Changing Additional Mortgage Payment - AIB - Credit Checks etc

[GingerH]

About two years ago I substantially increased my mortgage payments on my AIB tracker mortgage by more than double the agreed rate in order to clear the mortgage early given the rate rises and as I only had a few years left (I now have just over a year left) . I applied recently to reduce the payment somewhat as I need some money to pay for the UK pension option - though I will still be paying significantly more (about €750 more) than the original agreed rate. I have been advised that they need to do a credit check before approving this change including me submitting bank details/salary slips etc (and a valuation check on the house) on the basis that I am proposing to change the term of my loan. Their view appears to be that the accelerated payment of the last two years is now the de facto loan and I am now extending that term so I need to go through hoops to get approval. My view is that I am still paying extra on top of the original loan and I should not have to go through this hassle. Do I just suck it up?

 

[skrooge]

How did you do this in the first place?

One way would have been to just overpay by extra each month and not engage with the bank. This could be a standing order or ad-hoc bank transfer but something you set up independent of the mortgage department of the lender. The second way would be to interact with the bank and change the actual terms of the mortgage.

Advice on here would be to go for the former and not the latter. If it was the latter then yes you will have to engage with the bank as you are trying to formally alter the terms of the mortgage. Even if it's only back to the original terms the fact you formally changed those terms before mean what preceded them are irrelevant.