Remortgages and your credit rating

As with any other area of finance, your credit rating will have an impact on the kinds of remortgage available to you, and importantly, the interest rate you'll be charged if you're accepted.

The good news is that remortgages are readily available to people of nearly all credit ratings, especially if you have some equity in your home.

The security that your home provides means that lenders are more willing to extend finance to people with poorer credit ratings, and so although you will likely struggle to get a deal from a mainstream high street lender, there are many alternatives available.

Your local mortgage advisor will be able to talk you through your options, and of course there are many remortgage providers on the web who cater for people with poor credit and accept online applications.

Common types of bad credit

There are remortgage providers who are happy to accept applications from people with all these circumstances:

• Mortgage arrears
• Credit defaults
• County Court Judgements (CCJs)
• IVA
• Discharged bankrupts
• Self employed with no proof of income or accounts

Note that although deals will be available in these circumstances, the interest rates will naturally be higher than those for 'prime' customers.