Mortgages
Mortgage Types
On this page of our site we will explain the main types of mortgages available and the potential advantages and disadvantages of each.
Repayment Mortgages
Also known as capital mortgages, Repayment mortgages are the traditional means of paying for a property so that eventually it becomes fully yours as a result of the payments. The term of a repayment mortgage is typically 25 years and at the end of that period you would, if payments have been kept up, owe nothing to the lender.
Your mortgage payments are divided into capital repayments which are repayments of the money you borrowed and interest payments which are repayments of the interest charged for the loan.
Every month you pay off some of the interest and some of the capital. The monthly repayments on a repayment mortgage will be greater than an equivalent interest only mortgage.
Please look at some Repayment Mortgage Options by visiting our Mortgage Tools pages or contact us for advice on repayment mortgages.
Interest Only Mortgages
As the name suggests with an interest only mortgage you are only paying off the interest on the loan. The capital remains unpaid.
Typically, interest only mortgages run alongside an investment. The idea being that the investment is used to pay off the mortgage at the end of its term or even provide a surplus.
The danger with this type of mortgage is that if the investment is unsuccessful, you would need to raise the funds to pay off the outstanding capital at the end of the term.
Proof of investment is no longer required by the majority of lenders for interest only mortgages.
Please check out some Interest Only Mortgage options by visiting our Mortgage Tools or contact us for advice on interest only mortgages.
Mortgage Interest
There are four main types of interest payment on either interest only or repayment type mortgages. On this page we will explain the workings of each of these interest charges:
Fixed Rate
Variable Rate
Capped Rate
Discount Variable Rate
Fixed rate - Fixed rate mortgages have an interest rate that remains the same for a period of time - usually between 1 and 5 years. After this period of time the interest rate reverts to a variable rate. The fixed rate is usually at a discount as an incentive to take out the mortgage.
The advantage of fixed rate mortgages is that there are no surprises for the duration of the fixed rate. The downside to this type of mortgage occurs if the Bank of England base rate or LIBOR rate falls, in which case you could end up paying more than you would have with a variable rate mortgage. Also if you want to leave before the agreed term the early repayment charges is usually significant. For example you may be charged six months gross interest if you leave a five-year fixed rate agreement.
Please visit our Mortgage Tools pages to see some examples of this type of mortgage.
Variable Rate - with a variable rate mortgage is where the interest rate varies according to the Bank of England base rate or the LIBOR rate. A lender's variable rate is set above the base rate by usually 1 or 2%.
With this type of mortgage the upside is the same as the downside; the interest rate can go down, saving you money, or up, in which case your interest payments increase.
Please visit our Mortgage Tools pages to see some examples of this type of mortgage.
Capped Rate - With a Capped rate mortgage the amount of interest you pay can go down if the variable rate falls but cannot go above a predefined maximum. The advantage is that the rate can never go too high and if the rate falls then you pay less.
The disadvantage of this type of mortgage is that there are only a limited number of these deals on the market and they can be less competitive than fixed or variable rates. There is also often an administration charge.
Please visit our Mortgage Tools pages to see some examples of this type of mortgage.
Discounted Variable Rates - As the name suggests, to tempt new customers, lenders will offer a variable rate at a reduced initial rate or below their standard variable rate. After the agreed period, again one to five years typically, the rate reverts to the lender's standard variable rate.
The interest rate during the discount period will go up and down in line with the standard variable rate. Disadvantages of this type of mortgage are obviously that the rate can go up and there are early repayment charges for leaving early. It is possible that early repayment charges may be charged for a period longer than the discount period. This is called overhang.
Please visit our Mortgage Tools pages to see some examples of this type of mortgage. For further information about interest rates on mortgages please contact us.
YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE
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