Your current lender’s fixed rate is due to expire and you’re going to move on to the variable rate; or perhaps you want to raise money for home improvements or for debt consolidation. These are typical times where people look to remortgage.

Alternatively, there might be a change in family circumstances that mean you need a new mortgage deal. The key one at the moment is when your current fixed rate is due to end. In the current climate, where rates are almost certainly higher than they were when you arranged your mortgage deal, it’s important to start thinking about remortgaging and reserving a rate up to six months before your current fixed rate ends.

About six months before your current deal expires. Whether you switch lenders or take another product with your existing lender, usually they are valid for six months. As I said earlier, with regard to the rate changes that are happening at the moment it’s always good to try and reserve something as soon as you can.

Then, if rates increase, you’ve got a good deal. Or, if rates start to reduce, a broker such as ourselves will monitor the rates going forward and will move you to a lower rate if one is available.

There are lots of reasons to remortgage. It might be that you want to add an extension to your home or consolidate some debts. When rates were historically low during Covid, lots of people were coming out of their existing mortgages to gain a better rate, because they would save quite substantial sums.

Last autumn when interest rates started to rise quite rapidly, many people remortgaged early to secure a rate before they went up.

If you think now is a good time to remortgage, just pick up the phone to us. We can always give you advice that’s most suitable for you. It only takes five minutes to assess your situation and decide whether now is a good time or perhaps if it might be worth waiting.

Being prepared is important. Make sure your credit profile is up to date. A lot of lenders will now immediately decline any application if you’re not on the electoral roll, so ensure you’re registered to vote where you’re residing.

Have your proof of income ready and get a credit report or a breakdown of your credit commitments. Once we’ve got that information we can put that through our system. We deal with 101 lenders so we can run it through and come back to you with some options that will hopefully put you in a better position.

The banks all have different criteria and assess people’s individual circumstances differently. What one bank may lend you will be totally different to another lender. If you just concentrate on dealing with your bank there is only one set of criteria to meet – and often your circumstances will not allow you to do what you want to do.

Meanwhile there may well be another high street bank that will accept your circumstances and lend you what you require. It may well be at a cheaper rate or have a lower arrangement fee, or it might have free valuation or cashback or other bits and pieces.

By talking to a whole-of-market independent broker like ourselves you have access to over 100 lenders and our expertise to place you with the most suitable deal.

If you’ve had a change in circumstances and you feel it might not necessarily put you in a good position for a remortgage, do speak to us. Every lender’s criteria is different. You might have done a bit of ‘Googling’ and think that because you’ve gone from employed to self-employed, for example, you now can’t get a mortgage.

But actually, there’s a chance that with a different lender, we can find you a mortgage for your situation.

The worst-case scenario is that if there aren’t any other options, as long as your mortgage payments are up to date we can speak to your existing lender and renegotiate a rate with them.