Cheapest Two Year Fix

MortgageMamma

Lisy,

I am fully aware of the endowment mis-selling scandal, and my view may be taken the wrong way by some, but I actually feel that this is a natural situation to have occurred in such a complex financial industry, and although many have suffered, and many have sued, and many are still suring, the end result is a more mature industry and the lessons learned have only led to more consumer protection, and even more consumer awareness. And people ARE being compensated where possible.

You are right to increase your own personal financial awareness, and it is your own choice to deal with your own mortgage and financial arrangements, I expect you are sharp and do well, but you may not do as well as what a professional would should you choose to instruct someone (and more importantly, trust).


And your last comment makes me a feel a little sad, that nobody's EVER phoned you and said, your mortgage rates coming to an end let look at another deal, lets review your life assurance, remember last years ISA do you want another one......You must have dealt with some pretty poor firms, any advisor on here will tell you WE ALL diary forward to contact clients in the future, as it's good business sense....

lisyloo

but I actually feel that this is a natural situation to have occurred in such a complex financial industry, and although many have suffered, and many have sued, and many are still suring, the end result is a more mature industry and the lessons learned have only led to more consumer protection, and even more consumer awareness. And people ARE being compensated where possible.

So let me get this right, on the one hand you are saying that people should trust the professionalism, experience and knowledge of the financial services sector but on the other hand they might make some big mistakes with very important financial matters and the client might have to be compensated?
Or did I mis-understand?

but you may not do as well as what a professional would should you choose to instruct someone (and more importantly, trust).

In general I don't believe that's true (in the case of intelligent people who are prepared to put some work in).
A very good mortgage that I had until recently was a direct only on-line offer (alliance & leicester 4.34%).
The best roadside recovery is £32 but is only available direct.
Obviously advisors need to be paid, so sometimes the best deals are available direct.
Anyway the financial service industry cherry picks.
To manage your finances properly you need to be on top of utility bills, ISAs, roadside recovery etc. There are no professionals to help you with these.
If you look on the boards here you will find many complaints about the utlility switching websites.
They are out of date when prices rise and they don't tell you about hidden charges e.g. having indendent pipelines for gas and not transco.
I prefer to be on top of these things myself. It DOES take effort and it's not for everyone. Fortunately I actually enjoy it, so I consider it a hobby rather than a chore.

that nobody's EVER phoned you and said, your mortgage rates coming to an end let look at another deal, lets review your life assurance, remember last years ISA do you want another one......You must have dealt with some pretty poor firms, any advisor on here will tell you WE ALL diary forward to contact clients in the future, as it's good business sense....

I have dealt with a numerous financial advisors as I've had at least 5 different work pensions.
I have NEVER been called proactively and I have never had any help with things that fall outside the "cherry picking zone" e.g. roadside recovery, cash ISAs, savings accounts etc.

Perhaps I have had bad experiences, or perhaps your high personal standards are blinding you to the fact that the rest of the industry isn't quite as good as your are.

BTW - Did you see the "whistle blower" program the other day.
It was mostly about estate agents but there was also a financial firm who illegally shared prsonal financial details with estate agents for mutual financial benefit.

So, it's not all in my mind - it's been on the BBC :-)

BTW - I am considering a career in finance myself. I am not against people making money out of it. I am just against those who don't do a good job.

MortgageMamma

Lisy, regarding the endowments, I'm just saying look at the bigger picture. I am aware that you will come back with a comment about how big the picture actually is, but whats done is done and people are being compensated, if there's ever another mis selling scandal on this scale(which hopefully there won't be) people will be compensated again by providers and advisors alike. I'm not saying this is right, I'm just saying its happened. the past.

Regulation industry wide is now at its tightest ever. A financial advisor or a mortgage broker can't fart without thinking if it's compliant. Professional indemnity premiums are extortionate, external compliance fee's crippling, and a lot of small firms have to work so hard to stay viable, and the penalties for being uncompliant are so severe (including in extreme cases prison sentences) its highly unlikely they would knowingly take chances on mis-advising/selling.

If you do enter the financial services industry it will enlighten you. Like you say there are rogues in every industry but I expect very few in financial services these days. A rogue came to my house last night. tried to fix my computer, said it was fixed and left, walked away with £150.00. Switched it on this morning, still broke, and his mobile phone number is dead. I see your point very clearly indeed.

I personally do have very high standards, I work for myself you see and there's great responsibility and satisfaction in doing that. no targets for me, no pressure so clients get a good service.

The only pressure I have is my dog chewing the office furniture on a regular basis.

HelpWhereIcan

Just to try and add a bit of balance to this. When I started as a financial adviser in 1995, I was sent out to observe how my manager did things. Even then I was shocked at how little resemblance his 'methods' matched what i had been trained to do on courses etc. Therefore, I do believe that endowment mis-selling went on. (whether I believe that everybody who has claimed sucessfully was mis-sold or not is another thing).

Having said that, that Manager (and several other 'top producers') have now been driven out of the industry by increased regulation to do more profitable sales jobs - one I know is now an estate agent :rotfl:

Do not confuse the sometimes poor standards of the past with those of now. The documentation that has to be produced now compared to 5 years ago (in all aspects of Financial Advice) is immense.

lisyloo wrote:

BTW - Did you see the "whistle blower" program the other day.
It was mostly about estate agents but there was also a financial firm who illegally shared prsonal financial details with estate agents for mutual financial benefit.

So, it's not all in my mind - it's been on the BBC :-).

I would also add a note to this - Alexander Hall have now given the BBC time to come up with the evidence that confidential information was passed over before they sue - the BBC has, as yet, to produce any evidence and you may recall that there was no mention of Alexander Hall in the Watchdog follow up programme. I would watch that space before I assumed that it was correct just because the BBC said so. BTW, I spend every day encouraging clients not to use the Estate Agent's adviser - again just looking for balance.

lisyloo wrote:

BTW - I am considering a career in finance myself. I am not against people making money out of it. I am just against those who don't do a good job.

I think you then find out just how strict regulation has become - be prepared to have the last 10 years employment referenced, credit and Criminal Records Bureau checks done. Be prepared to be treated like an idiot before you are let loose on customers unsupervised - Oh and prepare for a great career with loads of paperwork :T

As for the OP - the best deal will depend on your circumstances - post a little more info about the loan you are looking for and your income, equity etc and I am sure that someone will help point you in the right direction.

lisyloo

but whats done is done and people are being compensated

I disagree (surprise, surprise).
For every person that gets compensated there will be at least one who isn't bold, well, clever or enlightened enough to get compensated.
I don't agree it's done and over with.
I think there will be a mis-selling scandal soon about stateside mortgages (where people linked their rate to the US LIBOR).
I thought this was risky and decided not to do it but I can assure you the cases are starting (although not on the same scale as endowments).
I don't think it's done and over with.
I think it's an on-going problem (remember pension mis-selling where people were advised to opt-out of good company pensions in favour of private ones that made more money for advisors).

its highly unlikely they would knowingly take chances on mis-advising/selling

Who said anything about knowingly?
"Never attribute to malice that which can adequately be explained by incompetance" :-)

A rogue came to my house last night. tried to fix my computer, said it was fixed and left, walked away with £150.00.

You don't have to convince me there are rogues in IT.
It's probably much worse than your industry as it's much less regulated.
But more fool you for paying them the money before testing it.

lisyloo

Hi HelpWhereICan,

I agree with your post.
I am not saying that all advisors are bad by any means.
There are always bad apples in any industry, it's next to impossible to get rid of them 100%.

Advisors certainly have their place for people who don't want to do the legwork.

However I do disagree that I can't (after several years of study) do an adequate job for my own needs.
I decided not to take a stateside tracker and I think after 4 years of daily study that I am as well able to make a decision for myself as any advisor (after all I know my own needs best).

FYI - I have an interest only mortgage.
I am overpaying it so that it will be paid off in about half the term.
I went I/O as I prefer my repayments to be voluntary as it gives me more flexibility.
Last year I saved £10K by moneysaving.

Cheers
L

MortgageMamma

It worked perfectly when he left, it was after we'd updated the anti virus and rebooted it went again. anyway, we learn from these things. Perhaps we should get back to the original post and have a separate forum for discussions of this nature. I might even set up a site myself.

HelpWhereIcan

lisyloo wrote:

Hi HelpWhereICan,

I agree with your post.
I am not saying that all advisors are bad by any means.
There are always bad apples in any industry, it's next to impossible to get rid of them 100%.

Advisors certainly have their place for people who don't want to do the legwork.

However I do disagree that I can't (after several years of study) do an adequate job for my own needs.
I decided not to take a stateside tracker and I think after 4 years of daily study that I am as well able to make a decision for myself as any advisor (after all I know my own needs best).

FYI - I have an interest only mortgage.
I am overpaying it so that it will be paid off in about half the term.
I went I/O as I prefer my repayments to be voluntary as it gives me more flexibility.
Last year I saved £10K by moneysaving.

Cheers
L

Thank you for adding some balance to your arguement

pauper79

Thanks for the responses. To clarify, my partner and I are looking for a two year fixed rate interest only mortgage with no extended tie-in. We are looking to spend £300k on a property and have a 10% deposit. We are first time buyers.

Regarding the use of a broker, thanks very much but we are well aware of the advantages and disadvantages of using one. If anyone can leave that point aside and suggest the best deal without using a broker, we'd be very grateful. (And perhaps all you mortgage brokers out there could suggest some good deals which can only be obtained through a broker, then we can all see which is best.)

Thanks

BRI_H

Desp[te advice offerd earlier the nationwide offer of 4.39 doe have a fee of £499. Ive just taken out a halifax mortgage fixed at 4.99 fees free. The halifax also offerd a 4.39 deal but also a£499 fee which with the size of my mortgage wasnt worthwile.