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Is the One account any good?

Lettyx1
Posts: 19 Forumite


I currently have 14 years left on my mortgage and I'd like to reduce that at least by half. The One account looks good to me, but I am aware of the saying "if it looks too good to be true then it usually is" - do people recommend this way of managing one's finances? I haven't found anyone that has this account to discover whether or not it's any good. Any advice out there?? (The end of my 2yr fixed rate ends in June). I'd love to be mortgage free when I'm 40 rather than 50 which is where I'm currently at....:D
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Hi, those of us that have, or have had a One Account like them, whereas those that have not had one point out how expensive they are. In my opinon it is a good account for the right person, but take the time to find out about it as it's not just a mortgage, it involves changing the way you view money. Have a read of this:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=587535
which should show the pro's/con's etc....0 -
I've got one as I need access to money at the moment but once I have finished doing up my house I think I'll change to a normal mortgage.Nothing to see here, move along.0
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I'm in the process of leaving The One Account. The interest rate is just too high! First Direct offers on offset mortgage with a much lower interest rate!
evi30000 -
i'm in the process of moving to a one account, after a load of thought, over probably 6 months, think it'll be a better option for me. yeah the interest rate is higher, but with careful money management, can't wait to see my balance reduce down to a big zero!!
current mortgage term 20 years - my prediction 12 years, but would settle for 15 years and be mortgage free by time i'm 50! :j0 -
What is it with the one account? The rates are pretty bad and you can the same type of mortgage much cheaper elsewhere.
It's like they've somehow managed to make people think that offset = One account.
Look at FD deals, but be quick, they're VERY popular at the minute and are running out/being replaced.0 -
Look at all the offseting product available from what I have read the one acount is expensive and the same features can be got cheaper.
To decide if offseting is right for you need the numbers to be crunched.
It is not allways the best way to reduce debt also needs disapliine with budgeting to be under control. but is works for many and when cheap/free money was available on credit cards(stoozing) offsetting was a great product.0 -
I have a one account and it has been the best thing going for us. Yes, the interest rates are higher than some other lenders but I find that it doesn't matter to me because I have savings and stoozepot money in mine so some months I'm in credit and they pay me interest!
Its not for everyone as you must be very disciplined with money and be prepared for the shock of seeing your current account balance being hugely overdrawn in the early stages as everything is lumped in together.
Its made me think differently about my mortgage and I do a lot of things to bring down the balance so I pay less interest. I also separate the interest from the actual balance owed.
I am very happy with mine, its given me control (see sig) and hopefully it won't be long before I'm mortgage free (yay!)Save £12k in 2012 no.49 £10,250/£12,000
Save £12k in 2013 no.34 £11,800/£12,000
'How much can you save' thread = £7,050
Total=£29,100
Mfi3 no. 88: Balance Jan '06 = £63,000. :mad:
Balance 23.11.09 = £nil.0 -
This is the thing about a mortgage like the One Account - the interest rate is NOT the whole story - everyone knows it's not the best and this has been stated time and time again.
It fundamentally changes your view on money management to the extent that the interest rate is less important than how you live with your day to day finances.... this gets overlooked time and time again with people stating the obvious.
Ask yourself a question. If the One Account is so expensive, then how come so many people have one and love it - how often do you see someone slate it, other than those people who a) don't have one and b) are just looking at interest rates?
I honestly believe that I could not have cleared my mortgage in the time I did had it not been for the way the account works (all so automatic as I'm lazy!). It is NOT for everyone so keep this in mind, but if it's right for you then it could work very well for you (don't read too much into their calculators though!!). The secret is do your homework on it and fully understand the concepts of how it works and how you need to change your money management in order to make it work (you will need to change I assure you!).
I'm not blowing the trumpet at just the One Account - any Current Account mortgage that works in the same way comes under this post. I just happen to have had a One Account and speak from experience with it.0 -
We don't have a One account, we have a mortgage with a better rate that we can overpay by as much as we like on, here are the reasons WHY it suits us.
1/ We have no credit card debts, so the comparisons for higher interest rates on our debts with the One account don't come into play.
2/We have decided to go down the route of paying off our mortgage (see my sig) so we do not have much put aside in a separate savings account. Most of our money is in our mortgage overpayment fund, which is accessible should there be an emergency.An average of £1,000 builds up in our current account through the month accumulating for the bills at the end of the month, we are weekly paid.This money only earns 2.8% net. Calculating the interest 'lost'on this compared to having a higher interest on our mortgage is pretty much a no brainer for us.
If you do have credit card, store card,or other more expensive debt than your mortgage, then it is advisable to tackle these first- it works out cheaper in the long run, MSE Martin says so!
Good Luck,whatever you decide fits you best.:D Either way, I suspect you'll save a packet in interest fees.Member of the first Mortgage Free in 3 challenge, no.19
Balance 19th April '07 = minus £27,640
Balance 1st November '09 = mortgage paid off with £1903 left over. Title deeds are now ours.0 -
But why the one account in particular? You can get exactly the same sort of flexibility elsewhere and a much better rate.
Everyone that has says it's brill, cos they have one and are post rationalising it i guess.
http://www.firstdirect.com/mortgages/rates.shtml.0
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