Advice on a 15 yr fix rate please

sablade

My existing lender, Northern Rock, has offered me this 15 year fix rate

£1094 fees

£1000 cashback on completion

15 yr fix @ 5.59%

5% redemption in 1st 3yrs then 4% etc

Portable

No redemption if paid off mortgage but keep it open with £1 (does this mean can remortgage ?)


What are your thoughts

I like the idea of a long fix as its worry free

Only lose when rates drop

my income is tight

martin says "Someone who can only just afford their mortgage repayments should not be gambling with interest rates, and therefore will benefit much more from a fixed rate as it means they’ll never be pushed over the brink by a rate increase."

so perhaps I should fix?

Reaper

Sounds pretty good for those who like certainty.

In the next year or two you will probably be worse off than with a discounted mortgage as the current feeling is interest rates have almost peaked.

However nobody can really predict more than a couple of years ahead (if that). Perhaps in 10 years time rates will be 15% and you will be laughing.

I favour discounted mortgages (just my preference) but if the idea of a long term fix apeals to you then that sounds a good offer.

Robert_Sterling_3

A friend of mine took a mortgage at 7% fixed.
I did not.
When my mortgage rate reached 16% in 1980
He was laughing.
I was not.

crisaliz

5.59% ! Howzat?

We have just decided to fix for remaining 15yrs of our £100K mortgage as we thought the fees payable on changing every 2,3 or 5 years made remortgaging expensive. (Besides, my hubby 'needs' 6 months 'encouragement' to make any changes to our finances and I've lost the energy to chivvy anymore......)

Our IFA found Northern Rock, but at 5.79%. The fees, cashback, portability and penalties are the same as yours. Also free to overpay at any point so long as we leave the account open - min bal £1. Application is in, but no reply from the Rock yet.

How did you get 5.59% - did you ask or was it a standard offer for existing customers only?  ::) :-/

Has anybody heard of a better long term deal?

Woby_Tide

looking at this table

http://www.northernrock.co.uk/mortgages/mortgagetable.asp

the 15 year fix has tiered rates depending on your deposit, that'll be why yours differs slightly I think

crisaliz

Cheers!

Our LTV is 50% - leastways it was two weeks ago...

Woe betide our IFA (well not really) when I show him the Northern Rock table.

One thought - the difference might have something to do with the £595 fee being included in the interest calculations as the original % on offer was the 5.89% shown in the 75% LTV column. Depends on when the NRock website was last updated as we were informed of the 5.79% rate early last week.

More knowledge please...anyone?

sablade

I am an existing customer

my current deal with them is ending, they have offered me

1.5yr fix 4.59

2 yr 4.69

3,5,7,10,15 yr fix -

5.59% fees £1094 £1000 help with fees portable

5.89% fees £500   £1000 help with fees portable

I will prob opt for 5.59% 15 yr with £1094 fee added to loan

their variable rate is 6.84%

crisaliz

Hi Sablade

Do your £1k fees include the valuation fee, or is it solely the Rock's admin fee?

Our £1k is valuation and admin.

Thanks

sablade

arrangment & admin fee only
prob no val fee as existing customer with 60% LTV

MarkyMarkD

That'd be DEFINITELY no valuation fee if it's a product switch for an existing customer.

That's a good rate, although not very flexible if it's how you've described it.

Cheshire BS used to do good long-term fixed rates, and theirs are more flexible (repayment windows without penalty every 2 years IIRC) but their 15 years rate is 6.05%. I suspect that they have old funds which they haven't used up - as rates have fallen they would be unable to lend competitively. Whereas NR have probably opportunistically bought some cheap funds and are marketing them to tie existing borrowers in - smart cookies that they are!

NR's whole site is down right now - DOH! So I can't compare the details.

crisaliz

A follow-up mail to NRock offer - 5.79% vs 5.59%

We approached our IFA, sorry, FA (he doesn't charge us a fee so not 'independent'...!) and he has checked out the 5.59%. It is possible we will get it as it is a new product and our application has only just been received. Fees & valuation remain @ 1K total.

With freedom to overpay as and when, this has to be a darn good offer. It has the certainty we need and as it's not an offset, we get to keep the interest on our savings......(what savings?).

Will let you all know if we get the 5.59% - should find out by Tuesday....probably.