Remortgage
- We are humans, not robots
- We pride ourselves on being truly independent
- Get in touch and we'll call to discuss your requirements. Easy peasy.
Get in touch for a free, no-obligation chat about how we might be able to help you.
What's On This Page?
Get In Touch
Remortgage
Jamie Lewis from the Affinity Group gives us a recap on remortgaging.
What is a remortgage and how does the process of remortgaging work in the UK?
A remortgage is taking a property that is mortgaged with one lender and putting it with another. It’s a very similar process to the first time you got a mortgage. We are just applying to a new lender for that money.
How long does it take to remortgage and how often can I remortgage my property?
We like to talk to our clients about seven months before a remortgage. The process is similar to purchasing as it’s a new lender – we’re doing some legal work in the background and changing the charge on a property from one lender to another.
It’s best to start six or seven months ahead, but getting the mortgage paperwork and the mortgage offer out can be as quick as a week or two. Really, we want enough time to go through the legal process and make sure that everybody’s there well ahead of time.
What are the main reasons why people choose to remortgage? What factors should I consider when deciding whether to remortgage?
As a broker, we look for the cheapest option for our client, given the situation they’re currently in. A remortgage is an important piece of work – we just want to make sure our clients have the money in their bank account, and not in the bank’s.
The key factors include giving yourself enough time to do it. There isn’t the same urgency as with a house purchase, but the end of your current deal comes round really quickly. Don’t play it down. It’s as important as the first mortgage – so set aside time so you know what you’re doing when you get there.
What happens to my existing mortgage when I remortgage?
Your legal representative will repay your existing mortgage with your new mortgage, basically. If it’s £100,000 and your new lender lends you £100,000, the lawyer will get that in from Mr New Lender and pay off Mr Old Lender.
What happens if I don’t remortgage after my deal expires?
Your mortgage contract runs for the whole term. A mortgage might be for 25 years or longer, and you get a benefit period – for example, a fixed rate for five years.
After that, you will revert to the lender’s standard variable rate, which is usually higher than the fixed rate you’ve been paying. So, in general, that payment would go up. But there have been times in the past where those payments have gone down.
Some people are happy to come out and be on the standard variable rate – it gives them flexibility. But obviously, there’s no guarantee that rates will stay low. They can move. So we would always look at that for you.
Can I remortgage if I have bad credit?
Yes. Bad credit is not as bad as it seems. We like to rip the plaster off and look at it as quickly as we can to understand where the problems lie.
There are so many permutations of bad credit – it’s probably not as bad as you think. We’ll have a look and find a lender that suits.
Will I have to pay any fees or penalties when remortgaging?
Some lenders offer a free valuation or a free legal service, and some charge for those. Some brokers don’t charge, others do. It’s a hard one to answer.
Penalties will only come if you repay early and you are within your early repayment charge period.
How much could I potentially save by remortgaging?
A broker’s job is to put our client in the best position possible. It’s hard to give an exact number for what you could save, but clearly, making a saving is our regulatory responsibility. For a good, responsible broker who’s FCA registered, that’s what they have to do.
In some instances recently, we’ve actually been costing people money, which is not nice. We had some very cheap rates after Covid and they’ve been driven up quite a lot since.
Just for reference, we are recording this episode in February 2025 and all the information given is correct at the time of recording.
What documentation will I need to provide when remortgaging?
It’s very similar to the first time. We are going to ask for proof of income, identification, details of debts and bank statements. If you’re employed or self-employed it will differ slightly.
We’re going to a brand new lender who knows nothing about you, to paint a picture as to why they should lend you thousands of pounds.
People’s jobs may have changed, but generally it will be a similar setup to before – so we can go through that really quickly and take as much of that pain away as possible.
Speak to an Expert
Affinity is a mortgage broker, an insurance adviser, a commercial loans expert but more than this, we’re a great bunch of people.
Will I need a new valuation or survey when remortgaging?
Quite often, the mortgage companies do an automated valuation, based on a digital platform that stores the valuations of all the homes.
They want a valuation in a remortgage situation because this lender knows nothing about the property they’re lending against. Often these are free of charge. They will produce an AVR – an automated valuation report.
Is it harder to remortgage if I’m self-employed or a contractor?
No. The same principles apply with self-employed and contractors as the first time round. There is always a pay-away for the self-employed with tax mitigation and borrowing money.
That’s because an accountant’s job is to save money where they can. My job is to gain people as much borrowing as they can – so there’s always a pay-away.
While we tend to ask for seven months to get things arranged, if a remortgage is coming up for a self-employed person, we probably need to speak to you before you put your latest accounts forward. It’s certainly not harder, we just need to be a bit more organised.
What happens if my property value has decreased since I initially obtained my mortgage?
Your mortgage is on your house and they can’t take it away from you, so you will always have your original 25, 30 or 35 year mortgage contract in place.
If your value has decreased, it may stop you achieving a remortgage. It might mean that you are tied to your current lender for longer. But we can look at a product transfer with your current provider as opposed to a remortgage.
The larger lenders will offer you a new product at the end of a fixed or tracker deal. No one’s going to kick you out of your house or anything like that. It’s just going to limit you for a while in terms of switching to a new lender.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of fixed rate versus variable rate remortgages?
Put simply, you’ve got surety of repayment with a fixed rate. With a variable rate, it’s a riskier, more fluid option for your monthly mortgage payments.
There are wins with variable rates – in a decreasing interest rate market a variable rate could be something very positive. Whereas on a fixed rate, you’re locked in and you have a penalty to come away.
With a variable rate, your mortgage payment can go up or down, but the advantage is that you can repay any amount at any time without penalty.
Can I remortgage if I’m nearing retirement age?
Later life lending is an option to take people beyond retirement, in fact. Speak to a broker with the ability to advise you across the board. Affinity can certainly come up with a solution for you.
What else do we need to know about remortgaging?
The most important things are choosing the right broker at the outset and being organised around the refinance – a lot of which comes from the broking firm and ethos of that company.
All mortgage brokers can do the job. But does that broker have support around them? If I’m away on holiday, you want to know your remortgage will carry on.
It’s also vital that they’re super organised around that remortgage or refinance piece. You don’t want to pay more than you have to. So you’re choosing your mortgage broker, make sure they have a solution. Find out their approach at remortgage because that is a key factor for what you do and why.
THINK CAREFULLY BEFORE SECURING OTHER DEBTS AGAINST YOUR HOME.
YOU MAY HAVE TO PAY AN EARLY REPAYMENT CHARGE TO YOUR EXISTING LENDER IF YOU REMORTGAGE.
YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP WITH YOUR MORTGAGE REPAYMENTS.
