Do Estate Agents Do a Credit Check?

The property market can be stressful to deal with. From finding the right property to worrying about credit checks, it’s understandable why so many aspiring tenants and homeowners feel overwhelmed while looking for a home.

Regardless of whether you’re renting or buying, it’s common to wonder if your chosen estate agent will perform a credit check. To find out more about who performs credit checks and why they’re important, continue reading.

What is a Credit Check?

What is a credit check? A credit check is something that’s conducted to find out how you’ve managed money or credit previously. These checks are beneficial as part of the house hunting process especially, by allowing people like landlords to find out if you’re trustworthy and good at managing your finances, as well as making rent payments on time.

Having a good credit score is key, especially when it comes to renting or buying a property. A credit report gives insight into your borrowing history, which then helps decipher whether you’re reliable with money.

When it comes to property, having a great credit score can be most beneficial, giving you a higher chance of being accepted by either a mortgage lender or landlord. A bad credit score minimises your chances of acceptance, showing you to be at a higher risk compared to other individuals with better credit scores.

Who Might Check Your Credit History?

Your credit report is usually held by a credit reference agency (usually three credit reference agencies in the UK). Several companies might look at the data on your credit accounts, especially if you’ve applied for a mortgage with them.

Additionally, landlords will often want to conduct tenant credit checks before renting their property to you to ensure you can keep up with payments promptly. However, both landlords and letting agents need your permission to do so first, whereas some companies don’t.

Landlords and letting agents deal with rental properties and estate agents deal with property sales. Most parties involved in the process of securing a property, whether it be a rental or not, can ask for a credit check. So yes, estate agents will likely want to run credit checks on potential buyers. Again, they would need your permission to do so.

The Importance of Credit Checks

There are numerous reasons why credit checks are important. Whether you’re looking to rent a property or buy one, having a good credit score will likely put you ahead in the process of being approved while proving your reliability. Let’s take a look at why checking a credit rating is important for estate agents, mortgage lenders and landlords.

Estate Agents

Typically, some estate agents will want to perform a credit check to ensure that you’ll be able to keep up with payment duties. They’ll also likely want to check that you’re not bankrupt and see whether you’re on the electoral roll.

Mortgage Lenders

Similar to landlords, mortgage lenders like to run credit checks to ensure you’re not a risk and can make payments on time with no issues. Mortgage lenders will often check for any county court judgements, too.

There isn’t a minimum credit score to get a mortgage, but the better your score, the higher your chance of success when it comes to getting a mortgage. If you prove that you’re both a reliable and responsible borrower who can be trusted to pay debt, you’ll have a good chance of acceptance.

Landlords

While renting out properties, landlords have to put trust in their tenants to pay rent on time, among other bills. Failing to pay rent on time can cause a series of issues, for both you and your landlord.

The only way for a landlord to know whether a potential tenant is trustworthy enough to live in their property is by performing a credit check.

Credit checks allow landlords to access their potential tenant’s financial situation, as well as how they’ve dealt with payments in the past. Typically, your potential landlord or letting agent will also request a reference from any previous landlords and ask to see things like:

• Proof of employment
• Letters from your employer
• Recent payslips
• Bank statements

Preparing for a Credit Check

What can you do before a credit check? As we’ve discussed, having good credit is important, especially while looking for a home. Here’s what you can do before having your credit checked:

• Check your own credit score
• Improve or maintain your credit
• Don’t apply for additional credit

Expert Estate Agency Services

On the topic of property, have you recently decided to sell your home? Perhaps it’s time for a change or you need to upsize – either way, you can rest assured that we can help. At Liam Gretton, our expert services help people across the Wirral Peninsula sell and buy homes.

We understand the importance of having a reliable estate agent to work alongside. Our invaluable team of professionals has years of experience in the industry, offering support, guidance, and advice. Our special techniques and bespoke marketing allows your property to be seen promptly.

We put in our all to help clients, from remaining on hand to answer questions at all times to prioritising the appearance of your property during the selling stage. We pick up on the unique features of your home, ensuring they’re shared with a wide audience to give you the best chance of success in selling.

You’ll be pleased to know that Liam Gretton is the only agency on the Wirral that offers you the chance to work with a dedicated agent. This means you’ll have a trusted specialist to help you search for your next home.

We recommend working with one of our buying agents if you require a more detailed and tailored search. To find out more about our services, we encourage you to get in touch today! We look forward to hearing from you soon.