Firstly, it is important to understand what causes bad credit:
- Missed payments on credit commitments.
- Late payments on credit commitments.
- Defaults
- County Court Judgements. (CCJ)
- Debt management plans
- Not being on the electoral roll
- Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)
During our initial face-to-face meeting, we will go through your credit report to establish your credit score and/or if you have any of the above reported on your report. This is so there aren’t any nasty surprises at the mortgage in principle stage when the lender will run a credit check on you.
The lenders use either one or a combination of the below credit agencies to facilitate credit checks:
- Experian
- Callcredit
- Equifax
If it is established that either your credit score is too low, or you have any of the above on your credit report then we will have to put together a strategy with what lender to approach as many of the high street lenders demand a near-perfect credit score without any blemishes on your credit report to accept your application. Don’t panic however as there are specialist lenders that we work with that accept applications in this case and we can discuss the best way forward for you.
If now isn’t the right time to proceed then we can put a plan in place for you to improve your credit score so that later an application with either a specialist lender or even a high street lender will be accepted.
For instance, if you have a default or CCJ on your credit report then 6 years after the registered date they will be removed from your credit report meaning an application may now be possible. It is important to disclose anything that may have affected your credit score to us at the earliest opportunity so that we can work out the best possible approach and give you the best advice possible.
Some tips to improve your credit score:
- Make monthly repayments on time.
- Try not to max out credit limits on credit cards/store cards.
- Register for the electoral roll at your place of residence.
- Try not to take out payday loans as they are looked down upon by lenders.
- Don’t submit multiple applications for loans and credit cards in a short period of time.
Again, speak to us today and find out your situation and what the best way forward is. Even if now isn’t the time to move forward with a mortgage application we can give you the tools and information to put yourself in a situation where owning a property with a mortgage is possible in the future.
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