least the minimum then I would still be given the green light by some/most lenders.

I do have a good job too, twice the national average so I would have assumed that this level of debt would not be considered too much.

I feel like someone who is in arrears even though I never have been, does anyone have advice how I could improve it please?

[Deleted User]

Defintely start paying above the minimum on the cards. This is seen negatively by many lenders.

And it sounds as if you need to get the balnces down. Anecdotally, it's recommended you don't use more than 50% of your vailable credit.

High utilisation combined with minimum payments can make you look a bit desperate.