Re-mortgaging - Weighing up the options

Put simply, the process of remortgaging is transferring your outstanding mortgage debt from your existing loan to a new loan without moving home. In fact, you may not even move from one lender to another. You may remortgage either to save money or to release a cash sum if your home is worth more than your existing debt. Your mortgage is likely to be your biggest financial commitment. It is important to regularly review it to ensure it is still appropriate to your circumstances.

Why you may want to remortgage

There are two basic reasons behind a decision to remortgage. You may be looking to save money by paying a lower interest rate on your debt or you may want to take advantage of the fact that your property is worth substantially more than your outstanding debt i.e. cash in some of the equity in your home. By remortgaging you could:

• obtain a better mortgage rate, saving on your monthly outgoings 
• release equity in your property to pay for home improvements more cheaply than by using a personal loan 
• consolidate existing shorter-term debts that carry higher interest rates, thus reducing your monthly outgoings 

  Is remortgaging right for you?
  There are times when it will be obvious that you can save money by remortgaging.
  
  Currently, many homeowners with good discounted mortgage schemes taken out a few years ago are coming to an end in an environment of higher interest rates.

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