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Rate ends in October - act now?
straddie
Posts: 138 Forumite
Hi there,
We're currently on a fixed rate with C&G which expires at the end of October. From what I gather, you can often secure a mortgage deal up to 6 months in advance (although I know this doesn't always apply), so now that it's May we're into that six month window and hence in a position to act if a good deal comes up.
I'm quite taken by HSBC's current lifetime tracker of 0.48% above base rate. Whilst I'd prefer the security of a fix, rates don't look set to go up any time soon and being a life time tracker with no penalities I could get out at any time should things change, so it seems quite an attractive option.
The factors I'm not sure about are:
- can anybody confirm whether this particular deal would be available so far in advance? (I plan to ring HSBC to ask when I get time but thought I'd include the question here for now).
- is it wise to act so soon? 6 months is a long time in the mortgage world and there could be better rates by October. At the same time, things could be even worse! I've read so many mixed views on the outlook that I don't know what to believe! I'm sure there's no definitive answer but I'd like to tap people's views here anyway.
- as part of the rates question above, perhaps a more important factor is the LTV - we have quite a high LTV at just over 85%, scheduled to be bang on 85% come October. Even if rates aren't any higher by Oct, there's a good chance lending criteria will still be tight or even tighter, and LTV may therefore exclude us from the better deals. If I secure a mortgage deal now, will the lending criteria be based on the current climate? Or might they project forwards and work on the basis of a higher LTV by drawdown? Basically I'm thinking by getting a deal now, I'll be protected from any (likely) increase in the LTV / tightening of criteria in the next 6 months. Is this a reasonable assumption?
- if I went ahead and took the HSBC deal, paid the upfront fees etc, would they then have to honour it regardless of the economic conditions? Or could they pull out any time before drawdown?
Sorry for the lengthy post, any advice on any of the above would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!
We're currently on a fixed rate with C&G which expires at the end of October. From what I gather, you can often secure a mortgage deal up to 6 months in advance (although I know this doesn't always apply), so now that it's May we're into that six month window and hence in a position to act if a good deal comes up.
I'm quite taken by HSBC's current lifetime tracker of 0.48% above base rate. Whilst I'd prefer the security of a fix, rates don't look set to go up any time soon and being a life time tracker with no penalities I could get out at any time should things change, so it seems quite an attractive option.
The factors I'm not sure about are:
- can anybody confirm whether this particular deal would be available so far in advance? (I plan to ring HSBC to ask when I get time but thought I'd include the question here for now).
- is it wise to act so soon? 6 months is a long time in the mortgage world and there could be better rates by October. At the same time, things could be even worse! I've read so many mixed views on the outlook that I don't know what to believe! I'm sure there's no definitive answer but I'd like to tap people's views here anyway.
- as part of the rates question above, perhaps a more important factor is the LTV - we have quite a high LTV at just over 85%, scheduled to be bang on 85% come October. Even if rates aren't any higher by Oct, there's a good chance lending criteria will still be tight or even tighter, and LTV may therefore exclude us from the better deals. If I secure a mortgage deal now, will the lending criteria be based on the current climate? Or might they project forwards and work on the basis of a higher LTV by drawdown? Basically I'm thinking by getting a deal now, I'll be protected from any (likely) increase in the LTV / tightening of criteria in the next 6 months. Is this a reasonable assumption?
- if I went ahead and took the HSBC deal, paid the upfront fees etc, would they then have to honour it regardless of the economic conditions? Or could they pull out any time before drawdown?
Sorry for the lengthy post, any advice on any of the above would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!
0
Comments
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Most mortgage offers are on;ly valid for 3 months so you may have to wait0
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... and others are available earlier so you are right to ask. As well as asking here, I suggest asking HSBC directly.
With modest fees, I think that is a cracking rate (better than mine secured some years ago before the credit crunch).
Good luck with your choice.
GGThere are 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary and those that don't.0 -
Some offer last 6 months but I think HSBC may have put completion deadlines on them so I would call and ask.
C&G are pushing to keep business so look on the website.
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