need to get on top of things!!! (duplicate post - on Mortgages also help reqd plz

monday_blues

Hi there folks, I'm hoping some of you kind people can offer a little bit of advice.

After a very ropey, probably 5-6 years, having to take drastic step to tackle debt problem after selling business in the middle of recession, we are coming out the other side. During this difficult period we had to convert our mortgage onto interest only, £140k total, but split into 4 different parts with different rates, probably 2 or 3 of these parts being interest only on longer term than we would have had, should we not have experienced tough times.

Given the fact we have just paid off everthing and starting to see a bit of light at the end of the tunnel, I want to get mortgage back on track (eventually) but also need some repairs done in property which were put on hold during this period I spoke of. Anyone any suggestions whether should :-

a) convert remaining parts on to repayment all in one go, or
b) do it in parts

and how to eventually reduce term down, how can we do this without throwing every penny at it and not seeing the benefit of the little surplus of cash every month, should we:-

a) aim to reduce the term every couple of years by a couple of years, or
b) overpay once per year, annually (by putting money aside to do this)

At this point in time I don't really want to speak to a professional, as its all still quite raw. I'd like to get on a better footing in the next year or two before people make judgements, which they inevitably do. Hope you understand my thinking and logic here, would be grateful for any comments or anyone who has ever been in this kinda predicament before.

Many Thanks, Monday blues

enjoyyourshoes

Most bank site provide mortgage calculators so you can see the monthly repayments based upon different 'term' mortgages. This should give you a clearer idea of cost and end dates.

Consider which repayment is best for you, fixed term 2-5 years, discounted, tracker etc, based upon your risk profile and you assessment of the future interest rates.

~Then do searches for best mortgages and compare like for like.

If fixed the best over the fixed term tend to be those with lower costs of entry even with a marginal increase in APR. For e.g., we compared all the HSBC/FD on 5 year fixed (which were the lowest on market at the time) and those with less upfront fees but 0.1-0.2 % more apr , turned out to be cheaper over the 5 years.

I would just get one mortgage covering all of your 4, as it would be easier to manage, remortgage in future and come to rational decisions once the deal is due for renewal. but its personal choice.

With low mortgage rates and high current account interest rates and good Regular saver interest rates, it might be worth considering putting potential overpayments into RS as interest is 6%, then save this annually in high interest current account (TSB 5% , Lloyds 4% and Santander 3% etc) until you reportage again in future. Just an option you may want to consider?