Explainer 03
Affordability checks
The check that looks at your life today instead of your score from years ago.
What it looks at
Your regular income — wages, benefits or pension — against your essential outgoings, to see what's genuinely spare.
Why it beats a score cut-off
A score summarises the past. Affordability asks whether this payment, this month, is comfortable. People with CCJs and defaults pass affordability checks every day.
Soft, not hard
The initial check is a soft search: only you can see it, and it doesn't affect your score.
How to pass it
Be accurate about income and outgoings, pick a payment you'd manage in a tight month, and don't stack several applications at once.
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