Gen H will include Experian’s Score Boost data in its credit decisioning in a move designed to help more aspiring homeowners find their place on the property ladder and sooner.
Experian Boost takes into account recurring expenses like Netflix, Spotify or council tax – payments which don’t usually count toward a credit score – as proof of responsible money management to help build users’ credit.
Gen H claims to be one of a few residential mortgage lenders in the market to use this boosted data in its lending decisioning processes. This means more customers below the minimum credit threshold could be able to increase their score enough to buy a home where they couldn’t before.
Customers can sign up with Experian for free to proactively report their regular payments via open banking and Score Boost won’t adversely impact their score.
Peter Docker (pictured), Gen H chief commercial officer, said: “We are working to remove the blockers faced by aspiring homeowners in this country – from income constraints to deposit constraints and now credit constraints – because in this market, buyers need all the help they can get.
“For some aspiring homeowners, Score Boost could be the difference between finally climbing onto the ladder or not. We’re already seeing cases in our pipeline that will benefit from the boosted credit scores. Buyers are commonly told to ‘just cancel Netflix’ to afford a mortgage. We say, don’t cancel it – keep it, report it, and use it to boost your credit.”