Mortgage application

mortage84

Hello 

Myself and my partner will be making a mortgage application for a house within the next 12-24 months. My partner already has a mortgage (for our flat) but I do not. 

Our budget is about 350k, approximately 115k will be from our deposit. My problem is my credit score isn’t great because I haven’t really used any credit. I recently opened a credit building credit card which I spend a few hundred on each month (it has a £1500 limit) and pay it in full via direct debit. 

Please could I have some advice on what else I can do to quickly build up my score. 

geordiejon

someone may shoot me down if i am wrong but i believe mortgage providers don't put much stock in your credit score and use their own criteria. my daughter and her husband have just recieved an offer and they don't have any credit cards or had any loans.

CliveOfIndia

geordiejon said:

someone may shoot me down if i am wrong but i believe mortgage providers don't put much stock in your credit score and use their own criteria.

I'm afraid I must shoot you down in flames, you're wrong to state that they don't put much stock in your score.  In actual fact, they put absolutely zero stock in it - not least because they can't even see it.  This is true of all lenders.  

Lenders do credit score applicants, but it's a tailored score generated by their own internal computer systems, based on the raw data from your credit file, and bears no resemblance to the score you see on your CRA report.

That aside - OP, there is no magical silver bullet to quickly build up a favourable credit history (which is what does matter).  Using a credit-builder card as you're doing is a very good start, and is probably the simplest way.  But any form of credit account (even a mobile phone contract) that is serviced correctly will help.  But please don't take that as a suggestion that you should take out a loan just for the sake of it, or anything like that.

geordiejon

I'm afraid I must shoot you down in flames, you're wrong to state that they don't put much stock in your score.  In actual fact, they put absolutely zero stock in it - not least because they can't even see it.  This is true of all lenders.   

thanks i bow to your knowledge.