Mortgage rates advice

upyaboyanow

Hi,

I took a mortgage of 190k back in 2013, and its now down to 145k, 28 years left on the mortgage.

House is worth much more now then when I bought it, but dont plan on moving / selling anyway.

Im in a good secure job. And i always overpay on the monthly repayments.


My fixed term for my mortgage (3.1%) is up the end of February.

Bank now offering:
- Variable LTV <=60% @ 3.9%
- 3yr fixed LTV <=60% @ 3%
- 1yr fixed LTV <=60% @ 2.9%
- 2yr fixed LTV <=60% @ 2.9%
- 5yr fixed LTV <=60% @ 3%
- 10yr fixed LTV <=60% @ 3.3%


Any ideas whats best to go with?

cruizer101

You should look at moving bank.
Depending on your ltv there are a range of mortgages with rates around 2.5%.
Check the cpcc mortgage comparison website

upyaboyanow

cruizer101 wrote: »

You should look at moving bank.
Depending on your ltv there are a range of mortgages with rates around 2.5%.
Check the cpcc mortgage comparison website

Would it make much of a difference?

tommythecat

Yes it would. KBC OFFER 2.6% for 5 years and you can overpay by 10% of mortage total (14500 in your case). You are talking a saving of 50 or 60 quid a month in your repayments.
Caveat is your mortgage may not be large enough for some banks to accept your switch.

upyaboyanow

cruizer101 wrote: »

You should look at moving bank.
Depending on your ltv there are a range of mortgages with rates around 2.5%.
Check the cpcc mortgage comparison website

thanks. Ill look into it. but am i not asking for trouble down the line - if something goes wrong. i find my current bank fairly decent. who knows - KBC or similar might hang me out to dry in the years to come?

upyaboyanow

cruizer101 wrote: »

You should look at moving bank.
Depending on your ltv there are a range of mortgages with rates around 2.5%.
Check the cpcc mortgage comparison website

if i decide not to move bank (which I will look into), which would be the best choice from above?

Salary Negotiator

A different bank, those rates are very high.

I just put some figures into bonkers.ie and the lowest 5 year fixed rate is 2.4% with Finance Ireland, if it was me I'd look into that.

You can read about them here - I've no connection to them, nor do I know anyone who has used them.

upyaboyanow

Salary Negotiator wrote: »

A different bank, those rates are very high.

I just put some figures into bonkers.ie and the lowest 5 year fixed rate is 2.4% with Finance Ireland, if it was me I'd look into that.

You can read about them here - I've no connection to them, nor do I know anyone who has used them.

Thanks. Is it hard to change banks? where do I start?

Salary Negotiator

upyaboyanow wrote: »

Thanks. Is it hard to change banks? where do I start?

Shouldn't be too hard, using Finance Ireland as an example you would need to contact one of their brokers and then go through the application with them. The same broker may be able to apply to other providers on your behalf as well.

You'll also need a solicitor.

I've never done it but it shouldn't be too difficult and not much different from when you initially applied to your existing bank.

P.S. I said change banks, but I meant change mortgage provider which may not necessarily be a bank.

ILikeBoats

upyaboyanow wrote: »

Is it hard to change banks?

It's not hard - just a pain
You're essentially applying for a mortgage again, so need to supply all the documentation
We switched from PTSB to Ulster Bank, the UB mortgage advisor was a great help. The only difficulty we had was updating the mortgage protection - it wasn't just a lift and shift job

Mezcita

upyaboyanow wrote: »

thanks. Ill look into it. but am i not asking for trouble down the line - if something goes wrong. i find my current bank fairly decent. who knows - KBC or similar might hang me out to dry in the years to come?

It's this type of thinking which banks absolutely love. If things went wrong they (like any bank) would be after you fairly sharpish regardless of how decent you find them now.

The main thing is to minimise your payments so that you are saving yourself cash in the long run. Worth talking to an independent mortgage broker to see what rate they could get you elsewhere.

tommythecat

If you don't feel like switching I would go with the 2 year fixed. It isn't a bad rate.
Switching is a bit of a pain so you have to be up for it. It is essentially reapplying for a mortgage. So it's payslips, bank statements, Life insurance etc. I just recently switched to KBC. It defo was a pain in the ass but they give 3k to switch, so my mortgage payments are around 50 quid cheaper and after the solicitors fees i had around 1500 left over so not too shabby. But I wouldn't fancy doing it regularly!
As far as i am aware Finance Ireland do not do any cash back schemes so you would need to factor in that cost.

upyaboyanow

tommythecat wrote: »

If you don't feel like switching I would go with the 2 year fixed. It isn't a bad rate.
Switching is a bit of a pain so you have to be up for it. It is essentially reapplying for a mortgage. So it's payslips, bank statements, Life insurance etc. I just recently switched to KBC. It defo was a pain in the ass but they give 3k to switch, so my mortgage payments are around 50 quid cheaper and after the solicitors fees i had around 1500 left over so not too shabby. But I wouldn't fancy doing it regularly!
As far as i am aware Finance Ireland do not do any cash back schemes so you would need to factor in that cost.

thanks. I might just go with a 2 year fixed so,and maybe will be in a better position to change banks in 2 years time.

am I risking that interest rates might be higher in 2 years time??

tommythecat

You certainly are. That's the never ending game. If you want stability and are happy with the way things are then go with the 5. I wouldn't sign up for a ten year deal, but that is just my opinion.

upyaboyanow

tommythecat wrote: »

You certainly are. That's the never ending game. If you want stability and are happy with the way things are then go with the 5. I wouldn't sign up for a ten year deal, but that is just my opinion.

yes, 3% would'nt be too bad, would it?

tommythecat

upyaboyanow wrote: »

yes, 3% would'nt be too bad, would it?

It isn't bad no. And you don't have the hassle of switching etc.

However if you did switch you could avail of a 2.6% for 5 years and 3k cashback. Lets say between solicitor and valuation etc your switch fee was 2k, then you still pocket 1k and save around 30/40 euro a month on your repayments for the next 5 years. That's around 2/2.5k. So all in you could save yourself 3/3.5k over the next five years. Not to be sniffed at. It is worth looking into is all I would say.

CramCycle

Ask your bank will they match any of there competitor rates, worth a shot?

upyaboyanow

tommythecat wrote: »

It isn't bad no. And you don't have the hassle of switching etc.

However if you did switch you could avail of a 2.6% for 5 years and 3k cashback. Lets say between solicitor and valuation etc your switch fee was 2k, then you still pocket 1k and save around 30/40 euro a month on your repayments for the next 5 years. That's around 2/2.5k. So all in you could save yourself 3/3.5k over the next five years. Not to be sniffed at. It is worth looking into is all I would say.

i will look into it for sure

upyaboyanow

CramCycle wrote: »

Ask your bank will they match any of there competitor rates, worth a shot?

so, ask them to offer say a 2.6% rate, for say 5 years? would that be in line with competitors?

CramCycle

In regards banks offering cash back, have a look at their fees etc. Maybe a lower% but not actually a lower cost, tricks a few people rushing in.

Trish56

You shouldn't have to update your mortgage protection unless you are extending the term or borrowing more than what you currently owe. Your mortgage protection policy would be assigned to your present lender so you just need to assign it to the new lender.

KBC's interest rate for 5 year fixed is 2.80% and 2.60% if you open a current account with them. To switch your mortgage to them you need to complete an application form and submit 3 months current account statements, 1 recent payslip, P60, 2 months credit card statements, 12 month mortgage statement and a redemption letter from current lender.
They give you 3k cashback 3 weeks after the mortgage issues. Solicitor and Valuation fees would be approx. €1500.
Switch should take approx. 1 month.

ILikeBoats wrote: »

It's not hard - just a pain
You're essentially applying for a mortgage again, so need to supply all the documentation
We switched from PTSB to Ulster Bank, the UB mortgage advisor was a great help. The only difficulty we had was updating the mortgage protection - it wasn't just a lift and shift job

CramCycle

upyaboyanow wrote: »

so, ask them to offer say a 2.6% rate, for say 5 years? would that be in line with competitors?

Not sure if that is how you would phrase it but yes. My office mate rang AIB to say she was planning to switch to BOI after talking to them (I don't think she had). They offered her the same rate but there were no solicitors, fess, changes, just a dropping of the interest rate. Going to do the same myself at the end of the month. Will let you know how it goes.

ILikeBoats

Trish56 wrote: »

You shouldn't have to update your mortgage protection unless you are extending the term or borrowing more than what you currently owe. Your mortgage protection policy would be assigned to your present lender so you just need to assign it to the new lender.

Tell that to Zurich. We thought the same as you. Had to go through the whole rigmarole again

They actually pi$$ed me off so much that I started the mortgage protection process with a different crowd a few weeks after starting with Zurich. I had two applications going at the same time, we switched from Zurich about 2 weeks after putting it in place and will never use them again

Inspector Coptoor

Changed mortgage provider recently from BOI to KBC recently.

Rate changed from 3.0% to 2.3%.
Got €3k for changing which paid for solicitor and valuation and had around €1700 profit from that.

Mortgage payment is down €78 per
Month and term is down from 26 years remaining to 22 years remaining.

Projected savings over the 22 years are €77,000.

Yes, it’s hassle and there are a few hoops to jump through.
BUT....
It’s not “too much hassle” to switch.
It’s just the smart thing to do.
Money is better in your pocket than the banks

pwurple

How did you get 2.3%?

https://www.kbc.ie/our-products/mortgages/our-mortgage-rates

tommythecat

pwurple wrote: »

How did you get 2.3%?

https://www.kbc.ie/our-products/mortgages/our-mortgage-rates

Their two year fixed with the .2% discount for banking with them is 2.3%

Inspector Coptoor

pwurple wrote: »

How did you get 2.3%?

https://www.kbc.ie/our-products/mortgages/our-mortgage-rates

60-80% LTV was 2.5%
Extra 0.2% off for having my current account with them.

Jim2007

tommythecat wrote: »

Yes it would. KBC OFFER 2.6% for 5 years and you can overpay by 10% of mortage total (14500 in your case). You are talking a saving of 50 or 60 quid a month in your repayments.
Caveat is your mortgage may not be large enough for some banks to accept your switch.

So over a five year period about 3k lest the costs of switching say 1.2k - 1.5k, gives you a saving of about 20 or 30 Euro a month. And then there is the hassle of having to find a lender, go through process and having to pay the switching costs up front.

tommythecat

Jim2007 wrote: »

So over a five year period about 3k lest the costs of switching say 1.2k - 1.5k, gives you a saving of about 20 or 30 Euro a month. And then there is the hassle of having to find a lender, go through process and having to pay the switching costs up front.

If you’d rather give away 30 euro a month for nothing and refuse 1.5k be my guest! I changed and save around 45 a month. That’s nearly 3k over the 5 years plus the 1.5k from the bank. That’s 4.5k in my pocket rather than the bank. All for a little hassle.

pwurple

Inspector Coptoor wrote: »

60-80% LTV was 2.5%
Extra 0.2% off for having my current account with them.

Fixed, with a roll-off of 3.2?

Gotcha. We swapped to AIB last year from KBC, we're at 2.75% variable.

I usually try to throw lump sums at the mortgage when I have saved up a bit, so fixed doesn't suit me generally.


It's unusual that all the fixed rates are lower than variable at the moment, I would guess at a forcasted drop in variable over the 2 years. Let's see.

sleepysue

You should definitely consider switching. I moved to KBC just over a year ago. I borrowed 15K extra ( did some work to the house) reduced my term by 7 years and pay 50 euro a month less now. Legal fees cost 1200 euro I think so I also made a profit of 1800 euro. Yes it was a bit of a pain switching, you are effectively buying your house again but it is worth it.

Trish56

It really should have nothing to do with Zurich - I deal with this on a regular basis and unless you have an increase on the amount that you borrowed or extended the outstanding term your existing policy should suffice. The new lender will need that policy to be assigned to them and if you took out the policy with a broker initially the broker will send new lender an up to date statement of benefits and your Solicitor will send on policy when the mortgage is redeemed.
Why did you have to get a new policy??

ILikeBoats wrote: »

Tell that to Zurich. We thought the same as you. Had to go through the whole rigmarole again

They actually pi$$ed me off so much that I started the mortgage protection process with a different crowd a few weeks after starting with Zurich. I had two applications going at the same time, we switched from Zurich about 2 weeks after putting it in place and will never use them again

rodge123

Inspector Coptoor wrote: »

Changed mortgage provider recently from BOI to KBC recently.

Rate changed from 3.0% to 2.3%.
Got €3k for changing which paid for solicitor and valuation and had around €1700 profit from that.

Mortgage payment is down €78 per
Month and term is down from 26 years remaining to 22 years remaining.

Projected savings over the 22 years are €77,000.

Yes, it’s hassle and there are a few hoops to jump through.
BUT....
It’s not “too much hassle” to switch.
It’s just the smart thing to do.
Money is better in your pocket than the banks

Nearly same as this.

Asked BOI to match KBC rate before switching and they offered a measly 0.1% off advertised rate. 3% BOI vs 2.25% from kbc, no brainer.

Was a pain switching but well worth it in long run.

Took all my accounts with me too and took out a small personal loan later with KBC too, BOI loss!

hanaimai

Trish56 wrote: »

You shouldn't have to update your mortgage protection unless you are extending the term or borrowing more than what you currently owe. Your mortgage protection policy would be assigned to your present lender so you just need to assign it to the new lender.

Just to add to this that if you take out the lender's group policy, then you won't be able to assign that to a new lender and will have to take out a new policy. Not sure if that's what's going on here, but I have seen people get caught by this before.