Remortgage Help - Nationwide vs Woolwich

MarkyMarkD

peterg1965 wrote:

If it were a straight choice between Woolwich and Nationwide, then the Nationwide wins by a mile. It is not a bank for starters and has historically offered better rates and customer service and is also considerably better in many other respects.

Nice sentiments, peter, but absolutely no basis in fact.

OK, Nationwide are a mutual. But their rate on this product is inferior to Woolwich's, the fees are the same, and Nationwide's repayment penalties make it hugely inferior.

As the product is a lifetime tracker, historically offering better rates is completely irrelevant - customers KNOW what rate they will pay (as a margin against an independently-set BBR) for the whole of the rest of their mortgage account's life.

I am not going to argue with your views about customer service. I don't know how Nationwide or Woolwich are. But for most people, quality of service on their mortgage isn't as important as saving a substantial amount of money.

mhay_3

i'd still like to know why you are so interested in a lifetime tracker, when you are closely looking at the deal exit charges!

UK007BullDog

I used to say that Woolwich was very poor in their admin and processing. However they have really ramped up and we had an offer in within 24 hours. That was amazing and they are really pulling out all stops. If they get all the info at application they promisse to have the offer out within 10 days.

Grabbit_2

I would recommend you check the wording on the woolwich/barclays rate. If it is a Woolwich barclays BANK OF ENGLAND base rate tracker this is different from a Woolwich Barclays base rate tracker. In my experience the woolwich barclays rate has no relationship to the prevailing bank of endland base rate other than being slower to go down when the BOE rate goes down and being very fast to go up when the BOE rate goes up.
If it is a BOE base rate tracker then they have no option but to honestly track the BOE rate so the rate issue it just becomes a matter of which is the lower rate above the BOE rate.

In addition, the charges and exit fees are more for the barclays products. Also the nationwide mortgage allows you to overpay by up to £500 a month which if you have a strategy of not owing anybody for a minute longer than you want to is a good thing.

In my experience Woolwich missold me an endowment and ripped me off when I closed it by a Mortgage exit fee. (subsequently reclaimed). Their customer support is diabolocal and this is correct up to this very afternoon.

I am now a happy nationwide customer with a company that works for it's customers because they own it as opposed to uses their customers as a profit opportunity.

firey-dragon6666

Thanks for the comments folk! It's quite a split of opinion, but I think I'll plump for ING and then switch to either Nationwide/Woolwich when ING's rate inevitably goes up to BoE + 0.9 Good strategy? If Woolwich pull their offer, at least Nationwide's should still be around.

Grabbit_2

firey-dragon6666 wrote:

Thanks for the comments folk! It's quite a split of opinion, but I think I'll plump for ING and then switch to either Nationwide/Woolwich when ING's rate inevitably goes up to BoE + 0.9 Good strategy? If Woolwich pull their offer, at least Nationwide's should still be around.

While they all look different the only one you know where you will be is the nationwide.
Woolwich = Barclays Bank Base rate (whatever that may be plus 0.23%)
ING = less than 0.9% above the Bank of England Base Rate
Nationwide = BOE rate plus 0.24% (not sure where you got 0.34% from)

The 0.1% difference between barclays is insignificant and if you take into account that Barclays are free to set the BBBR wherever the heck they like (as they have done with the Woolwich standard variable rate in the past) it is no contest in Nationwide's favour in my view.
Looking at ING, I did have a savings account with them but lost faith the minute they dropped the attractive opening offers to become poor payers. While they have an attention grabbing figure today it is unlikely they will for long. Do you really want the hassle of changing mortgage in 3 months time ??
It might be worth calculating the difference between their current 5.14% and the nationwides 5.24% and see the difference in pounds. Then estimate how long before ING put it up and the saving you might make. Then decide which one is good compared to the hassle.

MarkyMarkD

Grabbit

You are talking rubbish about Barclays Base Rate.

All of the clearing banks nominally set their own base rate, but in practice they are all exactly the same as BoE Base Rate and change on the same date.

You are confusing this with Woolwich's or Barclays' Standard Variable Rate, which like any SVR is entirely unrelated to BoE Base Rate and can be set at any level the lender likes.

If you want to use this specious argument to claim that the 0.11% difference over the lifetime of a mortgage is insignificant, then you are welcome to do so, but 0.11% is £110 per year per £100k of loan which most people would consider well significant enough to affect their decision making if they are looking for a lifetime tracker.

I agree with you, though, re the problems with choosing ING and as I've posted previously, choosing their (temporarily attractive) product may lead you to miss out on a good value long-term rate.

Grabbit_2

MarkyMarkD wrote:

All of the clearing banks nominally set their own base rate, but in practice they are all exactly the same as BoE Base Rate and change on the same date.

You are confusing this with Woolwich's or Barclays' Standard Variable Rate, which like any SVR is entirely unrelated to BoE Base Rate and can be set at any level the lender likes.

If I am wrong then I stand corrected. Many years ago I assumed that the base rate was the base rate. I learnt there was a difference after the woolwich SVR was ratcheted up with no relationship to the BOE rate. I still think it is less than transparent that Barclays use the term barclays bank base rate IF they mean the BOE rate. It gives them permission to hike it up if they choose to as opposed to the Nationwides terms that has no room for manoevure.

MarkyMarkD wrote:

If you want to use this specious argument to claim that the 0.11% difference over the lifetime of a mortgage is insignificant, then you are welcome to do so, but 0.11% is £110 per year per £100k of loan which most people would consider well significant enough to affect their decision making if they are looking for a lifetime tracker.

The difference is 0.01% as the nationwide web site states 0.24% NOT 0.34 as stated in the OP. So this using your calcs is a £11 a year ish. In my experience I'd be happy to pay this £11 a year for the far superior level of customer service the nationwide provide and to be content that the rate they state can't be manipulated as the woolwich have done in the past.

MarkyMarkD wrote:

I agree with you, though, re the problems with choosing ING and as I've posted previously, choosing their (temporarily attractive) product may lead you to miss out on a good value long-term rate.

Cool - so I don't talk complete rubbish then :rotfl:

Grabbit_2

deleted due to duplicated post

spike9

nationwide is 0.34 as stated in the OP surely ?