Dear Brenda,
My husband and I have had our mortgage at the same lender for years now, and we’re on their standard variable rate. I would like to try a different mortage product, but I’m not sure what to do. With the base rate at an all-time low, a tracker makes a lot of sense, but I’ve heard that inflationary pressures might force the Bank of England to put up the rate – so maybe it’s better to lock in on a rate now while we can.
My husband’s a bit of an old stick-in-the-mud, and says we should leave everything as it is, but I’m worried we might get caught out. I’m at my wit’s end! What should I do?
Confused, Harold
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Dear Confused,
With many lenders announcing increases in their standard variable rates, it’s certainly not a bad time to look around for a better deal. Fixed or Tracker very much depends on your attitude to risk and your personal circumstances. But do you have to choose? The Dunstable Building Society have released an innovative five-year tracker-to-fix mortgage that consists of a two-year tracker rate of 1.79% over the BoE rate (which would currently be 2.29%) followed by a three-year fix at an attractive 3.59%.
These hybrid deals have become popular with borrowers who want the best of both worlds – a tracker rate while base rate remains low, but the security of a future fix at a competitive rate. It’s a bit like having your cake and eating it.
It’s an approach to life that goes beyond mortgages, as I discovered when I was at college. I’d been living with my boyfriend for a few months, and I certainly had no complaints in the bedroom department, but at the same time, I was very strongly attracted to a Chinese girl in my study group. One night I was back at my flat, working on a complicated case study with her, when things got a little steamy. One thing led to another and before we knew it, we were stark naked, a frantic writhing knot of limbs on the floor. We were so busy exploring each other’s firm, moist bodies, that we hadn’t noticed my boyfriend coming home. I expected him to go mental, but to my surprise, he just joined in the fun!
To cut a long story short, we came to a ‘hybrid’ arrangement that satisfied us all, and I didn’t have to chose one or the other.
I guess what I’m saying, Sue, is that there might be scope to open you and your husband’s eyes to more than just a new mortgage. Let me know if you want me to drop round to give you some ideas.
Brenda
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