10-year fixed-rate mortgages have been reducing significantly in cost, and for the first time in the UK, it’s now possible to get a pretty competitive rate fixed for ten years. But the big question is should you get one?
Question 1: Is a fixed rate even appropriate for you?
Forget ten years. Should you even have a fixed-rate mortgage?
Lots of people get caught out by significant early repayment penalties due to not properly considering the question of their long-term plans before buying.
Will you be moving home, repaying large balances early, hoping to raise significant additional finance from the property or could you be eligible for better deals in the short term if your circumstances improve?
Before considering a fixed-rate mortgage, look at our guide to fixed-rate products and see how they work versus other rates. Pay real consideration to whether the points above could leave you paying redemption penalties of many thousands of pounds.
You should speak to an independent mortgage broker like us as well.
Question 2: Will fixing for ten years be competitive long term?
If you had a crystal ball, you could answer this question, but no one can see into the future.
When a lender prices a product, it’s either based on the cost of borrowing that money from another bank or investor and turning it into mortgages, or on the expected interest rate they will pay to their depositors over that time.
So the simple fact is that a fixed-rate mortgage will be priced based on the expectations of what will happen to interest rates over the term & the lender will expect to profit.
That means the current glut of competitive long-term fixed deals indicates that the banks expect a prolonged period of relatively low-interest rates in the UK well into the future.
So like odds given by bookies, most banks will not expect average interest rates over the fixed period to be higher than the rate they are offering you. So you are in effect betting against the bank, but they have been known to be quite spectacularly wrong in the past.
The smaller your mortgage though, and the shorter the remaining term (for someone on a repayment or capital and interest mortgage) the less differences in rate will impact the long-term cost.
Because of this, for each loan, there will come a point as the remaining term decreases when small differences in rates are outweighed by the repeated fees involved in refinancing a mortgage, and changing products regularly offers poor value for money.
This is very case-specific, but once your mortgage reaches that point the potential downsides of long-term fixes may become insignificant.
Question 3: So, who should take a 10-year fixed-rate mortgage?
If you are concerned about increases in costs, have no circumstances that might better suit variable rates, and are sure that the early repayment penalties won’t be likely to cause an issue, then you need to decide whether you feel it’s worthwhile gambling long term and risk paying more than you might need to, or whether to take a short-term product in the hope that you can secure another competitive rate again in a few years.
This decision is mainly going to come down to the margin between short-term fixed rates and long term ones. Also, the probability that changes to your circumstances make better deals available to you in the short term (such as better income making more competitive lenders available, or works to a property decreasing your loan to value), and whether you feel the additional cost is good value for the extra security.
A mortgage advisor such as ourselves will discuss your circumstances with you and give guidance on whether a fixed product is more appropriate for you. If a fixed rate is the best option for you, but it comes down purely to a decision between long and short-term deals then this is very much a decision best made by the customer, but at least we can present you with the best options available over the different periods so you can make a more informed decision between them.
If you’d like to know what the best deals available to you both in the short and long term could be then complete our enquiry form and an advisor will contact you, to discuss your options and provide you with advice.
If you have been considering fixing your mortgage by remortgaging to a new deal, then now might be the prime time to do it.
Fixed-rate mortgages have been dropping steadily for several months with the expectation that interest rates in the UK will remain low in the long term.
However, the downgrading of several major banking groups in the UK by the rating agency Moody’s last week is likely to put pressure on the big UK mortgage lenders to increase the cost of these deals.
It could be a flash in the pan, rates were beginning to rise early this year when the economic outlook was less gloomy, but the effects of the Tsunami in Japan and the subsequent concerns over the Eurozone were enough to revert the trend.
What is certain, though, is that there are fixed-rate mortgages available which are several per cent lower than the average mortgage interest rate paid by borrowers over the last 25 years; so if you are concerned by the possibility of higher rates and don’t have too much to lose by switching to a fixed-rate deal; there have certainly been far worse times to take a fixed rate.
Probably the biggest mortgage-related question on everyone’s lips is whether to fix their mortgage and at present, it is certainly difficult to predict future interest rates.
I can remember a conversation with a client almost 18 months ago where media coverage suggested interest rates were going to shoot up, and they were worried the tracker product I had recommended might become very expensive.
In my opinion, whether to fix your interest rate or not is a two-part question. Firstly consider your attitude to risk and the severity of that risk.
If you have ample income to afford higher rates, it comes down to your preference of whether to gamble on variable-type products. But, if you cannot afford for your mortgage payments to go above current figures, you should not only be considering a fixed rate but also trying to reduce your borrowing levels asap.
The second part of the answer comes down to the difference between fixed rates and variable products. If the difference between a suitable variable product and fixed deals is relatively low, even if you are a risk taker, it may be worth opting for a fixed rate. However, with bigger differences, it becomes harder to say.
Let us compare a 5-year deal currently on offer with one lender of 6.49% with a 25% deposit to their 2-year fixed and 18month tracker product; this is 3-4% higher, and that means the chances of it being good value for money long term are much lower as it would require average interest rates over the next five years to be over 5% or so.
That is a significant increase from current rates, so I would only recommend a fixed in this scenario to someone on the borderline of what they could afford and needing absolute long-term security.
Many lenders are touting products with an option to switch to a fixed deal at a later date; without early repayment charges. But for those who would be at serious risk of being unable to afford their mortgage if rates went up, this is likely to be a poor option, as the fixed deals available at the time are likely to be higher then as well.
It remains likely that while interest rates must increase at some point, overall market competition will do too, and to some extent, increases in bank base rates are likely to be met with at least some reduction in lenders’ margins.
Current two-year fixed deals come with an average margin of about 3% over the bank base rate, which would have been unthinkable three years ago, so at some point, slowly but surely, these differences must be eroded by competition as the market improves.
The Woolwich announced several new fixed-rate products yesterday, which herald the return of low-fee, low-rate mortgage products to the market, and are a pivotal moment in the UK’s turn from recession to recovery.
The rates, which include a two-year fixed at 3.89% available up to 70% loan-to-value, and 4.09% up to 75% loan-to-value, have an application fee of just £199, free valuation and legal work on remortgages or £200 cash back towards legal costs if using your own solicitors. Early repayment charges apply of 3% until 31/01/2012, and APR for both products is 2.8%.
They have also included a three-year fixed product at a similarly competitive rate.
That is a big departure from the glut of products currently offering headline rates with either £995 or even 2% arrangement fees and will kickstart the lending industry back into competitive pricing with more than just on-paper rate cuts.
The products are also available on new purchases and equally competitive in that space, although standard valuation and legal fees will apply on purchases.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage or any other debt secured on it. We do not usually charge a fee for mortgage advice, although you may pay up to 1.5% of the loan amount. Some buy-to-let and commercial loans are not regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Alliance & Leicester announced further rate reductions yesterday on their 75% loan to value two-year fixed rates for new purchases.
The new product, with a £995 arrangement fee and a fixed rate of 4.53%, sits alongside their 4.48% product with a 1% arrangement fee.
The new rate brings them into line with rates from Abbey, but this product could benefit those who have recently gone self-employed or started a business; Alliance & Leicester require only one year of accounts minimum against two from Abbey. It also has a free valuation, much like Abbey’s three-year fix at the same rate.
The move continues the trend of lenders moving their products down to a similar baseline, but with no one currently undercutting the rest of the market, unlike what we have seen with variable rates from HSBC and Woolwich, although; swap rates have not dropped in the same fashion as Three-Month LIBOR which fuelled the reduction in variable rates.
The new rates have an APR of 5.1%, and the reversion rate currently stands at 4.99%. Early repayment charges are 3% of the loan until 31/12/2011, and the lender’s Conveyancing fee is typically £189.
Always consult the Key Facts Illustration before deciding on a mortgage product and seek independent advice. To speak to a mortgage advisor, call 0845 4594490.
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