poss renegotiate fixed deal

northerner999

I own a two-bed flat, bought new build just over two years ago for £140,000. Mortgage is £106K and fixed at 6.75 with Halifax. I'm 25, single, and have no other debts other than a student loan.

There are almost two years left on the fix, which I agreed in order to get consent to let when I moved abroad (Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates) to take a new job. Rental income covers all but £100 a month of my payments. Other identical flats in the same block sold for £150,000 after I'd bought mine (I bought off-plan), and estimate it's probably worth £130,000 now. I will have no problems ensuring the LTV is below 75 per cent, so long as the valuation of my flat is not substantially less than I guess (Zoopla backs me up, though I know that shouldn't be taken too seriously).

I'd like to look in getting a better deal when I am next in the UK, which will be the end of March. I was just wondering what people think is likely to happen to the mortgage market in the next two months - will rates, on offer be lower than now? I think getting a decent fix would be better for me than a tracker, which is what I'd be looking at.

Thanks in advance

herbiesjp

Is your trip back in March permanent?

Or are then going back to Dubai?

You could have got a far better deal than that with other lenders, even taking into account the consent let scenario.

If you are going back to Dubai - it may well be worth doing the ground work now, so that when March comes, you are ready to move ahead with a deal you like - that is of course if it is worthwhile to do so.

You should talk to a whole of market adviser who has dealt with similar cases before, as if you are going back to Dubai, you need to make sure you are talking to the right lenders from the start

northerner999

Thanks for the response.

I will be back for a month, before returning to Abu Dhabi (Not Dubai, that's just up the road. Sorry, but it's a bugbear when people get it wrong!). The opportunity to come out here came up very quickly, hence why I just went to my lender for consent to lend. I was more concerned with the risk of moving all the way to the Middle East to work for a startup organisation (A newspaper, which thankfully has flourished, and I'm in a dramatically better financial and personal position than I was 13 months ago, so I can be quite philosophical about the higher interest burden I've had). I was previously fixed at four per cent.

Luckily this time I'm more prepared, first step has been reading this board and posting this. I will look at comparison websites. I did not use a broker when I initially bought my flat (I now realise that would have been a good idea), is there any web source anyone can reccomend for identifying good UK brokers? Would these brokers expect any fee for initial, informal, advice over email.

herbiesjp

Not specifically for whole of market brokers

Some would expect a fee and others would not

It depends on who you get in contact with really

dimbo61

You also need to find out what the ERC will cost to leave the Halifax
You will then have to take out a BTL mortgage and prove that you are getting rent of 125% of your interest only mortgage !!!
ie mortgage £400 a month rent £500 a month
Plus all the other costs to move lender
flat needs to be valued ( and you might have to put in some capital to get right LTV )
If you are earning good money in Abu Dhabi would you be better just overpaying the mortgage ( if allowed ) by as much as possible rather than try to remortgage to a BTL mortgage ( with some big fees right now ! )
Only my opinion

Gorgeous_George

You may need to wait two years before changing products. It is unlikely to save you much if you switch to a new 4.5% fixed rate.

I would only consider paying the (ERC) penalty if I was selling. As it is costing you £100 per month despite having a tenant, selling may be the better option. Add into the mix a void or two, some expensive repairs or just the other costs associated with running a BTL and you may well be better advised to get shot before the market turns really bad.

GG