Plan to get mortgage in next few months, should I get credit card to boost credit sco

newtothesethings

Hello all :j ,

Sorry I realised this overlaps with another section from this forum as well..

I have started working since last August as a junior doctor. Never had a credit card before. I'm planning to get a mortgage with Help to buy equity loan scheme within the next few months for a flat costing 150k.

I had a look at my Experian credit score - it's 'Fair' (821) with no positive and 2 negative factors ( 1. not on Electoral Roll - since I move house every few years! 2. no settled credit account )


My questions are:

1) will they accept my mortgage application with basically no credit history?

2) if I try to get a credit card now (eg. Vanquis Bank?), does that give me at least some credit background, and a better deal at mortgage?
and if they reject my credit card application, would that affect my credit score for the worse?

[Deleted User]

Getting a card, using it regularly and paying off in full each month would be a great way to build some history, which is what lenders are looking for.

Nothing wrong with Vanquis or any other sub prime card as long as you use it wisely and don't carry a balance.

Searches can impact how lenders view you (as lots of searches in a short time can make you look desperate for credit, but one or two isn't an issue. The report doesn't show if you have been accepted or declined.

Disregard your score - no one sees this but you, and lenders only look at the information on your report.

eskbanker

newtothesethings wrote: »

not on Electoral Roll - since I move house every few years!

Moving house is no reason not to (re)register on the electoral roll - it isn't difficult and certainly won't harm your chances of getting credit, so that one's easily rectified!

dotdash79

Register on the Electoral roll, get a credit builder card - pay off every month wait 6 months and then look to apply. Don't change phone contracts or get car finance or apply for anything else. You might need to make a couple of mortgage applications so no unnecessary searches in the month prior or during your application.

thebritishbloke

dotdash79 wrote: »

Register on the Electoral roll, get a credit builder card - pay off every month wait 6 months and then look to apply. Don't change phone contracts or get car finance or apply for anything else. You might need to make a couple of mortgage applications so no unnecessary searches in the month prior or during your application.

This. But I'd also add that once you get your credit card, don't do any searches after that if you're looking to apply for a mortgage in the next 6 months.

newtothesethings

thanks guys!

Looks like the mortgage application may come sooner than I imagine - not enough time to start credit building