What credit score do you need for a mortgage? The UK test
The FCA's mortgage rule sets an affordability test, not a score. We read it beside Experian's, TransUnion's and Equifax's scales, which do not agree.
Loan Herald — UK borrowing, without the sales pitch
The latest
Why does my loan settlement figure include 58 days interest?
Settlement figures run above the balance because lenders may add up to 58 days' interest. Five lenders' own wording side by side, and the clause priced.
Why was I offered a higher APR than the representative APR?
The advertised rate is a marketing-rule figure, not your quote. We read FCA rule CONC 3.5 and two live loan pages to show why your APR came out higher.
Subject to status loan meaning: the lender checks you first
Subject to status means no approval yet: a UK lender checks your age, income, credit file and affordability before deciding to lend and at what rate.
Klarna and Clearpay after regulation day, assessed on what each now says about its own permission
Two buy-now-pay-later documents reissued on the day deferred payment credit became regulated. One tells you which agreement governs you; the other tells you what permission it holds. Neither tells you both.
Bailiff firms will need ECB accreditation — announced, not yet in force
The government has announced mandatory Enforcement Conduct Board accreditation for private bailiffs in England and Wales. It is an announcement, not yet a rule, and the ECB remains a voluntary body.
CreditLadder, assessed: what reporting your rent to three agencies does, and what the contract says it cannot
A rent-reporting service whose front page promises an improved credit file and whose terms promise a record that may cut either way. Assessed on the published documents, not the proposition.
Later life lending grew on the year; lifetime mortgages did not
New loans to older borrowers rose 13.4% year on year in the second quarter, on UK Finance's figures. The lifetime mortgage line inside that total moved the other way.
Monzo vs Zopa Personal Loan: APR, Limits and Exit Fees
Monzo vs Zopa personal loan: Monzo's 23.0% APR to £10k (10.0% to £35k), no early fees; Zopa's £1k-£50k soft quote and its early repayment rules.
Registered with the FCA is not the same as authorised by it
Two phrases that appear in lenders' footers and are read as the same thing. Assessed on what each genuinely tells a borrower, and how to settle the question without trusting a footer.
Motor finance redress is partly suspended while the challenge is heard
The regulator says firms need not calculate or pay compensation for now. What that changes for a complaint already lodged, and what it does not.
Credit-builder products, assessed
Cards and accounts sold on the promise of improving a credit file. Assessed on what they demonstrably do, what they cost, and who they are actually for.
Soft-search eligibility checks are useful — and widely misunderstood
An eligibility check will not damage your credit file. It also does not commit a lender to anything, and the percentage it shows you is not a promise.
The UK personal loan, assessed from the cost of credit outward
The most conventional borrowing product on the British market, assessed on disclosure quality, exit terms and what the advertised rate does not tell an applicant.
Representative APR still misleads more than it informs
The advertised rate must be available to just over half of successful applicants. Almost everyone reads it as the rate they will be offered.