Everyone starts the new year with some resolutions, and homeowners are increasingly resolving to save money on their mortgage.

Image Credit

January is often the time that housing experts, banks and building societies release their house valuation figures, indicating how the market has moved, either up or down.

Consequently, the beginning of the year is a common time for homeowners to consider switching their mortgage provider. There are, however, a number of issues to take into consideration before making a decision.

The most important of these may be whether you simply wish to reduce your outgoings, or use the savings to add value to the property you live in. The movement of property prices in your area will also be crucial.

Bristol

To take one example, Bristol has recently become a hotspot for property price increases. Consequently, loft conversions in Bristol such as those provided by http://www.caineslofts.co.uk/ can not only increase living space but also generate sought-after added value without incurring moving costs, or losing ground space with an extension.

Image Credit

Standard Variable Rate

Many homeowners will look to simply reduce their outgoings, and this may mean switching lenders. This can be tricky as the most popular deals relate to fixed two-year rates. In many parts of the country a cooling housing market, combined with rising interest rates following the Bank of England hike in the base rate, could mean that previously popular great deals may be more difficult to find. This could lead to borrowers being forced onto their existing lender’s highest standard variable rate (SVR), which could mean a doubling of their starting loan rate. Additionally, almost 2 million borrowers are on an a SVR, some of whom could make a £4,000 annual saving by switching.

Information on interest rates can be found at https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/mortgage-lending-statistics. It remains the case that most people seek to re-mortgage once their current discounted rate deal ends. Until the Bank of England rate rise in 2017 lender changes were driven by the desire to stay ahead of the market. Is it still worth looking to re-mortgage?
Some industry experts believe that rates are still competitive, and so although record lows may have gone, good deals are still available. However, this may involve reducing the payment term. If you do decide to re-mortgage make sure that you shop around and check the offers from several different lenders.