Mortgage Advice from fellow contractors

[BlueSharp]

Hi,

Let me start by saying I hope i'm posting in the correct section of the forum! I'm looking to get a mortgage in the next 6 months and I am wondering how to maximise my chances of being accepted for a mortgage as a contractor. The main thing i've been trying to do is build my credit as previously I didn't have any. So far i've registered to vote and gotten an initial Barclaycard ( a entry level card ) from Barclays.

My first questions are how to build my credit with the credit card:

At the moment I have used my credit card very lightly ( limit is 1200 and I have used 125 of that) so:

1. Should I be using my credit card every month for it to make an impact on my score?
2. Should I have the credit card balance cleared before the credit sites such as Experian compile my monthly credit report or is it good to show a bit of debt when they are compiling the report to show I actually use my card?
3. Is it worth applying for another bit of credit such as an overdraft or will this just damage my score instead of improving it?

I also many years ago had a few instances of Wonga loans. These were all payed back on time but i'm aware that that could potentially appear on my credit report. They don't seem to appear there for Experian but I saw them appear in a credit report compiled by Noddle so I guess i'd ideally like to know if the banks would pick up on this and how much of an effect it might have on whether or not the banks will lend to me.

The other thing I was wondering is the current state of your contract. I had a friend apply for a mortgage that only had a couple of months left on his contract and got denied because there was not long enough left on his contract. Typically what would banks like to see in terms of a) how long you've been in your current one and b) how long you have left in your current contract?

Any other tips would be greatly appreciated but I think credit score and contract situation seem to be the biggest influences on getting accepted.

Also i've approached a couple of mortgage brokers already that haven't been too helpful so if anyone has a broker that perhaps specializes in contractor mortgages then I would love to reach out to them.

Many thanks,
Ben

Do you like gladiators?

[swamp]

In the first instance it would be much better if you use a decent mortgage broker.

complete-mortgages.co.uk are very good, but there are others you may want to try.

There are thousands of mortgage products out there. Being a contractor will reduce this to several hundred. Being a contractor with a dodgy credit history will reduce this much further, but there will still be products out there as long as the numbers add up.

ETA: Mortgage brokers have access to deals that are not available to the public.

[northernladyuk]

My advice is not to have a mortgage

HTH

The banks won't lend for a flat above a kebab shop anymore. Particularly with a DFS credit default.

[AtW]

The banks won't lend for a flat above a kebab shop anymore. Particularly with a DFS credit default.

[Hobosapien]

By time you've built up enough credit history to get a mortgage you may have earnt enough through contracting to not need a mortgage or only a small one.

Presume the typical contractor friendly mortgage that takes into account contract rate is aimed more at those working via Ltd rather than say an umbrella where PAYE may come into play?

[SueEllen]

By time you've built up enough credit history to get a mortgage you may have earnt enough through contracting to not need a mortgage or only a small one.

Presume the typical contractor friendly mortgage that takes into account contract rate is aimed more at those working via Ltd rather than say an umbrella where PAYE may come into play?

Not everyone lives in the backend of no-where and has no children.

[barrydidit]

Presume the typical contractor friendly mortgage that takes into account contract rate is aimed more at those working via Ltd rather than say an umbrella where PAYE may come into play?

What you're talking about is how income is assessed, which will be governed by individual lenders policy rules. Like the ones i'm currently mapping for ClientCo Yes, they know the difference between brolly and ltd when it comes to remuneration models but that's unrelated to the products which are offered either via branch, B2C or B2B channels.

Now stop distracting the OP, I think he/she was going to tell us about his/her favourite Gladiator.