Your credit score is a number that’s calculated using your ‘credit history.’ In other words, it’s a number that shows how good you’ve been with money and paying back loans in the past.
Lenders will look at your credit score to work out how likely you are to repay a mortgage if they approve you for one. So, to give yourself the best possible chance of getting a mortgage or any other kind of loan, you’ll want to get your credit score in as good a shape as possible. That means getting yourself up-to-date with your bills, paying off your credit cards and avoiding taking out more loans. You can do it!
To see whether you need to improve your credit score, you can check the Experian, Equifax and TransUnion websites. These three companies provide something called a ‘credit report,’ which is where the information used to calculate your credit score comes from. You can get hold of this for free.
You can also check out our guide to credit scores to find out what score you need to get a mortgage.
Make sure your address is up-to-date on any old accounts, like old credit cards or mobile phone contracts. It sounds simple, but this can make all the difference between a good credit score and a bad one. Trust us, you don’t want to get rejected for a loan because of something so tiny!