Standard Life Whas going about the last rate cut and this one??

leicsmark

"We can confirm that our Freestyle Standard Variable Rate will reduce from 5.54% to 5.34% with effect from 5 March 2009."

This is now one of the highest SVRs on the market.

I am very concerned because I had a 90% LTV mortgage in 2007 so I assume that this has all gone by now (Whitstable) and a 6% fix which expires in July. I know that I will be paying less interest but since I have no possibility of moving lender I will be stuck with whatever Standard Life decide to do in the future.

It seems very unfair that so many other people, just by fluke of being with a different lender with a lowered SVR, are able to save a lot of money in interest and pay off so much more of their outstanding balance each month.

Does anyone know the reason that Standard Life have decided to make such small a cut. It is blatant profiteering or are they in trouble?

leicsmark

In addition to this, looking at their range of new mortgages on offer they are clearly so uncompetitive that its obvious they are not trying to get any new customers.

Would the advice to me be to pay off as much as possible as quickly as possible?

moneyexpertiwish

ricky_south wrote: »

http://www.standardlife.co.uk/content/myfreestyle/reduce/offsetting.html


on there website its says "or example, if you have a mortgage balance of £160,000 and an Offset Reserve of £20,000 you only pay interest on £140,000."

they could not miss-sell the product more if they tried. this is so incorrect it is unbelievable they can be so arrogant to explain their offset as working in such a way when it does not. the interest earnt on the money within the offset goes towards paying off the loan amount. you still pay interest on the full loan amount.

and the FSA can't do nothing about it.
standard life = taking all you money so you can have a sub-standard life.

ricky

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

You are one funny person.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

If they only charge you interest every month on £140,000 then what they are saying is correct. The reason the FSA can't do anything about it is because it is accurate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

sabretoothtigger

Only had a quick look but by my reckoning that would make an effective rate of interest of 6.84% to a basic rate tax payer

Thats well above what you could get in a normal savings account it seems like. A good deal?

If you got in trouble, you could take the money from the offset and use it for mortgage payments. Great idea and safety margin to have

virgin one mortgage account operates like this or better?

leicsmark

"We can confirm that our Freestyle Standard Variable Rate will remain at 5.34% following the Bank of England base rate announcement on 5 March 2009."

I can't believe it will be kept so high. There is no way I will be able to leave them due to what i imagine to be high LTV or even negative equity now. I'm overpaying by £300 pounds per month (£1300 monthly payment) but feel so annoyed that I am wasting hundreds in interest. I feel like i'll never be able to leave them or pay it off.

They are offering a "great" deal of a fix of 6.7% for 3 years for anyone with up to 75% LTV. Its such a bad deal they are clearly trying to abandon mortages alltogether. Who would take them up on that?

(i know this SVR rate is historically low but its high relative to the majority of other mortgages others are on which makes it frustrating).

sparkey1

Its greedy and it is unfair. The trouble is that unless people complain we aren't going to get anywhere. Libor is below 1% so whats their excuse? Their savings rates are not exactly market leading. Their mortgage enquiry number number is 0131 245 5556. They could have least met us half way with a quarter point cut.

jayencee

I have a BTL with standard life and would quite happily walk away from them if I could find a good rate elsewhere. Anyone know of any good BTL rates for about 50% LTV?

supanova_2

why dont we start a facebook page naming and shaming standard life, letting everyone know about there antics and see how many members we can get!

chris

moneyexpertiwish

I suspect that SL are trying to reduce the size of their mortgage book so that it's more in line with their wholesale savings.

A quick look at their new business rates would also suggest this as their products are not very competitive.

It's not great for people who are stuck on high LTVs or those who have high ERCs. SL is under no obligation to pass on BoE rate changes to customer unless you have a tracker mortgage.

ricky_south

moneyexpertiwish wrote: »

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

You are one funny person.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

If they only charge you interest every month on £140,000 then what they are saying is correct. The reason the FSA can't do anything about it is because it is accurate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

They don't charge intrest on £140,000 but the full mortgaged amount. the money in the offset reduces the term not the monthly repayments (calculated yearly).
this is why the product is mis-sold. Sorry i did not make that clearer.

not that anyone in their right mind would get a mortgage with them at their current rates.

I am just bitter due to being misled in choosing their offset over the woolwich offset mortgage. if i made the right choise by being given the correct info on the product i would be on a intrest rate of 0.9% now instead i am on about 5.3% without being able to offset my savings.
not only that by now I only have about 15% equity in the property and now i am on a self cert bases plus I am due to come out of my redemtion period in july.
I would loved to tell them to go f%$ themselves and go another lender but it looks like i am going to be trapped being a customer of a rapist Known as standard life.
they should have a advert saying ''doing what we can to help deepen the recession''.