Long term mortgage fixing

sea-sea-seasiders

Has anyone any thoughts about mortgage fixing for 10 years?

tinkerbell84

I'm just about to.

lisyloo

I've fixed at 5.99% for 10 years (with First Direct).

There is a risk with anything you do.
There is a risk of paying too much (compared with say a tracker).

My thinking was that it was better to pay too much but still be affordable, than have big rises and them perhaps not be affordable.

I think it depends on your financial situation and attitude to risk.

I am toying with changing to a lifetime tracker as it's reserved but not completed (currently the same rate).
I'm totally 50/50 on it to be honest, but would defnitely go for the fix if money is tight.

tinkerbell84

I've done the first direct 10 year fix at 5.49%. The rate is slightly lower than it is on the current mortgage.

I would have been happy with a 5 year fix, but OH is a contractor and wanted to know that we could afford to pay the mortgage on just my salary. (Would be a sixth of our current take home pay, or just over a third of mine )

We'll be offsetting 30% of the mortgage from day one, and then increasing the savings as much as possible after that. That should reduce the term from 20 years to around 13 (or less) :beer:

So we'll actually be controlling the interest rate by offsetting too.

rachelandgromit

My fixed rate isn't up until November this year, but at just over a month ago I secured a 10 year fix with Principality at 5.99. I agree, it is a gamble, but being on my own I couldn't afford to take a tracker (too risky) and my view is if I can afford it at 5.99% now, I can afford it for 10 years. I needed stability and I'm happy with this.

I have been on 4.99% and I will be paying an extra £50 per month at 5.99% but at least I know where I am and don't have to be worrying about fees again in 2, 3 or 5 years!

Good luck whatever you decide.

monday_blues

i have a 15 year fixed rate with abbey at 5.79% I took this out about 18 months ago whilst rates were still pretty low, and a lot of people thought i was mad. but i dont particularly want to move house again, and if worst came to worst, would probably buy another house, even if cheaper I can port it. may have to pay some penalties but glad i did it as rates much higher now.

straddie

We've just taken a 10 year fix - the peace of mind of not having to worry about interest rates and house prices for the next 10 years is easily worth the slightly higher rate than we'd get with a variable mortgage (and it's still a cheaper rate than all the short term fixes).

With house prices heading south at a hefty rate of knots, locking in for 10 years will shelter you from any complications arising from a reduction in equity. For example, you may be able to get a competitive 2-3 year deal now, but will you be able to get another in 2-3 years time? If prices fall faster than your repayments, or if banks get even more cautious and want higher and higher deposits, you may find you've got yourself into a corner.

Obviously this is based on assumptions and things may well work out differently, or you may have a LTV low enough for this to be a non-issue.