ending a mortgage early, admin costs

Leon_W

Well hopefully this sort of thing should become a thing of the past.

I can't see anywhere where you say WHEN you took this particular mortgage but if it was a little while back then all you would have is a roughish illustration and then a copy of the mortgage offer which could well have a fee hidden in the smallprint.

However, since regulation, and with all illustrations or key features being laid out the way they are, it's impossible NOT to see the fees.

I agree with Noz Poppycat, try and find your original offer documents and complain in writing.

Poppycat

Thanks I have a look although I may not find it now.

Sorry if I sounded off a little just tired, frustrated with home buying and annoyed at all the charges we seem to have to always pay.

kenshaz

Poppycat wrote:

I am buying a new house (not new build) hopefully soon to complete. We have lived in our first house 17 years, never missed a payment, never late. I am having a new mortgage with a different company but I am annoyed that once again companies seem to thing us mear mortals can be fleeced when we changed.

Not content with stamp duty, selling house, searches, solictors, brokers fees (dded to mortgage), new mortgage fee etc I now going to have to pay £175 as Halifax claim "repayment adminstration fee".

I find this rather unreasonable sure I dont mind paying something but £175 for ending a mortgage.

The very same situation confronted us when we paid off our mortgage with Halifax,we got a bill for £175 plus £50 to retrieve the deeds,they are all held electronically by the land registry so dispute that.
The £175 we also disputed,as we considered them unreasonable ,and we created such a fuss,they made errors in dealing with us in their complaints procedure that we had the £175 refunded as a goodwill gesture .Result

The procedure works like this ,if you are unhappy ,it is investigated ,then if you are still unhappy you have the right at Halifax to have it investigated by a Senior manager ,make sure /he/she is Senior let them do it then check if they have fudged you have them ,next step after Senior manager ask for a letter of resolution ,you require this to forward your complaint to the Regulator ,take them all the way it is easy,if every-one did it imagine.

regularsaver1

Poppycat wrote:

I havent ever seen this fee mentioned and even IF it still was, it should still be reasonable, even the FSA have stated this and are at present looking into it. We just seemed to have to put up with it like it or not, well I wont because I think I should have been told from the onset.

Whether the fees were mentioned on the yearly statement is neither here nor there, why wasnt this mentioned to us at the time of applying?

I think you said you took the mortgage 17 years ago? I doubt the fee existed then. They can bring in variable fees I suppose.

Not sure, best to ask and check your offer docs

tillson

If you are paying the mortgage off early, do you have facility within the T&Cs to pay it all off except £1. I have just done this with The Britannia. They wanted £150 discharge fee because I wanted to pay the balance off 11 years early. I asked if I could pay it all off except £1 and have the £1 balance spread on a repayment mortgage over the next 11 years and so not attract the £150 fee. They said that this was something that they, "didn't ecourage". They may not encourage it, but it is certainly something the terms of my mortgage allows for and it is going to happen a week today! When the mortgage concludes naturally in 11 years time it will be discharged without fee.

I would have paid a reasonable admin fee of something between £25 and £50, but £150 is gluttonous! My mortgage deal was through the PMAS arranged with the Britannia, so I don't know if this makes it unique but check your T&Cs to see if you can proceed in this way.:rotfl:

regularsaver1

this will not be possible tillson as poppycat is moving so can not have a charge on a house she/he does not own. That could be a possiblity if poppycat was just repaying mortgage but still living there

Revoraman

Can anyone tell me why is it that the Halifax is seeking a £50 charge from me just to send me my Deeds? I have asked them that as they have not had to go anywhere such as the Land Registry,et al for these Deeds as they were there from the inception of the mortgage 25 years ago,why the £50 charge just to post the Deeds.As expected,no response.When the Branch staff quoted Terms and Conditions,and I challenged them as to who plucked these arbitrary charges from thin air and set a figure,which in effect could be any figure,such as £100 or more,I just got a blank look as if from another planet.

I want to avoid paying this exhorbitant charge merely to post some documents,even if by Registered Post.Can it be avoided,and how?

Thanks

Robert_Sterling_3

Poppycat wrote: »

I now going to have to pay £175 as Halifax claim "repayment adminstration fee".

I find this rather unreasonable sure I dont mind paying something but £175 for ending a mortgage.

a) Blame the government for the Stamp Duty.
In any case the Stamp Duty relates to you new house
and not the one you bought with the aid of the Halifax.

b) I think you must have known about the £175 fee when you first read the terms and conditions of the mortgage 17 years ago.

c) Make sure you read the terms and conditions of your new mortgage.

dunstonh

Can anyone tell me why is it that the Halifax is seeking a £50 charge from me just to send me my Deeds?

seems like quite a fair amount. anything up to £50 is usually considered fair.

why the £50 charge just to post the Deeds.

is that all you think is involved?

When the Branch staff quoted Terms and Conditions,and I challenged them as to who plucked these arbitrary charges from thin air and set a figure,which in effect could be any figure,such as £100 or more,I just got a blank look as if from another planet.

Of course you are going to get that. Most branch staff wont know the reasoning behind fees. They dont have to explain them and they are not taught to explain them.

The deeds will be stored somewhere which will involve multiple individuals, time spent looking for them, getting them, packaging them and posting them as well as recording they are now longer held and they will also include a profit in that fee.

Robert_Sterling_3

If you are storing 4,000,000 sets of deeds it takes a moment or two to pick them out from where they are stored.