End of fixed rate and early exit fee

martin_2442

My current fixed rate is due to end at the start of May 2026. I have an early exit fee of around £2.5k which doesn't decrease towards the end of the deal. 

I am looking to sell the house to buy somewhere bigger. 

I obviously cant refix and want to avoid the early exit fee or going onto the absurd svr. 

Other than porting the mortgage is there any other options ro avoid these. Or is it just  a case of being extremely lucky and finding my dream home at the perfect time??

If so, any recommendations of roughly when to start formally looking?

Thanks

Yorkie1

We can't see your specific product details but, in general, there is no way around an early repayment fee unless you port it. The way I understand it (but might not be completely right) is that the bank borrows the money for your mortgage, and they have a penalty if you repay early.

But a few product details may provide for no penalty in the last x days / weeks / months of the fix, perhaps.

Length of time to find a buyer for your property, find a new property to buy, and then for however many links in the chain to apply for mortgages / have surveys / searches etc - it's a piece of string. But on average, I'd guess that from point of agreeing the sale / purchase to completion is likely to be not less than 10-12 weeks. 

The housing market is traditionally slow in the run up to Christmas, for new properties on the market and viewings etc.

Herzlos

Porting is the easiest option, you'll continue that fixed rate for the current balance and take out a new rate for the remaining balance. 

But assuming you're in England and only looking now, you might not be in until it expires anyway so I wouldn't worry about it at all. All I'd do at this stage is talk to your current lender about whether you can port that mortgage and how much you can borrow. 

martin_2442

Thank you for your advice

Yorkie1

The other thing to consider, if you are not moved before the end of your fix, is to look for a product switch with your current provider onto a tracker type mortgage, which will often be lower than the SVR and has no exit penalties