Mortgage payment's double what they should be

snarf1974

I have a mortgage with Santander which was in areas last year. I payed this off in November and was then told that I would have to continue on their standard rate for a period of 6 months (to check that I am paying on time).
My intrest rate deal ran out in june but I was unable to switch to a new deal as I was in arreas .. I had to pay extra interest and charges which I accept as I owed them money ...
But I feel it is unfare to continue punishing me every month for the next 5 months as the interest rate I am stuck on is double what I would get if I changed provider or redid my deal.

Is this legal ?

ValHaller

You have no right to change to any deal, it is all subject to the sayso of the lender. And, I assume, that the deal you had was supposed to go to SVR at the end. So they could keep you on SVR for ever and you have no grounds for complaint.

If anything it seems that they are already going beyond what they need to in giving you 6 months to prove yourself. If the rate is so terrible, get a deal elsewhere if you can find a lender who thinks you are a good prospect.

snarf1974

So your saying that I will continue to pay double what any other consumer will pay for the duration of my loan ..

Will the value of the home and the size of the mortgage make change this as the mortgage is only 21% of the value of the home ?

ValHaller

I have no idea what kind of deal you could aspire to. But if you are after a better deal, you need to come up with a better line of argument than whether it is legal for the lender to put you on Standard Variable Rate.

Dave_Ham

The loan to value being low will help for sure, but a recent history of mortgage arrears does not look attractive to a potential new lender.

Unfortunately the very low rates out there are not attainable for all and subject to circumstances..

Good luck

getmore4less

snarf1974 wrote: »

I have a mortgage with Santander which was in areas last year. I payed this off in November and was then told that I would have to continue on their standard rate for a period of 6 months (to check that I am paying on time).
My intrest rate deal ran out in june but I was unable to switch to a new deal as I was in arreas .. I had to pay extra interest and charges which I accept as I owed them money ...
But I feel it is unfare to continue punishing me every month for the next 5 months as the interest rate I am stuck on is double what I would get if I changed provider or redid my deal.

Is this legal ?

Santander are not saying you can't leave just they won't consider you for any deals because you failed to pay in the past.

If you are so convinced you can get a better rate go to another provider if they will have you.

beecher2

Your mortgage payment isn't double what it would be if your rate halved.

StuC75

What position is your credit file in? would you be able to remortgage elsewhere on the rest of the market?

If not then you are largely dependent upon the internal decision of your existing mortgage company.

dunstonh

But I feel it is unfare to continue punishing me every month for the next 5 months as the interest rate I am stuck on is double what I would get if I changed provider or redid my deal.

No-one is punishing you. They are saying that they don't want you because of your bad payment record.

They are not required to offer you new products. Just as any retailer has the same right. Your choice is to accept the product you have and bought with them originally or to look elsewhere on the market.

kingstreet

£100k over 25 years 4.79% = £572.42

£100k over 25 years 1.99% = £423.35

On this example, which would apply to someone applying for the lowest possible rate available today, with the accompanying clean payment and credit history, they would save £149.07, or 26%.

No-one is paying "double" while on standard variable rate.

Chances are, your payment history means a remortgage would actually be at a higher rate than you are currently experiencing. See out this period with your existing lender and see what they have to offer after that. You may find the offers aren't that great.

dunstonh

Were the arrears repaid or have they been added to your repayments for a period of time? (shorter period than the mortgage) That may account for the increase.