Credit score - clearscore

alex2003

Hi , hello...
I'm new to this credit score thing. i was told by my barclays bank that i should get one to get the best deal for a mortgage, so after a quick search set on clearscore.
I am looking at the result , 481 . is it good / bad ? I am looking on youtube people saying , oh get over 800, my scale only goes up to 700 so how is this working?

[Deleted User]

It's neither good nor bad.  Credit scores aren't used in the UK. 

The videos you're watching will probably be American and will be talking about Experian, who use a different scale.  All the CRAs have different scales and different ways of making up a number for you.

Look at the data on each of your files. We can then advise whether there is any action you need to take.  

skinnish

you can use the free trail at checkmyfile (cancel as soon as you first login to ensure you're not charged after trial ends) to see data from all three agencies, which are experian, equifax and transunion. all 3 have different scales which like zx said are irrelevant when a lender is doing a credit search. I've had people with a top credit score get declined for credit and someone with a lower score get accepted. lenders look at the information in your file such as electoral roll, payment history, defaults and repossessions and hard searches rather than the score itself.

D3xt3r5L4b

Or just sign up to the MSE Credit Club, Credit Karma and ClearScore.

Forget CheckMyFile. 

Fighter1986

Your bank might have used slightly the wrong wording.

It's worth checking your credit FILES -

Scrutinise your account history, search history, electoral roll data, and court judgement data to make sure there are no errors. If there are, write to the company who made the error to have it corrected.

Checking your credit score doesn't help you get the best deal for a mortgage.

Speaking to a good, experienced all-of-market  broker like London & Country, will.

I'm bewildered also why your bank wouldn't be trying to sell you their own mortgage?

Sounds like you were given some iffy advice by a newbie. 

alex2003

@Fighter1986
Hi Thanks for the advice! We were discussing about what deposit % do I have , how much I can borrow based on my income , bills(0) , dependants (0) , he showed me a list of mortgage deals , and asked me what is my credit score, to which I replied that I have not done it before. He told me that banks would be able to offer better deals based how how big is the credit score and that I should get one done , listed a few names of apps , forgot them by the time I was out the door so I tried looking up for credit score apps at home and this came among the top results. 
search history - no idea what is that. I assume it's looking for missed payments? can't have those , don't even have bills on my bank account. all the bills go to my partner , I pay the gas/groceries/anything not bill related. I do have one ebay payment (the first sale ) on which I didn't realise I had to set auto-payment , I thought the commission showing on the paypal account was the ebay fee, that was actually the paypal's fee. Woke up with a letter telling me i will get a visit from a debt collector (I assume that will be the repo man) for a mere 20 quid. 
electoral roll data - enrolled but not eligible to vote as I am not a british citizen yet , at least for the next 2 years . although i find it funny they called me to jury duty.
errors - I will have a look into it. 
Note: the "2003" is related to the year I made the yahoo account linked to this account , I just noticed as this may be confusing why i am asking for a mortgage at 17yo. I am actually 29.

Fighter1986

alex2003 said:

@Fighter1986
He told me that banks would be able to offer better deals based how how big is the credit score and that I should get one 

This I'm afraid is where his advice falls apart. He has a limited understanding of how credit scoring works.

The score you see on clearscore is a number based on a scoring technique Clearscore devised. It's derived from their weightings of certain aspects of your credit files.

All lenders create their own credit scoring techniques and have their own weightings of importance of different aspects of your credit report, lifestyle, and other information you provided on your credit application form.

Knowing a number generated by Clearscore won't help you choose a mortgage at all - because this number isn't representative of the number a lender will come up with when they assess you their own way.

Nationwide for example will consider income from a temporary job as long as you've been continually employed for 12 months. Other lenders won't. Others have preference as to the kind of property they want to lend against. Some won't lend to people in certain occupations. For some lenders having a limited credit history is a big issue, to others it isn't. Some might frown upon you having applied for quite a few credit scored accounts in the last 12 months, others won't.

Forget the number, and instead, start to learn how lenders judge a potential borrower. They want to see evidence of:

Stability - having been with your bank, employer, and at the same address for several years
Low levels of debt especially when compared against your income
History of paying accounts on time - mobile phone, landline, credit card, loan
No signs of debt stress - the biggest are more than one or two applications for credit in any six month period, and frequent use of any overdraft facility. Never use an overdraft, and apply for three or fewer credit scored accounts in any 12 month period and you're golden on this front
Not using more than 50% of your available credit on any lines of credit you might have

If you tick all of the above boxes, you're going to look great to any lender.

If you don't have any history of borrowing and repaying debt it's going to be worth your while taking out a credit card and using it just a little, and clearing the balance in full each month. Over the years this will build a very positive credit history and make a mortgage underwriter more comfortable lending to you, especially if you want to borrow close to your maximum affordability on a mortgage or have a small deposit.

I hope this clears things up.