Fixed rate mortgage nightmares.

dld2s

"Still do not accept this.

Its a gamble I agree and I made a bad decision. However on balance, I guessed rates may have fluctuated a percentage point or so either way"


Sean, exactly! it was a gamble, you lost this time (as did I) get over it, remember if things change long term you may still be a winner.

TBH I can see why you're a bit p****** of at the way things have gone but can't understand why you think the your bank should renegotiate/let you out of your fixed rate without a penalty, as has been said you wouldn't have gone running to the bank to have it increased if the rates had gone up by the same amount they have gone down, it's a two way street the bank take a gamble, you take a gamble this time the banks win, anyway off to put a pound on the lottery for Wednesday, mmmmm! wonder if my numbers don't come up if camelot will give me my money back

before_hollywood

i bought my place at easter, i'm on 5.84% for 3 years, which then goes to a variable rate which is currently 2.5%

its the best deal i could find at the time, based on current value based on the original survey i am on 72.5% ltv, sure i would like a fixed rate in 2 and a bit years time, but there really isnt anything out there at the moment, i looked for what i will need then, and i tell you something the answer was 'not for the full term' and those with 15 year fixed terms are higher than i am paying now.

getmore4less

sean1881 wrote: »

I dont need a lecture about the 1989 crash. I purchased a flat way back in 1989 and paid those massive interest rates too. The flat cost 40k but after two years was valued at 13k and I was not allowed to sell it without agreeing to pay the lender the balance back in full at a rate of 25 per cent interest and only if the negative equity was paid back to them within 4 years. Please dont tell me about how the lenders carry the can.

After that I swore that I would never buy again, until unfortunately, 3 years ago my partner wanted us to buy a house. Just before another crash!

I am not naive, I think you are just too far bogged down in your bank manager mode to be in touch with what normal people feel about whats been happening over the past year.

I suggest we stop this now before it takes a turn for the worst.
I am entitled to my opinion and so are you but lets leave it like that.

So it is not just experts that you take advice from.

So buying in the first place is someone elses fault as well as you getting a loan on it that you no longer lke because someone said it was a good idea.

uzubairu

tiff wrote: »

We fixed for 15 years in 2006 at 4.89%. I'm happy as a pig in sh...., its a low rate compared to historical rates. My DH almost lost his house in 1989 and went through a terrible time. The peace of mind we have knowing our payments wont change is priceless, it really is. The mortgage is also flexible in that we can overpay as much as we like as long as we leave £1 outstanding. Crazy deal, no doubt, but so glad we took it...

Going on a tracker or dropping to the SVR is always going to be a gamble.
We didn't want to gamble on interest rates given the size of our loan (previous loan was £40K).

We took out a 10 year fix in 2006 (4.79%) and that has given us peace of mind and the ability budget properly and to overpay.
Those were our concerns at the time and a fixed rate solved them, so we don't even think about what the interest rates are because they don't affect us.
We don't have the option of limitless overpayments (£500 max officially), but we can reduce/increase the term whenever we like free of charge and we can get back our overpayments very easily.

I'm certain that in the long term, the fact that we have been able to budget and overpay for the last 3 years (already paid back £27K of the loan), will have saved us a lot of stress/worry, interest and improved our LTV.
We may even be mortgage free by the time the fix ends.

northerner79

People always complain!! It was their decision to take fixed rate, they made the decision for a reason. They bought certainty and eliminated risk from the equation, so now they want the best of both worlds!! So if rates had gone up or been maintained at 5% those who fixed wouldn't have been complaining. Fixed rates work for some but not others, if you are risk averse and need security then a fix is the option, if you are in a position to have changing payments and are prepared to take on some risk then tracker may work! Stop complaining everyone, it is your choice whether to fix or go on a tracker/svr! Enjoy life!

uzubairu

northerner79 wrote: »

People always complain!!
Stop complaining everyone, it is your choice whether to fix or go on a tracker/svr! Enjoy life!

Let them get it off their chest, even if they can't do anything about it, at least they may feel a bit better.

SandC

Well I've been on a tracker for years. Back when most people chose fixed. You know why? Cos when I first got my mortgage if you got a fixed or capped deal you then had a period on SVR, or pay big penalties to get out. When my fixed came to an end and I had to stay on SVR for 3 years my payments doubled overnight. So when I could next get a deal I went for a tracker so I wouldn't get any instant big surprises.

I still couldn't get the best deal because by that point they were lending money like it was going out of fashion and they didn't give a hoot about LTV, but they were bothered about how much you were borrowing. So I could never have found a SVR +0.5% tracker anywhere, because no lenders were particularly interested in anyone borrowing less than £45-£50k.

I now, of course, am a good customer and have much more options, but everything that I have done has been through luck, timing and whatever has been around at the time. I've been on forums 5 years ago where people were saying 'never get a tracker, how stupid is that?'.

They should have never lent like they did - people wouldn't feel so hard done to if they hadn't - and the house prices wouldn't have leapt up so much either. But what is done is done - they are now having to claw back the cash and to do so they must impose penalties for getting out of a deal that folks seemed more than happy with when they took them out.

At least now we have learnt that prices do not keep going up at a swift rate, we should not use equity in our houses as a slush fund and we need to work out the worst case scenario of what we can afford to pay when we take out a mortgage.

benjo

I took a 4.49% 5 year fixed in April this year, I could have taken a tracker which would have saved me £??? per month thus far and perhaps at the end of the 5 years it might have been many thousands of pounds I could have saved. BUT for the next 5 years I dont have to spend a single moment wondering what will happen to interest rates, I dont have to spend a single moment worrying that I cant afford to pay my mortgage if interest rates hit 15% so for me it is a simple calculation....

Fix with no worries and a potential £ loss/gain Vs
Tracker with many worries and a potential £ loss gain.

If I loose out on the fix - it means I loose some money but I will not loose my home.
If I loose out on a tracker - it means I loose some money and I might loose my home which I hope never to leave.

Of course I would prefer to pay less, I would prefer to pay no interest at all, I would have preferred to win the lottery and paid cash - but given that those things dont happen to normal people like me then Im going to take the most risk adverse route possible - doesnt make it right, but it is absolutely right for me.

LizEstelle

I would like to know where all these trackers are that the apologists indicate we are supposed to obtain so easily as an alternative to SVR or fixed.

Where are they?

I would love to get one... but my current lender is conspicuously not offering.

My ailing memory seems to indicate that the Cartel withdrew them in a concerted rush a year ago...

getmore4less

LizEstelle wrote: »

I would like to know where all these trackers are that the apologists indicate we are supposed to obtain so easily as an alternative to SVR or fixed.

Where are they?

I would love to get one... but my current lender is conspicuously not offering.

My ailing memory seems to indicate that the Cartel withdrew them in a concerted rush a year ago...

First direct have 3 with various fees and LTV requirements
base + 2.64%
base + 2.29%
base + 2.99%

Barclays have a loads, some fixed with tracker(on barclays base rate with has trcked BOE base) followons
http://www.personal.barclays.co.uk/PFS/A/Content/Files/Core_rates-020909.pdf

how about 2y fix at 4.19% tracker base+ 1.49% £499 fee