As Brian Murphy, Head of Lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau explains, “An interest rate rise of 0.25% will take the bank rate up to 0.5%, which is still a very low figure. However, even just the hint of an interest rate change has already prompted a plethora of lenders including Barclays, Natwest, Nationwide, Halifax and Santander to withdraw some of the lowest rates that were previously available on the market, and a rate rise would undoubtedly have a further impact on product availability.”

Brian continues, “For example, just two weeks ago, there were a number of 2 year fixed rate products available for remortgage customers that were below 1%, and by comparison just a fortnight later, we are now seeing lows of circa 1.12% for 2 year fixed deals, together with similar increases across 3 and 5 year fixed deals.”    

So how do you beat the deadline and bag a rock bottom mortgage rate before they go up? 

Well, it’s possible but you’ll need to get yourself organised and make sure your paperwork is ready to go from the outset to ensure that the process moves as quickly and smoothly as possible and, crucially, ensure that you get your new rate agreed before the 2nd November.  

EXPRESS•Getty

 

The main thing that will slow down your application is not having all your documents ready for submission to your broker or lender, so if you can ensure you have everything to hand before you start, that’s going to help your chances significantly in terms of achieving a swift remortgage, which can be achieved in many cases within three weeks, but only if you’re organised. 

Get your paperwork together 

Before you go and see a mortgage adviser, one of the most important jobs you can do is to get yourself organised with the various pieces of important documentation you’ll need to present.  They vary slightly depending if you’re employed or self-employed but having them all in place as early as possible will help you to complete your remortgage in the shortest time possible: 

If you’re employed: 

• Three months of recent payslips 

• Your last P60

• Three months of recent bank statements 

• Two utility bills to prove your current address (these can’t include a mobile phone bill) 

• Your passport OR birth certificate

If you’re self-employed: 

• Three years’ of audited accounts, signed off by a qualified accountant (some lenders will accept two years, but check before you go to your meeting with the mortgage adviser to be sure) 

• Three years of your SA032 – this is the document issued from HMRC to prove how much tax you’ve paid, so supports your earnings claim

• Three months of recent bank statements 

• Two utility bills to prove your current address (these can’t include a mobile phone bill) 

• Your passport OR birth certificate

Also, make sure you know what any direct debits or standing orders are for and have the balances to hand for any outstanding credit cards, store cards, personal loans or personal finance.  Again, this is all information your adviser will need and will ask you for, so if you want your remortgage to go through quickly, have this information ready as well so that you don’t create a needless delay in the process because you didn’t know and have to go away and find out. 

Check your current deal

Speak to your current lender as soon as you can before you start the remortgage process to establish exactly how much you owe on your existing mortgage and also to request a copy of your mortgage statement so that you’ve got your mortgage account details to hand, as your adviser will need these details for your new remortgage application.  Finally, it’s advisable to check with your existing lender to determine whether there are any early repayment charges (ERCs), and if so find out on what date you will be able to repay the mortgage without incurring charges. 

Follow Louisa on Twitter: @louisafletcher 

www.express.co.uk