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If you are someone who must opt for a self cert mortgage then you must be sure that you have a good credit score otherwise the chances of securing a loan are slim.

Credit scores are essentially documents of your credit history – a documentation of how well or how badly you handled debt in the past. It shows all your past responsibilities and how often you paid, or missed those debts. It is with this that a lender makes a decision on whether they will lend a borrower a mortgage – and this goes double for those who struggle to prove their income.

But worryingly, more than 10 million people could fail a credit score because they do not have enough credit history or appear on the electoral register, according to Kensington Mortgages.

The survey found that 13% of people have not taken out any financial product since before the year 2000. With credit agencies unable to access data on accounts opened before this date, it means that these six million people may not have enough activity showing on their credit record to pass an automated credit score. In addition, more than four million people do not know for sure whether they are on their local electoral register, which again could seriously hamper their chances of passing a credit score.

This means that over a fifth of the adult population could be prevented from getting a mortgage by lenders that operate rigid automated credit scoring system – many of whom could be self cert mortgage borrowers.

Charles Morley, head of sales and product development at Kensington, says: “Many good borrowers are being prevented from getting a mortgage because their circumstances are slightly more complicated than can be accommodated by an automated credit score."

If you cannot easily prove your income you need to speak to a mortgage professional about how best to get hold of a mortgage. It will certainly mean making sure you have a good credit score, so ask an expert what you have to do to be the best borrower possible in the eyes of a mortgage lender.


SOURCE: Kensington, 18/03/10

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