Moving from variable to tracker

If you move from a variable mortgage with a Bank to a tracker with the same bank should there be any costs involved i.e do you need a solicitor if you are just changing from variable to tracker?
Our mortgage is 205,000 over 25 years (22 years left) and house if valued at 400k plus. We are with First Active. Husband is recently self-employed so this is what is stopping us from switching banks at the moment.

fobs said:

If you move from a variable mortgage with a Bank to a tracker with the same bank should there be any costs involved i.e do you need a solicitor if you are just changing from variable to tracker?

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I don't think that there should be any costs involved. Note that some lenders don't alert standard variable rate customers that they could save significantly by switching to more competitive trackers that they offer!

Our mortgage is 205,000 over 25 years (22 years left) and house if valued at 400k plus. We are with First Active.

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That loan to value/LTV ratio of c. 50% should qualify you for the lowest tracker margin with most lenders. Just make sure that your existing lender is actually competitive and, if not, consder switching. Have you also considered the FA Current Account Mortgage? The rate might not be as low as others on offer but if you have a lump sum in savings that you need to keep liquid then offsetting it against the mortgage could help minimise your borrowing costs.

Husband is recently self-employed so this is what is stopping us from switching banks at the moment.

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Really? If you have been accepted by an existing lender and have three years of the mortgage under your belt then surely he has the necessary track record (and accounts etc.) to be accepted by another lender?

Well he only became self-employed last September and when we got the morgage 3 years ago he was a paye-worker.

Sorry - missed the "recently" above.

Changed mine from variable to tracker with ICS a few months back
Didn't cost anything

It should be mentioned in the small print of the original Offer of Loan.

First Active don't offer tracker rates for mortgages below €250,000 and there is a cost for a straight switch to the current account mortgage as it's a different legal charge to a stndard/tracker rate so solicitors have to be involved (fixed cost of €995 via First American Title Insurance).

Fobs - if your husband is doing the same/similar work self employed to what he was doing PAYE and if he has management accounts from Sept. and projections for this year I'm sure some of the free switch lenders (EBS, IIB, NIB BoS and Ulster Bank) would consider offering you a lower rate. Worth while checking out your options.....

Sarah

www.rea.ie

THanks for the info all....Will make some enquiries with some other lenders so as nothing ventured....Thanks again