Why would an estate agent suggest I get a credit card ?

I’m rather surprised that the agent didn’t explain – but there we are! Anyway, this is all about credit rating, which is part and parcel of the process of getting a mortgage. When you apply for any kind of loan – be it a mortgage or anything else – the lender will immediately check your credit score. These scores obviously take a variety of different factors into account – for example, whether your name appears on the electoral role or not. Nevertheless, strange as it may seem, the fact that you are careful with money, and have never had any sort of credit agreements or credit cards before, can actually count against you. Why? Well, basically because credit ratings are calculated by computer, rather than by a human being capable of making common sense judgements - and as far as the computer is concerned, a good credit record is invariably better than no record at all.
So, that’s why it’s not a bad idea to get a credit card, to use it regularly – for all your groceries, for example – and to pay it off in full each month. That way, you get a good credit history (even though you don’t actually need it!), the computer’s happy, and you end up with a higher credit rating – which in turn means that a lender will look even more favourably on your mortgage application. Not that I’m suggesting that you would necessarily have problems in any case. But, particularly at the moment, when first-time buyer mortgages especially can be quite hard to come by, it makes sense to ensure that you tick every conceivable box!
Finally, I should emphasise that this is only good advice for someone like you, who clearly takes a highly responsible attitude towards money matters. It most definitely doesn’t apply to everyone. The last thing any responsible estate agent or mortgage advisor would do is to suggest that everyone who comes through their door looking for a mortgage should start racking up credit card bills!
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