First Credit Card at 31

PRAISETHESUN

Ignore the score/rating. I'd start off by using eligibility checkers to see what you're able to get. I appreciate you might have a card with specific benefits in mind (eg. cashback, airmiles, etc) but when you're starting off building your credit history you realistically have to take whatever you can get.

After a while of demonstrating you can use the first card responsibly you should see that you start to get better offers when you do more eligibility checks (better cards, higher limits, lower APRs, etc). From there you might have a bit more choice to pick cards you actually want.

jbrassy

th081 said:

Genuine question will mortgage company be bothered about use of a credit card and pay back each month. They are more concerned with salary, house value, amount borrowed etc. it's a secured loan at the end of the day.

Yes they will. Every mortgage I've applied for they ask what credit cards I have, whether I have a recurring balance and whether I pay them off in full each month. If you're carrying a balance which attracts interest, then that will affect your affordability score with the bank. I repay my credit cards in full every month and they've told me it's not a problem and I've never been declined a mortgage.

lr1277

Make sure you have the basics in place:

On the electoral roll at the address from which you want to apply for any card

Have some entries in your credit file: this can include a pay monthly mobile phone contract. When I was at a previous address, my water bill was also on my credit file.

I checked my credit file for free using MSE's credit club. Admittedly it is not as good now that its data source is Transunion as compared to when the data source was Experian. The Transunion sourced data doesn't mention the water company entry which the Experian sourced data did. But worth checking anyway.

Your credit file will show that you have a history of borrowing money and paying it off as per the terms of the contract you had. Reward cards tend to have a higher threshold for who gets accepted. That means higher salary and a good history of making payments on time on your credit file.

If your bank offers a credit card, when you have a limited credit file, then your bank is the best place to apply for a card. As suggested above, go to your bank's credit card web page and do an eligibility check. That should give you an idea if the financial institution that know you best will offer you a credit card.

Some credit cards have a minimum income requirement. To get an indication, into google type:

[credit card name] minimum income

th081

jbrassy said:

th081 said:

Genuine question will mortgage company be bothered about use of a credit card and pay back each month. They are more concerned with salary, house value, amount borrowed etc. it's a secured loan at the end of the day.

Yes they will. Every mortgage I've applied for they ask what credit cards I have, whether I have a recurring balance and whether I pay them off in full each month. If you're carrying a balance which attracts interest, then that will affect your affordability score with the bank. I repay my credit cards in full every month and they've told me it's not a problem and I've never been declined a mortgage.

Yes but if you said you have no credit cards and pay by debit card are they going to refuse you a mortgage or will it be harder to get. 

superM

Who do you bank with?  It might be best to apply for credit card with the bank you have current account with.  They might offer you a better deal
 

surreysaver

th081 said:

jbrassy said:

th081 said:

Genuine question will mortgage company be bothered about use of a credit card and pay back each month. They are more concerned with salary, house value, amount borrowed etc. it's a secured loan at the end of the day.

Yes they will. Every mortgage I've applied for they ask what credit cards I have, whether I have a recurring balance and whether I pay them off in full each month. If you're carrying a balance which attracts interest, then that will affect your affordability score with the bank. I repay my credit cards in full every month and they've told me it's not a problem and I've never been declined a mortgage.

Yes but if you said you have no credit cards and pay by debit card are they going to refuse you a mortgage or will it be harder to get. 

You'll probably find your choice of mortgage is more restricted if you don't have much information on your credit files.

GeoffTF

the_tiramisu_tyrant said:

The reason I haven't tried at the place I bank is because I don't want their credit card offered if it's not the most beneficial card out there for me. 

The most beneficial card is the one you are most likely to get with a usable credit limit. Being turned down for lots of cards or getting tiny credit limits will do you no good. Your best bet is a basic card from a high street bank, preferably a bank where you have a well managed current account.