MortgageScore is the brainchild of online mortgage broker, Mojo Mortgages, and was created in response to large numbers of customers visiting the site who wanted to own their own home but weren’t eligible for a mortgage.
In fact, one in four of the first-time buyers visiting the site would be unable to qualify for a mortgage, yet data shows 51% of 25 to 34 year olds want to own their own home.
So, Mojo set about creating a service to help those people become ‘mortgage ready’ and to bring transparency and openness to a secret market.
How does it work?
MortgageScore, which is due to launch in January, combines information on credit and employment history as well as spending habits, deposits saved and income to provide users with an individual ‘score’.
In what is being described as an ‘evolution of the typical credit score’ it will clearly show customers how their score is calculated, where it’s good and where it’s not so good. And this will give them guidance on how to improve their score.
Mojo said this would be helpful to those borrowers who, if declined for a mortgage, might normally just get a vague reason as to why they had been rejected but little guidance on what to do next.
Richard Hayes, CEO and co-founder of Mojo, added: “At Mojo, we’re on a mission to make the mortgage experience better for everyone. That includes being more transparent and empowering people with information to make the mortgage experience easier.”
Signing up
People can sign-up to MortgageScore now ahead of its January launch to ensure they are first to access the service.
Mojo will be using data obtained through open banking to run this service, and it has joined forces with credit bureau, Credit Kudos, to enable this part of the process.
Freddy Kelly, CEO and co-founder of Credit Kudos, said: “We believe everyone deserves access to fair, affordable credit, whether that’s a loan, a mortgage, or car finance.
“Unfortunately, at the moment, far too many people are being turned down for credit they could afford because lenders are using outdated, inaccurate data to assess affordability.
“We are very excited to partner with Mojo Mortgages on this new service and help millions more first-time buyers get onto the property ladder.”
