Suzanne Aplin is Group Sales & Marketing Director at award-winning Weston Homes and has been working in the new homes property arena for many years. She has a passionate desire to help first time buyers step on to the property ladder and understands the challenges that many buyers face when purchasing their first home. Weston Homes has helped hundreds of buyers purchase who didn’t think they could. If there is a way, the friendly sales teams at Weston Homes will help you find it.
Question:
I want to buy my first home in 2024 but I am rather confused about what my credit rating might mean to my getting a mortgage. Could you help please?
If your New Year resolution is to buy your first home then you will need a mortgage, and you cannot obtain a mortgage until you have a sound credit rating.
Before a bank or building society will lend money to you, they will look at how much of a risk you are. What they want to know is simple – will you pay them back. Your credit information shows them how you’ve managed credit in the past which helps them predict whether you can afford the repayments.
Your credit history and score is held by a UK credit reference agency. Two of the top ones are Equifax UK and Experian. The latter rate you out of 999 points.
If you haven’t established a credit history, potential lenders can’t see if you are reliable with money. This can lead to your application being refused.
Your credit score is based on several factors including how quickly you pay back money you have borrowed, if you have any outstanding debit, and whether you have missed or late payments.
Good ways to build your credit rating are to:
- open a bank account and prove you are a reliable UK resident with a good relationship with your bank.
- pay off the balance on your credit card in full each month to create a good credit history.
- get a mobile phone contract. This can help you establish credit and if you pay your bills on time it will show potential lenders that you are reliable.
So far so straightforward.
But it is so easy to slip down the credit rating ladder without realising it. In January, after a potentially expensive Christmas, it is tempting to pay your credit card debt late – don’t. This will push you down the credit rating ladder. Your mortgage lender thinks – if you pay your credit card late – that you will probably pay your mortgage payments late.
Renters moving around can find themselves unknowingly holding a bad credit rating because they have not redirected all their bills. For a small payment, with a card registered in your new address, the post office will redirect mail for six months. Even an unpaid parking ticket will get you into trouble.
If you have defaulted on past payments that are creating a bad credit score, with a reasonable 200 word explanation, you can apply to get them removed.
When you move into a new area, always put yourself on the electoral register. It improves your credit rating. Companies use the electoral roll to check you are giving them the correct name and address. Plus it is a sign of reliability and stability.
At Weston Homes, we are here to help you. Speak to one of our Sales Consultants at your preferred development and they can refer you to an independent financial advisor who can give you specialist advice on how to make your move to homeownership, how much deposit you need to save and how much you will need for a mortgage.
Suzanne Aplin is Group Sales & Marketing Director at award-winning Weston Homes and has been working in the new homes property arena for many years. She has a passionate desire to help first-time buyers step onto the property ladder and understands the challenges that many buyers face when purchasing their first home. Weston Homes has helped hundreds of buyers purchase who didn’t think they could. If there is a way, the friendly sales teams at Weston Homes will help you find it.
I want to buy my first home. How can I make sure I can get a mortgage? Everyone’s circumstances are different but the one thing that is consistent is that you cannot obtain a mortgage until you have a sound credit rating. At Weston Homes, we work closely with a range of independent new home mortgage advisers who have provided the following excellent advice.
Before a bank or building society will lend money to you, they will look at how much of a risk you are. What they want to know is simple – will you pay them back? Your credit information shows them how you’ve managed credit in the past, which helps them predict whether you can afford the repayments.
Your credit history and score are held by a UK credit reference agency. Two of the top ones are Equifax UK and Experian. The latter rates you out of 999 points.
If you haven’t established a credit history, potential lenders can’t see if you are reliable with money. This can lead to your application being refused.
Your credit score is based on several factors including how quickly you pay back money you have borrowed, if you have any outstanding debt, and whether you have missed or late payments.
Good ways to build your credit rating are to:
- Open a bank account and prove you are a reliable UK resident with a good relationship with your bank.
- Pay off the balance on your credit card in full each month to create a good credit history.
- Get a mobile phone contract. This can help you establish credit and if you pay your bills on time, it will show potential lenders that you are reliable.
But it is so easy to slip down the credit rating ladder without realizing it. In January, after a potentially expensive Christmas, it is tempting to pay your credit card debt late – don’t. This will push you down the credit rating ladder. Your mortgage lender thinks – if you pay your credit card late – that you will probably pay your mortgage payments late as well. Renters moving around can find themselves unknowingly holding a bad credit rating because they have not redirected all their bills. For a small payment, with a card registered in your new address, the Post Office will redirect mail for six months. Even an unpaid parking ticket will get you into trouble. If you have defaulted on past payments that are creating a bad credit score, with a reasonable 200-word explanation you can apply to get them removed.
When you move into a new area, always put yourself on the electoral register as it improves your credit rating. Companies use the electoral roll to check you are giving them the correct name and address. Plus, it is a sign of reliability and stability. At Weston Homes, we are here to help you. Speak to one of our Sales Consultants at your preferred development, and they can refer you to an independent financial adviser who can give you specialist advice on how to make your move to homeownership, how much deposit you need to save and how much you will need for a mortgage.
A sustainable lifestyle, for this generation and the next, is the wish of all young homebuyers. And the new home location that fulfills that wish is Abbey Quay, one of the most exciting regeneration programs for 2024 that is transforming old industrial Barking into a sustainable neighborhood. Weston Homes won the prestigious 2023 WhatHouse? Gold Award for the Best Sustainable Development across the country, for its £350m, six-acre urban village Abbey Quay in Barking. This fine-looking collection of 1,089 apartments of one, two, and three bedrooms sit within a design that will include 22,281 sq ft of commercial and leisure space. Mindful of commuting costs, it is a short walk to transport links and a fast commute into the City, with the town’s new combined heat and power plant providing eco-efficient hot water and heating for the development.
Abbey Quay is an innovative scheme that reflects the core values of family-run Weston Homes and its MD Bob Weston, who builds with a passion for the welfare of his buyers, green energy use, and sustainable living. To ensure the high quality of every stage of the build, Bob has created two multi-million-pound high-tech factories to deliver a low-carbon building solution for Weston Homes’ properties. Every detail of the build is considered, from the walls and photovoltaic roofs to thermally efficient windows and doors, high-tech low water consumption fittings in luxury bathrooms, heating systems, and insulation − so efficient that even on winter nights little heating is needed. Wide floor-to-ceiling windows create maximum light to lift the mood and open to spacious balconies for outside living.
This is an award that’s well deserved for a company that is building for future generations. Discount Market Sale* homes with a 20% saving start from £261,500. Private sale homes start from £331,000. Save up to £20,000 for a limited period.** Visit www.weston-homes.com/abbey-quay for details.
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Featured Property
A sustainable lifestyle, for this generation and the next, is the wish of all young home buyers for 2024. And the new home location that fulfils that wish is Weston Homes in Barking, one of the most exciting regeneration programmes for 2024 that is transforming old industrial Barking into a sustainable neighbourhood.
Weston Homes won the prestigious 2023 WhatHouse? Gold Award for the Best Sustainable Development across the country, for their £350 million six-acre urban village Abbey Quay in Barking. This fine-looking collection of 1,089 apartments of one, two and three bedrooms, sits within a design that will include 22,281 sq ft of commercial and leisure space. Mindful of commuting costs, it is a short walk to transport links and a fast commute into the City, with the town’s new combined heat and power plant providing eco-efficient hot water and heating for the development.
Abbey Quay is an innovative scheme that reflects the core values of family-run Weston Homes and their MD Bob Weston, who builds with a passion for the welfare of his buyers, green energy use and sustainable living.
To ensure the high quality of every stage of build Bob has created two multi-million high tech factories to deliver a low carbon building solution for the Weston Homes properties. Every detail of the build is considered, from the walls and photovoltaic roofs to thermally efficient windows, doors, high tech low consumption water use in luxury bathrooms and heating systems and insulation – so efficient that even on winter nights little heating is needed. Wide floor-to-ceiling windows create maximum light to lift the mood and open onto spacious balconies for outside living.
This is an award well deserved for a company that is building for future generations.
Abbey Quay offers a range of one and two bedroom apartments. Discount Market Sale* homes with a 20% saving start from £261,500. Private sale homes start from £331,000. To book your private viewing call 02039 304 881, or visit weston-homes.com. Marketing suites and show homes are open daily from 10am to 5pm. A collection of shared ownership homes will be launching in 2024, for further details register at weston-homes.com/abbey-quay.
*Price includes saving. Eligibility criteria applies, speak to a Sales Consultant for details.
