Should i still apply for my mortgage or wait to see what happens with interest rates?

changingstars

Hi

I am a FTB and have had an offer accepted on a house, I am dealing with the mortgage broker linked with the estate agents as well as using the solicitor they recommended. I am in the process of completing the solicitors paperwork and am planning on sending it off tomorrow.

I have a meeting tomorrow to complete my mortgage application with the broker. I was planning on fixing it for 5 years with nationwide but now am unsure if i should wait a bit longer to see if the repayments will change now the BofE have changed the base rate?

If i did wait would the solicitor still carry on with all the checks etc or do i need to have the mortgage fully agreed for this to happen?

The house i am buying is chain free and don't want to do anything to affect the sale going through

Any advice would be really appreciated, thank you.

Thrugelmir

Solicitor will do little until you have a formal mortgage offer.

AlexMac

I'm no expert, (and hopefully some will reply) but if you were happy with the fix yesterday, I'd just go through with it even though the BoE base rate dropped 0.25% today.

Nationwide are a really good lender too; I was pleasantly surprised when they wrote to me last month to say my 2.75%, 5-year fix on one of my two loans with them was coming to an end ...

...and, because I was an existing customer, offered me a raft of alternatives including some really low trackers. And several of them were arrangement fee free! So I switched to one which reduced my monthly repayments by a third... and following todays MPC decison, that will go down a bit more...

So grabbit!

marksoton

changingstars wrote: »

I am dealing with the mortgage broker linked with the estate agents as well as using the solicitor they recommended.
.

You've made two errors straightaway then.

AnotherJoe

..... Third error, five year fix.

lettucekl

Im a FTB aswell and with the news today with the rate dropping to 0.25% am i right in think anyone getting a fixed rate now is mad and variable is the absolute best way to go?. I mean the rate isnt going to rise within the next 2-3 years thats for sure and its more than like to fall lower that 0.25% in that time frame!. So surely a 2 or 3 year variable rate is the best option with today's news??

changingstars

lettucekl wrote: »

Im a FTB aswell and with the news today with the rate dropping to 0.25% am i right in think anyone getting a fixed rate now is mad and variable is the absolute best way to go?. I mean the rate isnt going to rise within the next 2-3 years thats for sure and its more than like to fall lower that 0.25% in that time frame!. So surely a 2 or 3 year variable rate is the best option with today's news??

I decided on a fixed a couple of weeks ago but now am not sure what to do if I am honest. 2 years feels like it will pass too quick and is there not a chance interest rates will rise in that time? I am going to discuss it with the broker in a lot more depth before i commit. Not sure if nationwide do a 3 year tracker but will look into that

eamon

Its a gamble. I got it wrong in 2008 by fixing for 5 years. I had incorrectly thought that banks etc would want their losses back and do so by gouging existing borrowers (of course this would have needed the help of central banks). Even the experts never imagined that central bank lending rates would be so low and for so long with still no end in sight. To the OP cancel the meeting and wait a few weeks, also find your own solicitor and a mortgage broker if thats what you need.

penguingirl

None of us have a crystal ball. When we bought first time lots of advised us to get a fix as interest rates were sure to rise. This was in 2009 and we are still waiting for the rise! We are glad we went for the lower (with a lot less fees) variable rate, but we felt that we could absorb some rises so could take the risk.

I'm slightly cynical that mortgage brokers may prefer fixed rate deals because of the commission associated when remortgaging when it ends- over a 25 year term that could be a lot of fees.

changingstars

Thanks for all the replies, think i just got too comfortable with a fixed as i guess it gave me peace of mind as to how much I will be paying out each month so I didn't even consider a fixed originally but will be re thinking it and maybe push appointment back.

marksoton

changingstars wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies, think i just got too comfortable with a fixed as i guess it gave me peace of mind as to how much I will be paying out each month so I didn't even consider a fixed originally but will be re thinking it and maybe push appointment back.

The main rethink you need to do is using in house EA services. There's a very good reason they've suggested the people they have. And for their own reasons not yours.