What is a Flexible Mortgage

The idea of a Flexible Mortgage is that you can alter your monthly payments to suit your changing circumstances without penalty.

This can include

• making regular or occasional overpayments
• making underpayments
• taking payment holiday

even drawing down additional cash if you need it.

In the past you could expect to be charged a higher rate of interest for a flexible loan.

But now so many mortgages come with these features that you shouldn’t have to pay extra.

 

Comparing Flexible Deals

Not all mortgages marketed as flexible will have all the features listed above.

So, when you’re comparing deals, be sure to read all the small print.

Or ask the lender and take notes of what they said (get the name of the person you talked to aswell).

Also check if there are limits on the amounts or frequency with which you can over or underpay without penalty.

 

The Benefits of Flexibility

The major benefit of this type of deal is that you can clear your loan early potentially saving thousands of pounds in the process by overpaying whenever you have cash to spare.

For example, if someone with a 25-year £150,000 repayment loan charging 6 per cent annual interest paid an extra £100 a month, they could clear it almost five years early, saving £30,000 in interest.

If, on the other hand, cash is tight, you can take a break from paying altogether. Of course this can backfire

 

The Dangers of Flexibility

Think long and hard before opting to underpay or take a payment holiday.

The full interest will still be clocking up on your loan every month with interest charged on the unpaid interest.

This will have to be paid off eventually, and the longer you leave it, the worse it’ll get.

 

Flexible or Offset?

Flexible and offset mortgages have several features in common.

If you’re trying to decide which to go for, read Offset versus flexible mortgages.