Can you get a mortgage without a credit card?

[Camomila]

DH and I are looking to buy our first flat/house this summer or early next year...we've both looked up our credit scores and they are good (6hundred and something out of 7hundred)...but I've never had a credit card...bar one year when I was 18 and needed it to buy flights (payed off straight away and never renewed it).

I also don't have my own phone contract atm..I have done before for years but atm my phone is on a package deal with the house internet as that was the best deal.

Would it be a good idea for me to get a basic credit card and pay it off each month for 6 months? DH thinks yes, I think no (as my credit score is already good). I've tried reading up on the internet but all I can find is information for foreign buyers/people with no credit rating at all as they've been living at home...

...so I've come to ask mumsnet which always knows useful things! :)

No you don’t need one. Mortgage lenders look at your credit history rather than your ‘score’.
As long as your credit history is positive, minimal/no negative markers (defaults,late payments, ccj’s etc) then you will be fine.
Unless you are trying to build/show evidence of positive payment history a CC is not necessary.

Also, your affordability is important. The more credit commitments you have, the lower the amount you can borrow.

Thank you, mine is good/clean luckily - I had to get credit checked for my job

I had a joint mortgage with my ex having never had a credit card. It wasn't an issue.