When looking for a mortgage deal it can be important to shop around, and use mortgage tables to compare rates from different lenders. There are plenty of different mortgages to choose from, but it is a big decision, so it is usually important to make sure you are well informed before you decide which one to go for.
There are a number of main types of mortgage, including:
- Repayment: Mortgage debt is divided into capital and interest repayments and a bit of each is paid off every month.
- Interest Only: Only pay off the interest on the loan each month - usually a short term deal until the full repayments are affordable.
Within these mortgage types, there are also different rates:
- Fixed rate: The interest rate you pay is fixed by the lender for a set period of time – usually between 1 and 5 years. After the period is up, it switches to the lender's variable rate unless you fix again.
- Variable: This rate is usually set around 2% higher than the bank of England's base rate, and the amount of interest you pay goes up and down as the base rate does.
- Capped rate: This is a variable rate that goes down when the base rate drops, but only goes up to a certain 'capped' point. But these mortgages are few and far between and often have large set-up fees.
- Discounted rate: Where a lender offers a discounted rate for a fixed period of time to entice borrowers. After this period, the rate reverts back to the lender's variable rate.
Using mortgage tables will help you compare different mortgages by comparing rates and providers and along with the various set up fees involved in setting up a mortgage to help you source the best deals for your circumstances.