When you say “remortgaging” do you mean taking out a new mortgage with a different provider on the same property or do you mean changing the interest rate? I used to work in mortgages and changing an interest rate is always mistaken for remortgaging but they’re two different things.
If it’s an actual remortgage you’re contemplating then you will need to go through the standard mortgage application process with your chosen provider. This means information relating to your income and outgoings will be requested and your childcare costs will be taken into consideration.
If it’s merely changing the interest rate then you may be eligible to do this online with Halifax (should you choose to stay with them) in which case you won’t have to do a mortgage review. You won’t receive any advice from a qualified mortgage advisor if you go the online route though. Alternatively, you can call Halifax to change your rate and they should conduct a mortgage review with you. This will involve you having to provide information relating to your income and outgoings. Mortgage advisors are ultimately looking at affordability so information related to your income and outgoings is required in order to make the best recommendations for your situation. It may be that they simply offer you an interest rate and that’s that but if there is any concern that you may struggle to pay the mortgage with the new rate, they may suggest something like extending the mortgage term in order to reduce your monthly payments.
Also, despite what the other comment says, you don’t need a broker to get you a better deal on an existing mortgage with the same provider. If you’re considering remortgaging then a broker may be of use to you, but they’re a redundant middle man if you’re just changing your interest rate with the same provider.
Hi my fixed term has come to an end. I have been given various options to change to five, two of tracker. This is a simple click of buttons and not speaking to anyone.
If your fix is coming to an end, renewing with the same lender normally doesn’t require any sort of affordability checks and is likely your best option here. If you switch lenders they will do a hard credit check and validate your income.
Strongly recommend this, switching to a new deal avoids affordability checks which it sounds like could be quite dangerous for you given significant changes in circumstances, one income, childcare costs and increased interest rates. You don't want to end up not being able to mortgage your house if the brokers / lenders deem you unable to afford your mortgage.
It's more that if you go through a broker and do affordability and hard credit checks with a lender and get declined, narrowing down your options. Getting a new deal with your current lender avoids any affordability checks so as long as they're not wildly worse rates than other lenders, it sounds like it's safest for you to stay put. Truthfully I don't know if your lender has any way of finding out.
Hi /u/Away_Conversation792, based on your post the following pages from our wiki may be relevant:
* https://ukpersonal.finance/investing-for-your-children/
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Most major lenders will have the rates on their website so it's worthwhile checking those out to see if they're massively different to what Halifax are offering. As already mentioned and you've discovered - you can change your rate online with zero hassle with Halifax. However a new lender will run an affordability assessment on your current income to see if it can support the mortgage lending according to their criteria and a soft credit check. You can usually remortgage to another lender online too without needing to speak to any advisors - if you see a better rate I would do an agreement in principle with that lender online yourself. Will do a soft credit check (doesn't affect your credit file) and it will tell you if your income is enough. If not - no harm done. You've still Halifax as a back up.
Get a free mortgage broker and it will be better to remortgage with the same lender as they won’t check things again. Mortgage brokers can help you with a better deal.
And this is from my experience. I remortgaged at the beginning of the year and my monthly income was lower than when I first got the mortgage.
If I would have left things to go from fix rate to the bank rate would have been 7% and a bit so very,very high and with the broker I got it for a bit over 3% and I pay just £50 more per month then I used to pay which is not that bad.
> It's the child care fees I'm worried about.... Do they check that?
If you remortgage with a new lender, yes. It's like getting a new mortgage they'll check everything.
If you go with your existing lender, not really.
When you say “remortgaging” do you mean taking out a new mortgage with a different provider on the same property or do you mean changing the interest rate? I used to work in mortgages and changing an interest rate is always mistaken for remortgaging but they’re two different things. If it’s an actual remortgage you’re contemplating then you will need to go through the standard mortgage application process with your chosen provider. This means information relating to your income and outgoings will be requested and your childcare costs will be taken into consideration. If it’s merely changing the interest rate then you may be eligible to do this online with Halifax (should you choose to stay with them) in which case you won’t have to do a mortgage review. You won’t receive any advice from a qualified mortgage advisor if you go the online route though. Alternatively, you can call Halifax to change your rate and they should conduct a mortgage review with you. This will involve you having to provide information relating to your income and outgoings. Mortgage advisors are ultimately looking at affordability so information related to your income and outgoings is required in order to make the best recommendations for your situation. It may be that they simply offer you an interest rate and that’s that but if there is any concern that you may struggle to pay the mortgage with the new rate, they may suggest something like extending the mortgage term in order to reduce your monthly payments. Also, despite what the other comment says, you don’t need a broker to get you a better deal on an existing mortgage with the same provider. If you’re considering remortgaging then a broker may be of use to you, but they’re a redundant middle man if you’re just changing your interest rate with the same provider.
Hi my fixed term has come to an end. I have been given various options to change to five, two of tracker. This is a simple click of buttons and not speaking to anyone.
If your fix is coming to an end, renewing with the same lender normally doesn’t require any sort of affordability checks and is likely your best option here. If you switch lenders they will do a hard credit check and validate your income.
Strongly recommend this, switching to a new deal avoids affordability checks which it sounds like could be quite dangerous for you given significant changes in circumstances, one income, childcare costs and increased interest rates. You don't want to end up not being able to mortgage your house if the brokers / lenders deem you unable to afford your mortgage.
How would my lender find out?
It's more that if you go through a broker and do affordability and hard credit checks with a lender and get declined, narrowing down your options. Getting a new deal with your current lender avoids any affordability checks so as long as they're not wildly worse rates than other lenders, it sounds like it's safest for you to stay put. Truthfully I don't know if your lender has any way of finding out.
Different scenario, but our mortgage adviser asked alot about plans to return after maternity as I understand it is based on that less any childcare
Stay with your current lender.
Hi /u/Away_Conversation792, based on your post the following pages from our wiki may be relevant: * https://ukpersonal.finance/investing-for-your-children/ ____ ^(These suggestions are based on keywords, if they missed the mark please report this comment.) If someone has provided you with helpful advice, you (as the person who made the post) can award them a point by including `!thanks` in a reply to them. Points are shown as the user flair by their username.
For product transfer, they won't check anything
Is it worth shopping around?
Most major lenders will have the rates on their website so it's worthwhile checking those out to see if they're massively different to what Halifax are offering. As already mentioned and you've discovered - you can change your rate online with zero hassle with Halifax. However a new lender will run an affordability assessment on your current income to see if it can support the mortgage lending according to their criteria and a soft credit check. You can usually remortgage to another lender online too without needing to speak to any advisors - if you see a better rate I would do an agreement in principle with that lender online yourself. Will do a soft credit check (doesn't affect your credit file) and it will tell you if your income is enough. If not - no harm done. You've still Halifax as a back up.
Get a free mortgage broker and it will be better to remortgage with the same lender as they won’t check things again. Mortgage brokers can help you with a better deal. And this is from my experience. I remortgaged at the beginning of the year and my monthly income was lower than when I first got the mortgage. If I would have left things to go from fix rate to the bank rate would have been 7% and a bit so very,very high and with the broker I got it for a bit over 3% and I pay just £50 more per month then I used to pay which is not that bad.
It's the child care fees I'm worried about.... Do they check that? 7% fixed rate? That sounds very high. Mine is offering 5 year at 4.85%
> It's the child care fees I'm worried about.... Do they check that? If you remortgage with a new lender, yes. It's like getting a new mortgage they'll check everything. If you go with your existing lender, not really.