Advice on Improving Credit File - I'm clueless!

BusyBee1983

Hello All

This is my first post, so forgive me if my etiquette is a little off!
Long story short, I have a lot of debt and I'm on a DMP. I have a house with an interest only mortgage £176k, recent valuation at £250k

My DMP is circa £40k and I'm currently paying £340 a month, In about 8-9 months I can increase this hugely to around £900 a month as my husband will be contributing to clear my debt (he's currently clearing his own car loan).

With my creditors, I have defaults registered in early 2013 that I believe will 'drop off' early 2019 (correct me if wrong) and a couple of defaults registered (annoyingly) in 2015 and 2 creditors that show as me late paying constantly.

My questions are thus:

I would like to clear and clean up my credit file so that we can look to potentially move in 4 years. I know this is ambitious but I'd like to know if it is realistic.

How do I best clean my credit file? Should I look to concentrate on clearing the debts that have me as 'late paying' first, followed by the 2015 defaults next so that these accounts become settled and closed? If so, do they still get viewed by credit reference agencies?

Do I look to see if I can release equity to clear the debt as a whole and potentially offer settlements around 60% upwards? I'm unsure about this as I know that I would then be paying interest on the released capital - but it would clear my debt and start my file repair, wouldn't it?

I'm lucky that my DMP with stepchange has ensured that all interest has been stopped.

Any advice is appreciated.

[Deleted User]

Any information on your credit file is available for 6 years.. so even once you clear/settle the debt it will still be on file for 6 years from that date

BusyBee1983

Will it be viewed as negatively if it's settled/cleared, however?

Thrugelmir

Clear the historic issues. Tackle the DMP first.

Set your self sensible manageable stage targets . While maintaining good behaviour. As the one certainty in life is uncertainty. Then time will do the rest,

[Deleted User]

A default will always be viewed negatively. But a settled default looks better than not.

BusyBee1983

Another question, sorry!

How would you all look to proceed? Pay off the DMP equally and fairly to all creditors, or do as I suggested above and pay off the late paying creditors and the more recent defaults first? The others will drop off regardless in early 2019 and even if I pay £900 a month, I won't have cleared the DMP by then.

[Deleted User]

I believe the defaulted accounts you are paying off will drop off 6 years from when you finish paying them off, not from the date the default was issued.

Though someone else here will need to confirm this

BusyBee1983

oh that's interesting...I thought it was from the moment they were first registered as defaulted

[Deleted User]

You may be right..

"A default date will be recorded on the account and it will be kept on your credit report for six years from the default date. After this time it is removed from your report automatically even if the full amount isn’t paid."

Although I'm sure the late payment markers etc. and settlement will still show

[Deleted User]

It's from when the default was registered. Everything relating to the account falls off after 6 years.

Sncjw

Can you release equity on an interest only mortgage. Given you will need to pay the whole mortgage at the end of the term is that feesiable when your currently in debt