Lenders and brokers are steeling themselves for an influx of borrowers looking for new deals to start in October, as their existing mortgages reach the end of their term.
According to Yorkshire Building Society more that £26bn worth of mortgage deals are due to mature in October – the highest monthly volume this year – and borrowers coming out of fixed-term deals will find the mortgage market quite a different place than when they secured their mortgages back in 2014.
Not only are they set to benefit from lower rates than when they fixed five years ago, but they may also find that their property’s appreciation over the past five years will mean that they qualify for a lower, therefore cheaper, loan to value (LTV) band. Data from the Land Registry shows that the average house price has increased by just under 20% since October 2014, which means many borrowers could be in for a surprise when seeking a remortgage deal.
Borrowers could save hundreds of pounds
Yorkshire Building Society says that a homeowner who borrowed £200,000 on an 85% LTV in October 2014 at a market-average fixed rate of 4.25%, could now be looking at a significantly lower 65% LTV and, as an example, a rate of 1.54% on a five-year fixed rate saving them £201 per month in repayments.
Borrowers are advised to start looking now if their deal ends in October. Since it can take up to two weeks for an offer and four weeks for the new mortgage to be processed, starting now means they can avoid being moved onto their lender’s standard variable rate and possibly unnecessarily paying more than they need to, before switching to a new deal.
Charles Mungroo, senior mortgage manager at Yorkshire Building Society, said: “With such a large number of mortgage deals coming to an end in a few months we expect to see a surge in remortgage applications as many homeowners start considering their next steps.
“Borrowers maturing from a five-year fixed rate, in particular, may be pleasantly surprised to see they potentially have more competitive rates available to them now, especially in areas of the UK where house prices have risen.”
