Latest / A Little Bit Richer / Fix, Track or Switch? Your Guide to Remortgaging

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Fix, Track or Switch? Your Guide to Remortgaging · A Little Bit Richer

• 0:01
  Iona Bain: Hello, I'm Iona Bain and welcome to A Little Bit Richer,
• 0:05
  Iona Bain: brought to you by Legal & General. Now, if your current
• 0:07
  Iona Bain: mortgage deal is coming to an end or you're thinking
• 0:10
  Iona Bain: about switching things up, well, you're in luck because today
• 0:13
  Iona Bain: we're talking all about remortgaging. If you're worried about affordability,
• 0:17
  Iona Bain: thinking of fixing your rate or wondering how your current
• 0:20
  Iona Bain: life stage affects your options, we've got you covered. I'm
• 0:24
  Iona Bain: thrilled to welcome back friend of the show, Sarah Tucker,
• 0:27
  Iona Bain: better known as The Mortgage Mum. As a qualified advisor,
• 0:30
  Iona Bain: podcast host and trusted voice in the mortgage space, Sarah
• 0:34
  Iona Bain: has helped thousands of people feel more informed and empowered
• 0:38
  Iona Bain: about their financial decisions, whether they're buying their first home,
• 0:41
  Iona Bain: remortgaging or planning for the future. Sarah, welcome back. It's
• 0:45
  Iona Bain: great to have you with us.
• 0:46
  Sarah Tucker: Thank you. Thank you for having me. I'm excited.
• 0:49
  Iona Bain: So can you briefly explain what remortgaging is, and why
• 0:54
  Iona Bain: and when people do it?
• 0:55
  Sarah Tucker: Mm- hmm. Yes, so remortgaging is simply when you are
• 0:58
  Sarah Tucker: switching your mortgage deals. Gone are the days where you
• 1:02
  Sarah Tucker: get a mortgage for 30 years and you just stay with
• 1:05
  Sarah Tucker: the same bank until the end of your mortgage term.
• 1:08
  Sarah Tucker: You will generally have got a fixed rate or perhaps
• 1:11
  Sarah Tucker: a tracker rate, and that product will have an end
• 1:14
  Sarah Tucker: date, whether that's two years, five years, 10 years. And
• 1:17
  Sarah Tucker: remortgaging is when you're coming up to the end of
• 1:19
  Sarah Tucker: that date, we are going to put you onto a
• 1:21
  Sarah Tucker: new deal.
• 1:22
  Iona Bain: And remortgaging has become particularly important in the last few years.
• 1:27
  Sarah Tucker: Yes.
• 1:28
  Iona Bain: Can you tell us why?
• 1:29
  Sarah Tucker: Remortgaging has been difficult for a lot of people in the
• 1:32
  Sarah Tucker: last few years. So taking you right back to COVID,
• 1:35
  Sarah Tucker: the interest rates were extremely low. We call them COVID
• 1:39
  Sarah Tucker: cheap rates in the industry, and people fixed those for
• 1:43
  Sarah Tucker: two years or five years. And in 2022, we saw
• 1:47
  Sarah Tucker: a huge increase in the swap rates after Liz Truss
• 1:50
  Sarah Tucker: made an announcement, which is quite infamous in our industry
• 1:53
  Sarah Tucker: now as a pivotal moment where we saw rates increase
• 1:57
  Sarah Tucker: dramatically. They have come down quite a bit since then,
• 2:00
  Sarah Tucker: but they're still a lot higher than they were in
• 2:03
  Sarah Tucker: the COVID cheap times. We are creeping towards our new
• 2:07
  Sarah Tucker: normal in the rate market, and so in terms of
• 2:10
  Sarah Tucker: a remortgage, it's about timing. Some people had incredibly difficult
• 2:16
  Sarah Tucker: timing where the rates were very, very high and they
• 2:19
  Sarah Tucker: were coming off those cheapest rates. But the good news
• 2:23
  Sarah Tucker: is anyone that's looking for a remortgage now, or in
• 2:25
  Sarah Tucker: the next year or two, should not have as much
• 2:28
  Sarah Tucker: of a shock, and may even have a decrease in
• 2:31
  Sarah Tucker: their rate if they're someone that remortgaged two years ago
• 2:34
  Sarah Tucker: when things were very difficult and may be coming off
• 2:37
  Sarah Tucker: of those very high rates onto a slightly better one.
• 2:40
  Sarah Tucker: So we've got all sorts of scenarios on our desks
• 2:42
  Sarah Tucker: at the moment.
• 2:43
  Iona Bain: Mm. So if people have already had to do that painful
• 2:46
  Iona Bain: remortgage in recent times, there may be slightly better news
• 2:51
  Iona Bain: ahead for them. Let's wait and see.
• 2:52
  Sarah Tucker: Yes.
• 2:53
  Iona Bain: To fix or not to fix? That is the question.
• 2:56
  Iona Bain: I think fixed rate mortgages have become really, really popular,
• 3:00
  Iona Bain: but there is an alternative which is to track the base
• 3:03
  Iona Bain: rate instead. Can you talk us through the pros and
• 3:05
  Iona Bain: cons of each option?
• 3:07
  Sarah Tucker: Absolutely. So the fixed rate market, you're right, has become
• 3:11
  Sarah Tucker: much more popular, and I believe that's because people craving
• 3:14
  Sarah Tucker: control and certainty. So with a fixed rate, you are buying
• 3:18
  Sarah Tucker: a rate for a period of time and you have
• 3:22
  Sarah Tucker: complete certainty as to what you're paying. You know exactly
• 3:25
  Sarah Tucker: where you stand with that rate every month until the
• 3:27
  Sarah Tucker: end of that product. The downside of a fixed rate is
• 3:30
  Sarah Tucker: that there's no flexibility or little flexibility. So if you
• 3:33
  Sarah Tucker: want to move house or you want to sell the
• 3:35
  Sarah Tucker: property, you are going to pay an early repayment charge
• 3:38
  Sarah Tucker: unless you take the mortgage with you. The tracker rate
• 3:40
  Sarah Tucker: environment is becoming more popular now because we're hearing reports
• 3:44
  Sarah Tucker: of the Bank of England base rate reducing. They've reduced
• 3:46
  Sarah Tucker: it a few times already this year, and investors think
• 3:50
  Sarah Tucker: that they will do it more than 2025. So those people
• 3:53
  Sarah Tucker: on a tracker rate immediately benefit because their rate tracks the
• 3:56
  Sarah Tucker: Bank of England base rate. So if it goes up,
• 3:58
  Sarah Tucker: it goes up, and if it comes down, it comes
• 4:00
  Sarah Tucker: down with it. The great thing with the tracker rate is
• 4:02
  Sarah Tucker: it's flexible. So just to put it in perspective for
• 4:05
  Sarah Tucker: myself, I've come up from my remortgage and I thought, "
• 4:08
  Sarah Tucker: I think I'm going to move in the next two
• 4:10
  Sarah Tucker: years. I don't know when, but I think I'm going to."
• 4:13
  Sarah Tucker: So I've done a tracker rate mortgage and I also
• 4:15
  Sarah Tucker: feel confident in the market, so I am happy to
• 4:18
  Sarah Tucker: take that risk, but there are people out there that
• 4:20
  Sarah Tucker: wouldn't be happy to risk the fact that their monthly
• 4:23
  Sarah Tucker: payment could go up as well as down. But for
• 4:25
  Sarah Tucker: me, because of my moving situation, it makes sense. For
• 4:28
  Sarah Tucker: anyone trying to decide to fix or not to fix,
• 4:31
  Sarah Tucker: I would be looking to ask them some questions such
• 4:34
  Sarah Tucker: as, do you think you'll move in the next few
• 4:36
  Sarah Tucker: years? Is there any big changes ahead that perhaps a
• 4:40
  Sarah Tucker: fixed rate might limit you in flexibility- wise? What is
• 4:43
  Sarah Tucker: your attitude to risk? Let's talk about how much room
• 4:46
  Sarah Tucker: you've got, wiggle room, in terms of your monthly payment
• 4:49
  Sarah Tucker: and how you'd feel if the rate went up a
• 4:51
  Sarah Tucker: little bit or down. So it's all about talking to
• 4:55
  Sarah Tucker: people about the life around the mortgage and that's how
• 4:57
  Sarah Tucker: we decide if it's fix or not to fix.
• 4:59
  Iona Bain: That's really interesting because a tracker mortgage, it sounds like
• 5:03
  Iona Bain: that can potentially help you keep your options open.
• 5:06
  Sarah Tucker: Yes.
• 5:06
  Iona Bain: So if you are looking to move or there is
• 5:09
  Iona Bain: a change in your situation, that there aren't going to
• 5:11
  Iona Bain: be extra fees involved with having to change your mortgage
• 5:16
  Iona Bain: as opposed to with a fixed rate mortgage.
• 5:18
  Sarah Tucker: Absolutely. We have to start with you. What's happening in
• 5:21
  Sarah Tucker: your world? Then we look at what's happening in the
• 5:23
  Sarah Tucker: economic world.
• 5:24
  Iona Bain: That is always a good idea.
• 5:26
  Sarah Tucker: Yes.
• 5:26
  Iona Bain: Start with your own situation.
• 5:28
  Sarah Tucker: Start with you first.
• 5:29
  Iona Bain: (inaudible) good idea. How might a change in your
• 5:32
  Iona Bain: own situation affect you if you're remortgaging?
• 5:36
  Sarah Tucker: Good question. I think a lot of people have this
• 5:39
  Sarah Tucker: if they've had a change of job or perhaps if you've
• 5:41
  Sarah Tucker: had a baby in the last two years or five
• 5:44
  Sarah Tucker: years, a lot can happen. When you fix a rate,
• 5:46
  Sarah Tucker: it's a really weird feeling because you don't know what's going
• 5:48
  Sarah Tucker: to happen in the next two years or five years,
• 5:50
  Sarah Tucker: but what you are doing is saying, " I will live
• 5:52
  Sarah Tucker: here, and I will pay this mortgage, and I will
• 5:55
  Sarah Tucker: not leave for that period of time." And relationships break
• 5:57
  Sarah Tucker: down, all sorts of things can happen. Well, I'll touch
• 6:00
  Sarah Tucker: on the childcare one, if you have a baby, because
• 6:03
  Sarah Tucker: that's an easy answer. You can still remortgage if you're
• 6:06
  Sarah Tucker: on maternity leave, if you've had a child. If you've
• 6:09
  Sarah Tucker: had a change in income, we're going to obviously look
• 6:11
  Sarah Tucker: at your application fresh and we'll say, " What are you earning
• 6:13
  Sarah Tucker: now? What's your situation now?" We'll look at your mortgage
• 6:16
  Sarah Tucker: affordability and you have two choices always. One is to
• 6:20
  Sarah Tucker: remortgage away from your lender, and the other is to
• 6:22
  Sarah Tucker: stay with your lender and just switch the product. Switching
• 6:25
  Sarah Tucker: your product has a lot less underwriting and a lot
• 6:28
  Sarah Tucker: less of a process. So some people opt for that
• 6:30
  Sarah Tucker: for ease, but it's good to check the rest of
• 6:33
  Sarah Tucker: the market to make sure that you're with the best
• 6:35
  Sarah Tucker: lender. But certainly if you've had a big life change,
• 6:38
  Sarah Tucker: I think it's just reassuring for people to know they
• 6:40
  Sarah Tucker: can stick with their current lender if they don't want
• 6:43
  Sarah Tucker: to go through the underwriting and perhaps feel a bit
• 6:45
  Sarah Tucker: anxious about doing so. Any change in your income obviously
• 6:49
  Sarah Tucker: will affect your ability to pay your mortgage potentially, hopefully
• 6:52
  Sarah Tucker: for the better. For most people it's for the better.
• 6:55
  Sarah Tucker: But I think for people worrying, what we see is
• 6:57
  Sarah Tucker: a lot of people don't ring their bank. They don't
• 6:59
  Sarah Tucker: switch the rate. They go onto what's called a standard
• 7:02
  Sarah Tucker: variable rate. They pay a lot more money and they
• 7:05
  Sarah Tucker: don't talk to us because they're worried. What if I talk
• 7:08
  Sarah Tucker: to an advisor, and then they tell me I can't
• 7:11
  Sarah Tucker: have my mortgage and they take my house away? That
• 7:13
  Sarah Tucker: is not going to happen. So my biggest message is,
• 7:17
  Sarah Tucker: go and speak to... Hopefully the advisor you used in
• 7:19
  Sarah Tucker: the first place is the one to contact you six
• 7:21
  Sarah Tucker: months before your rate ends, and just tell them what's
• 7:24
  Sarah Tucker: going on right now for you, what's happened in the
• 7:26
  Sarah Tucker: last few years and let them guide you through.
• 7:28
  Iona Bain: Yeah, because the standard variable rate is not going to be
• 7:31
  Iona Bain: a good deal for you.
• 7:32
  Sarah Tucker: It's not. It's the highest option out of the three and
• 7:36
  Sarah Tucker: you can be talking about hundreds of pounds a month
• 7:38
  Sarah Tucker: more. And so many people are on it.
• 7:40
  Iona Bain: That's crazy.
• 7:41
  Sarah Tucker: This is what's crazy, 1. 8 million people coming off
• 7:45
  Sarah Tucker: of their fixed rate deals and I'm... There will be
• 7:47
  Sarah Tucker: a huge number that do nothing. And that is a
• 7:51
  Sarah Tucker: mission for us to try and get through to those
• 7:53
  Sarah Tucker: people and say, " Don't do nothing because then you're just
• 7:55
  Sarah Tucker: going to switch onto the variable rate."
• 7:56
  Iona Bain: Yeah, because it's crazy, but it's a very, very understandable
• 7:59
  Iona Bain: mistake to make whereby you just think, " Hang on a
• 8:02
  Iona Bain: second, I've really got no choice but to do this."
• 8:04
  Iona Bain: Whereas you're making it clear, no, it doesn't have to
• 8:06
  Iona Bain: be like that.
• 8:07
  Sarah Tucker: Yeah, and I think if you just, as somebody that perhaps
• 8:10
  Sarah Tucker: isn't engaged in mortgages, probably-
• 8:12
  Iona Bain: (inaudible) .
• 8:12
  Sarah Tucker: ... don't read mortgage information for fun like me, and
• 8:15
  Sarah Tucker: maybe just have heard in the press, mortgage rates have
• 8:18
  Sarah Tucker: gone up and you don't really understand. You might just
• 8:21
  Sarah Tucker: look at your bank statement and go, " Oh, yeah, it's
• 8:23
  Sarah Tucker: nightmare. My mortgage has gone up by 500 pounds. What
• 8:26
  Sarah Tucker: a terrible market we're in," and not realize, that's not
• 8:29
  Sarah Tucker: the norm. Yes, the rates have gone up, but you
• 8:31
  Sarah Tucker: don't just need to sit and let it fall onto your
• 8:34
  Sarah Tucker: rate, and there's no judgment if you do. Just pick
• 8:36
  Sarah Tucker: up the phone, decide today that you're going to change
• 8:39
  Sarah Tucker: that and look into it.
• 8:40
  Iona Bain: That's a very good point. Even if you are on
• 8:42
  Iona Bain: a standard variable rate, you can end that today.
• 8:45
  Sarah Tucker: Yeah.
• 8:45
  Iona Bain: It's not too late.
• 8:46
  Sarah Tucker: Yeah, exactly, and save yourself immediate money, hopefully.
• 8:49
  Iona Bain: That's a great shout. How far in advance should people
• 8:51
  Iona Bain: be thinking about remortgaging?
• 8:53
  Sarah Tucker: Okay, so it used to be three months before, but
• 8:55
  Sarah Tucker: we now say six months before. And the reason we say
• 8:58
  Sarah Tucker: that is the rate market has moved around quite a
• 9:01
  Sarah Tucker: bit and we are still seeing it move now. So
• 9:04
  Sarah Tucker: there's fluctuation and that's because of things like Trump and
• 9:07
  Sarah Tucker: his tariffs, and world news. All of these things affect
• 9:11
  Sarah Tucker: the confidence in the market and that affects the interest
• 9:14
  Sarah Tucker: rates. So if you look at it six months before,
• 9:17
  Sarah Tucker: the benefit of that is, you know your worst case
• 9:20
  Sarah Tucker: scenario. You know you're sorted. You know it's organized, and
• 9:23
  Sarah Tucker: then it's up to your advisor to just check the
• 9:25
  Sarah Tucker: rate movements for you. And we have great tech in
• 9:28
  Sarah Tucker: the background that does it to help us, that will
• 9:31
  Sarah Tucker: constantly check our pipeline of clients to make sure they've
• 9:34
  Sarah Tucker: got the best rate because the rates are always moving.
• 9:37
  Sarah Tucker: So six months before is going to give you time
• 9:39
  Sarah Tucker: to do that. It does take people a while to
• 9:41
  Sarah Tucker: get their paperwork together. We're busy. We're busy people. Getting
• 9:44
  Sarah Tucker: your payslips and your bank statements together, it's a pain
• 9:47
  Sarah Tucker: for people, but it's well worth doing. It's like that
• 9:50
  Sarah Tucker: annoying job you keep putting off. Once you get started,
• 9:53
  Sarah Tucker: downloading your PDFs, logging into your bank accounts, it's not
• 9:56
  Sarah Tucker: as bad as it seems and you do feel really
• 9:59
  Sarah Tucker: empowered, because I think a remortgage is a really good
• 10:02
  Sarah Tucker: little life review, to be honest. How's it going? How's
• 10:06
  Sarah Tucker: your budgeting going? Have you got any savings? Can we
• 10:08
  Sarah Tucker: shorten the term a bit? Could we pay a little
• 10:10
  Sarah Tucker: bit more off a month? It's a really great time
• 10:13
  Sarah Tucker: to go, "How are we... Yeah, we've (inaudible) property."
• 10:15
  Iona Bain: (inaudible) for your finances.
• 10:15
  Sarah Tucker: Exactly.
• 10:15
  Iona Bain: Yeah.
• 10:17
  Sarah Tucker: So lean into the process and you'll get something good
• 10:20
  Sarah Tucker: out of it.
• 10:20
  Iona Bain: Yeah. Circle that date in your calendar, six months before
• 10:23
  Iona Bain: your deal's coming up for renewal. Great tip. Also, are
• 10:27
  Iona Bain: people maybe remortgaging so they can improve their home rather
• 10:31
  Iona Bain: than move?
• 10:32
  Sarah Tucker: We are seeing this a lot as well. Yes, and
• 10:34
  Sarah Tucker: the reason why I think is the stamp duty increase
• 10:37
  Sarah Tucker: has made a difference in people budgeting for moving and
• 10:41
  Sarah Tucker: being a bit more creative with the space that they
• 10:43
  Sarah Tucker: have. I don't know what it's like in your area,
• 10:46
  Sarah Tucker: but I can't walk down one road without seeing so
• 10:48
  Sarah Tucker: many builders everywhere. I don't know enough about the build
• 10:51
  Sarah Tucker: industry to know if prices have come down. I know
• 10:53
  Sarah Tucker: they went up hugely for people doing extensions, but we
• 10:57
  Sarah Tucker: are seeing a lot more people, yes, remortgaging to improve
• 11:00
  Sarah Tucker: their home or even to consolidate debts. Just being a
• 11:03
  Sarah Tucker: bit more creative with the remortgage process, looking at it
• 11:07
  Sarah Tucker: as a financial review and seeing what opportunities there might
• 11:10
  Sarah Tucker: be in that process.
• 11:12
  Iona Bain: Are people still dreaming about being able to pay off
• 11:15
  Iona Bain: their mortgage even if for many it's a pipe dream?
• 11:19
  Iona Bain: And are some people overpaying their mortgage, say when they
• 11:22
  Iona Bain: get a lump sum?
• 11:23
  Sarah Tucker: Yeah.
• 11:24
  Iona Bain: And if that's the case, then what are the things
• 11:26
  Iona Bain: that people need to be aware of if they are
• 11:28
  Iona Bain: still looking to pay down their mortgage as quickly as
• 11:31
  Iona Bain: they can?
• 11:32
  Sarah Tucker: There's definitely a rise in creators online who are creatively
• 11:36
  Sarah Tucker: showing people how they're paying off their mortgage, even if
• 11:39
  Sarah Tucker: they're 20 years away. And there is a whole market
• 11:42
  Sarah Tucker: out there who's really interested in that. I think again,
• 11:45
  Sarah Tucker: if you come back to the psychology, people just want
• 11:47
  Sarah Tucker: to feel secure, but not everybody. There is, I would
• 11:50
  Sarah Tucker: say, a complete split between people who are like, " Ugh,
• 11:53
  Sarah Tucker: paying your mortgage off, whatever. It doesn't matter. As long
• 11:56
  Sarah Tucker: as I can afford it, I want to keep growing,
• 11:58
  Sarah Tucker: getting a bigger property or being aspirational." And there are other people that are like, "
• 12:01
  Sarah Tucker: I just want to feel secure. I want to know
• 12:03
  Sarah Tucker: this is mine. I don't want someone to be able
• 12:05
  Sarah Tucker: to take it away from me." For those people, I
• 12:07
  Sarah Tucker: think if you're making overpayments, just make sure you're keeping
• 12:10
  Sarah Tucker: within the realms of possibility for your mortgage. So some
• 12:13
  Sarah Tucker: lenders let you make unlimited overpayments, some don't. Some say, "
• 12:17
  Sarah Tucker: 10%, then you'll get charged." How dare you for paying
• 12:20
  Sarah Tucker: off your mortgage? And if you do come into a
• 12:23
  Sarah Tucker: windfall of money and you want to pay off your
• 12:25
  Sarah Tucker: mortgage, your early repayment charge will still apply. So you think, "
• 12:28
  Sarah Tucker: I'll win the lottery. I'll pay my mortgage off." Well,
• 12:30
  Sarah Tucker: you might want to wait until the end of your
• 12:31
  Sarah Tucker: early repayment charge. You might not care. It depends how
• 12:33
  Sarah Tucker: much you win. But it's just a personal decision always.
• 12:37
  Sarah Tucker: Obviously, paying off your mortgage is our job to try
• 12:39
  Sarah Tucker: and get people to do that, work towards that day
• 12:42
  Sarah Tucker: where you're mortgage free, whatever that means for you. But
• 12:46
  Sarah Tucker: speaking really openly, I think there are other ways to
• 12:49
  Sarah Tucker: use your money as well, and I'm not an investor
• 12:52
  Sarah Tucker: and I'm not promoting investment products, but you can invest
• 12:55
  Sarah Tucker: your money in stocks and shares ISA, and that might
• 12:57
  Sarah Tucker: grow better than saving on your mortgage rate. And we're seeing
• 13:01
  Sarah Tucker: a bit more of that as well. Bit more of
• 13:03
  Sarah Tucker: that entrepreneurial mindset when it comes to movement of money,
• 13:07
  Sarah Tucker: buying further properties, thinking about retirement differently. It's not just
• 13:12
  Sarah Tucker: about adding to your pension anymore. People are like, " How
• 13:14
  Sarah Tucker: can I retire differently and what does that need to
• 13:17
  Sarah Tucker: look like?" And of course, pensions are important. I really
• 13:21
  Sarah Tucker: encourage people to really educate themselves in their own scenarios.
• 13:25
  Sarah Tucker: I've done it myself where I say, " I want this
• 13:27
  Sarah Tucker: much month to month when I retire. I'm retiring at
• 13:30
  Sarah Tucker: this age. What would I need to put into my
• 13:32
  Sarah Tucker: pension pot? I'm 40 years old." And it's great because
• 13:35
  Sarah Tucker: it gives you a bit of a frame of reference.
• 13:37
  Sarah Tucker: Obviously a financial advisor will do that even better. So
• 13:40
  Sarah Tucker: it's about thinking about your own personal goals and it's
• 13:43
  Sarah Tucker: all too easy. I was someone that just like, oh,
• 13:46
  Sarah Tucker: yeah, pension, oh, retiring, paying off your mortgage, it's years
• 13:51
  Sarah Tucker: away. It's so many years away, but the years go
• 13:53
  Sarah Tucker: quickly and it's really important to think ahead, and it's
• 13:57
  Sarah Tucker: actually empowering in its own way and exciting in its
• 14:00
  Sarah Tucker: own way.
• 14:00
  Iona Bain: And on the flip side, there will be people who
• 14:03
  Iona Bain: will not be able to overpay their mortgage. In fact,
• 14:05
  Iona Bain: what they'll need to do is extend their mortgage. What
• 14:09
  Iona Bain: advice do you give people who might be looking for
• 14:11
  Iona Bain: ways to make their mortgage more affordable over the long term?
• 14:15
  Sarah Tucker: You're going to not be surprised to hear that I
• 14:16
  Sarah Tucker: say, definitely speak to somebody because that anxiety can take
• 14:21
  Sarah Tucker: such a hold over you, especially when it comes to
• 14:23
  Sarah Tucker: money. And we've held a lot of people through those
• 14:27
  Sarah Tucker: really horrible conversations of realizing they've got to find X
• 14:32
  Sarah Tucker: amount more a month for a mortgage that they don't
• 14:34
  Sarah Tucker: often think about. They don't get anything extra for that
• 14:37
  Sarah Tucker: money. They're not releasing equity for that money. They're just
• 14:39
  Sarah Tucker: paying more for the same borrowing. For people to just
• 14:43
  Sarah Tucker: lose hundreds of pounds a month, it's not nice. And
• 14:45
  Sarah Tucker: for some people, whilst on paper they can afford it,
• 14:48
  Sarah Tucker: that creates a huge amount of stress and anxiety because
• 14:51
  Sarah Tucker: we all tend to live within our means and we
• 14:55
  Sarah Tucker: get used to the money we have. So our job
• 14:58
  Sarah Tucker: has been and continues to be looking at that monthly
• 15:01
  Sarah Tucker: budget with someone, with a third party perspective and saying, "
• 15:05
  Sarah Tucker: Okay, you've got seven subscriptions. Is there any of those
• 15:08
  Sarah Tucker: we can let go of? Have you reviewed your energy
• 15:11
  Sarah Tucker: bills? Have you spoken to other providers?" Some people, they
• 15:14
  Sarah Tucker: are used to having a car, for example, or a
• 15:16
  Sarah Tucker: second car. And it is challenging to challenge people on
• 15:20
  Sarah Tucker: what their normal is in a really kind but affirmative
• 15:24
  Sarah Tucker: way because ultimately we're just trying to show them that
• 15:28
  Sarah Tucker: there are tweaks that can make, and you can often
• 15:31
  Sarah Tucker: make a percentage change on your budgeting if somebody just
• 15:35
  Sarah Tucker: has a look at it with you and says, " Could
• 15:37
  Sarah Tucker: we do this?" Now, practically, if we've done that and
• 15:40
  Sarah Tucker: we've exhausted all the options there, and you're still saying
• 15:42
  Sarah Tucker: to me, " I'm worried about this, I can't do it."
• 15:44
  Sarah Tucker: We can look at your mortgage term and we can
• 15:47
  Sarah Tucker: extend it. So just as people shorten it, people do
• 15:49
  Sarah Tucker: extend it, if they're on maternity leave, or they've got
• 15:52
  Sarah Tucker: reduced income, or they've been poorly, or just simply that
• 15:56
  Sarah Tucker: they don't feel comfortable with the new rate. As long as
• 15:59
  Sarah Tucker: we're talking about, okay, well, by adding that time on
• 16:01
  Sarah Tucker: you're going to pay more over the long run, and
• 16:04
  Sarah Tucker: we've explained all of that, it's our job to keep
• 16:06
  Sarah Tucker: reviewing that. The idea is that, again, in five years,
• 16:09
  Sarah Tucker: maybe when the children are older or they're in a
• 16:11
  Sarah Tucker: different position, we can reduce the term again. So it's
• 16:14
  Sarah Tucker: our job to really flex and bend with our clients.
• 16:17
  Sarah Tucker: Yeah, I would say if you are someone, and probably
• 16:20
  Sarah Tucker: you're in the majority, less people worrying about how can
• 16:23
  Sarah Tucker: I pay my mortgage off, more people are worrying about
• 16:25
  Sarah Tucker: the interest rates increasing, then just make sure you're getting
• 16:28
  Sarah Tucker: the right advice.
• 16:29
  Iona Bain: Yeah. So make sure you get yourself a new deal
• 16:31
  Iona Bain: that works for you.
• 16:32
  Sarah Tucker: Absolutely.
• 16:33
  Iona Bain: So finally, Sarah, have you got three top tips for
• 16:38
  Iona Bain: folks who are locking in a new mortgage deal?
• 16:41
  Sarah Tucker: Leave yourself plenty of time. Speak to someone six months
• 16:45
  Sarah Tucker: before, as I've said all the way through. So leave
• 16:47
  Sarah Tucker: yourself plenty of time because it is another admin task
• 16:50
  Sarah Tucker: and I want you to think into it. So the
• 16:52
  Sarah Tucker: more time you have to do that, the better. Be open-
• 16:55
  Sarah Tucker: minded about solutions that you might not have thought of
• 16:58
  Sarah Tucker: or little tweaks to your monthly budgeting that might really
• 17:01
  Sarah Tucker: help. And as always, use an advisor. Use someone that
• 17:05
  Sarah Tucker: you trust to have an open conversation with, and if
• 17:08
  Sarah Tucker: you are worried about something, say it. It is just as
• 17:11
  Sarah Tucker: much an emotional advice service as anything else. So just
• 17:14
  Sarah Tucker: make sure you feel comfortable enough to say that to
• 17:16
  Sarah Tucker: the person that's dealing with your remortgage. And the other
• 17:20
  Sarah Tucker: tip, I would say, is don't just go to your
• 17:22
  Sarah Tucker: bank or building society. Don't be tempted to just switch
• 17:25
  Sarah Tucker: your rate. Look at what else is on the market
• 17:28
  Sarah Tucker: because you might be surprised at how different it could be.
• 17:31
  Iona Bain: Play the field. Why not?
• 17:31
  Sarah Tucker: Yeah, play the field.
• 17:34
  Iona Bain: Thank you so much.
• 17:35
  Sarah Tucker: Thank you.
• 17:36
  Iona Bain: Sarah, it's just really great to know that we've got
• 17:39
  Iona Bain: so many options at our fingertips. So thank you for
• 17:42
  Iona Bain: guiding us through all that. I would love it if
• 17:44
  Iona Bain: you could follow the podcast, leave us a review and
• 17:46
  Iona Bain: help others get a little bit richer too. This podcast
• 17:49
  Iona Bain: is brought to you by L& G. You can keep
• 17:51
  Iona Bain: up with the show on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram, @ legalandgeneral. Until next time, happy
• 17:57
  Iona Bain: house hunting and see you soon.