Kaya 959 Reporter
You’ve probably gotten to the stage in your life where renting no longer feels like a convenient option and are considering purchasing a home.
Your credit score is the one thing that can help you secure the funds to buy your dream home.
If you want a good chance of getting a home loan, you need to find out what your credit score is and how you can improve it if necessary.
Kaya Biz with Gugulethu Mfuphi spoke to Eunice Sibiya an Independent Financial Coach to shed light on all things related to your credit score.
LISTEN TO THE FULL CONVERSATION HERE:
Sibiya says our daily transactions are recorded somewhere and this gives institutions an idea of how responsible you are with your finances before they lend you money.
“The way you manage your finances, yields to what you will have access to or not. With regards to home loans, like with everything you want to buy on credit, your credit score is very important.”
“How you obtain a decent credit score is from your credit record, and how you get a good credit record is from your financial management history.”
“Your history comes from all these tricks and trades that we conduct every single day. All the things we do on a daily basis, let us not forget that it will come back to catch up with you.
“Everything you do with your finances is recorded somewhere, all these transactions build up at the credit bureau, and provide a credit history that is then converted into a figure that then becomes your credit score,” says Sibiya.
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In essence, your credit score provides a bank with information about your prior repayment behaviour, allowing them to estimate your risk level and influencing your likelihood of receiving credit approval.
In South Africa, a credit score of 640 is required for a home loan. A credit score of 600 or higher will give you a good chance of getting a home loan, though this will depend on which bank you select.
A credit score of 670 or higher is regarded as outstanding, increasing your chances of getting a home loan.


