Seldom in ones life do we get a chance to alter the mistakes we made in the past. Remortgage offers a once in a life time opportunity to change from a mortgage to another that is more desirable.
So what are the mistakes that
Remortgage will help cure? With the interest rates falling, mortgages taken years ago will appear to be excessively charged. Mortgagors vie for the new rates of interest by taking the new mortgage.
But there is little guarantee that the rate of interest will be constant at this point or will not fall beyond this level. So, mortgagees always have a scope of business by helping people transfer their original mortgage. Thus, remortgages benefit both the borrower and the mortgage provider.
Remortgages are also taken for reasons other than improving interest rate. Many a times people opt for remortgage only to extend the term of repayment. This is more visible in case of interest only mortgages. Interest only mortgages, as we know, require monthly payment of interest on the mortgage and a full and final payment at the end of the term of repayment.
Refinancing the former mortgage will postpone the repayment of the mortgage. The new mortgage will have a new term of repayment. The new mortgage deal pays off the former deal. The borrower could have been at risk of losing his home had he been required to make a prompt repayment at that point of time. Borrowers get time to plan the repayment of the new mortgage deal.
However, we must not ignore the other side of the picture. The borrower is burdened with the debt for an extended period. More is the time involved in the mortgage, more is the interest cost.
Specialized mortgages have a limited benefit period, after which they become more of a burden. First time buyer mortgages for instance, offer discounted rates in the initial few years. After that the first time buyers will have to pay according to the rates prevalent in the mortgage market. By refinancing the first time buyer mortgage, borrowers can escape the high interest rates or unfavourable terms.
Full points to you if you guessed that remortgages function as a debt consolidation tool. In fact these are regularly used in order to settle debts a.k.a mortgages. Remortgage offers a new mortgage through a new lender who agrees to settle all debts through a combined mortgage deal. This may be advantageous for the borrowers since savings generally result in the deal. The entire value of the mortgage remaining along with the interest is paid as an early repayment. The savings are the result of the negotiation process. The more skilled is a person in the negotiation skills, the more will the savings be.
However, some lenders explicitly forbid a remortgage by incorporating a clause to the effect in the terms and conditions. Some mortgagees may freeze the right to remortgage for a certain time period. For instance cash back mortgages where the borrower gets cash at the beginning of the mortgage prohibit outright the right to remortgage for a period. The period may differ with the lenders. This may severely impede the borrowers’ freedom to change to a new deal. It will thus be important to closely look for such clauses when signing on the dotted line. Having agreed to the terms once there is no looking back again. May be there is no second chance for a remortgage.
ADITYA THAKUR
Aditya has completed his masters in mass communications from Jamia University. If you need UK Personal Loans, secured Loans, unsecured loans visit http://www.ukfinanceworld.co.uk
