Mortgage annoyance!

[Piamed]

Not having missed a mortgage payment in several years i was rather put out by a phone call I received on 2nd January.

After verifying personal details the conversation went as follows:

Mortgage Lender Rep: Is you mortgage payment going through this month? We can't tell as yet cause your payments go through on the 30th of every month.

Me: Of course it will. So why did you not wait and see rather than calling me today in this manner?


Mortgage Lender Rep: Due to the recent interest rate fall your monthly payments have been reduced. As a result of this and because you switched your payments to the end of the month rather than at the beginning of the month, you are now in arrears by more than a month because of when the funds arrive in your mortgage account.


Summary: I apparently 'owed' a couple of hundred which arose cause I switched my payment date. I did it as i had changed jobs and i liked the idea of gaining a month 'free' so to speak. Anyway, as i had over paid in the past what I 'owed' was less than a months payment so noone bothered about it.

When the reduced interest rates kicked in I suddenly was in arrers but the great some of approx. £50 quid hence the very alarming phone call.

I paid the whole arrers on the phone but cant help thinking that common sense should have prevailed here. And why make me think there was something wrong with my payments per se? Hmmn!

[somebody]

They are getting desperate for money most likely. I have heard several people say they have the bank chasing them asap for simple issues like you say.

Dont forget to chase it up on your credit rating and ask that any entry is corrected if they have made a mistake.

[benb]

Hi Mate, which bank is this?

1.5% now! Hurray!!!!!!!!!! Tracker finally benefiting many. Savers lose out, but there is the stock market option for them.

Cheers

[KeithD]

Easy to make a profit from a mortage now

[Ann07]

We dont pay mortgage we just rent, but we always save monthly and its not looking good for us

[benb]

We dont pay mortgage we just rent, but we always save monthly and its not looking good for us

In theory your rent should come down too. Talk to your landlord and negotiate.

Best Wishes

[Ann07]

In theory your rent should come down too. Talk to your landlord and negotiate.

Best Wishes

we are under the housing association so its already low

[benb]

we are under the housing association so its already low

Then perhaps, it time to buy a place using savings or/and invest in bonds etc.

Cheers

[KeithD]

Of the 100% of employed people in the UK, 98% of them now work as bailiffs

[Piamed]

Thanks guys. It was C&G. I do need to check my credit rating. Thought about moving and checked possible rates. They are not so good: 5% plus and 25% down.

Unfortunately Ann, not a good time for savers. There may be some good long term saving plans available though.

[benb]

Thanks guys. It was C&G. I do need to check my credit rating. Thought about moving and checked possible rates. They are not so good: 5% plus and 25% down.

Unfortunately Ann, not a good time for savers. There may be some good long term saving plans available though.

Try HSBC, they do 1.95% above BOE which gives you 3.45%. But require 40% deposit, booking fee of £799.

How is PIA doing? eating more than you now?

Cheers

[Piamed]

Try HSBC, they do 1.95% above BOE which gives you 3.45%. But require 40% deposit, booking fee of £799.

How is PIA doing? eating more than you now?

Cheers

Hey buddy! Pia is easily eating twice as much as me now ;-) Having itchy tummy and swollen hands and tingling feet also. How is that lovely Aaren doing and Jassmine? Hope your mum is having a great time, in spite of the weather.

[benb]

Hey buddy! Pia is easily eating twice as much as me now ;-) Having itchy tummy and swollen hands and tingling feet also. How is that lovely Aaren doing and Jassmine? Hope your mum is having a great time, in spite of the weather.

Wow, that is plenty and good! Don't miss Pia's regular walks even if its cold. I was told that regular exercise makes it easier to deliver later. Aaren is doing superb and growing fast. My house temperature was previously set to 20 and because of mum and Aaren, its now 22 which makes it comfy for them.

Cheers

[KeithD]

Betfair is great for saving, and they give me free holidays

[Jay&Zobel]

MORTGAGE:

I am getting more and more confused...

I read an article saying it s best to buy a house now because it is rather cheap...
Phil & Kirsty in Location, location, location said to grab those cheap prices...

And what about the financial market? house prices arent stable at the moment... not best to invest on falling prices because you will be paying more than what you have bought...

Others said: Best not to buy now. Economic Crisis. The doom & gloom, recession whatever they call it!!!

Hmmmmm....

Anybody can help us please?

Thank you!

P.S.
We are renting a 2 bedroom apartment and it is really reasonable... But i still don't have an idea what's he best option? Pay monthly rate and forget about high interests on mortgages? Rent for life? Own a house?

I'll review also our council tax payments as we might be overpaying it...

[nigel]

MORTGAGE:

I am getting more and more confused...

I read an article saying it s best to buy a house now because it is rather cheap...
Phil & Kirsty in Location, location, location said to grab those cheap prices...

And what about the financial market? house prices arent stable at the moment... not best to invest on falling prices because you will be paying more than what you have bought...

Others said: Best not to buy now. Economic Crisis. The doom & gloom, recession whatever they call it!!!

Hmmmmm....

Anybody can help us please?

Thank you!

P.S.
We are renting a 2 bedroom apartment and it is really reasonable... But i still don't have an idea what's he best option? Pay monthly rate and forget about high interests on mortgages? Rent for life? Own a house?

I'll review also our council tax payments as we might be overpaying it...

I've heard that house prices will come down another 15%! My advice is buy! Prices may come down a bit further..but buy! Buy! Buy! When you buy a home it's not just a place to live, it's an investment! An asset! It seems to me that there will never be a better time to buy! Haven't the government let the first time home buyers buy without having to pay stamp duty (tax) at the moment? (or something?)

Definately buy while the prices are low I'd say...house prices will inevitably go back up at some point...when that happens you might find yourself saying we can't afford it now..


Buy!Buy!Buy!

[somebody]

MORTGAGE:

I am getting more and more confused...

I read an article saying it s best to buy a house now because it is rather cheap...
Phil & Kirsty in Location, location, location said to grab those cheap prices...

And what about the financial market? house prices arent stable at the moment... not best to invest on falling prices because you will be paying more than what you have bought...

Others said: Best not to buy now. Economic Crisis. The doom & gloom, recession whatever they call it!!!

Hmmmmm....

Anybody can help us please?

Thank you!

P.S.
We are renting a 2 bedroom apartment and it is really reasonable... But i still don't have an idea what's he best option? Pay monthly rate and forget about high interests on mortgages? Rent for life? Own a house?

I'll review also our council tax payments as we might be overpaying it...

Depends on your area.

But i would not listen to estate agents and the like, even my brother in law who works in a propety related businessis convinced prices will rise this year or at least very soon. Personally it will take a good few years as the banks have said before anything like the lending people used to get was offered. Also both banks and indivuals as a whole have debt levels that need reducing.

Seems to be a lull at the moment as companies soon have to pay rent and major bills, plus companies will be calling in more debts before april and trying to restructure things will not be good. This recession will take a whille to hit various secotrs due to the complicated way business now works.

I would wait a little longer prices will come down further, at least though the begining of 09. Nothing to complicated but basically theres in most parts of the county an oversupply of houses (even though many are wanting them) and prices are higher than most people can afford.

As i mentioned in another post in our area and surrounding areas houses are having huge discounts taken off there orignal price and most simply dont move the only ones that do are way below market price. Soon people will need to move or sell for various reasons and price will not matter so they will drop further.

Look around if you see the propety you really like and plan on staying in it for a long time then most likely any short term loss will be ironed out. Even if its not why not see beyond the profit and loss thing and enjoy your home?

You buy a car and it loses its money, but doesn't stop you buying it but having said that if you rent the moneys gone.

Worth looking at new bulids many house buliders are desperate to shift them seen some shared ownership flats round our way at 60-70 k when the full price is nearer 250-299 ( i thinking they are dreaming but still)

Getting a part share and apying part rent maybe help you on the road. Most you can buy a bigger share as you go along. Some shared ownership schemes offer houses.

[KeithD]

.....if you rent the moneys gone......

Not quite that black & white.....Rent is much lower than a mortage, and your first 5+ years of a mortgage is also money gone.

You are also responsible for your repairs, rented get free double glazing, central heating, repairs included, etc,

You also have the convenience factor of being able to move when you want without paying a bank fine.

...and on top of that, 10,000's are now trapped in mortgages paying 15%+ over the odds .....and many of those will be losing jobs, and lose the house, and all payments.

Plus when paying rent, with councils, and some housing associations, after a set number of years you can buy the property at a reduced market rate of up to 40% in some cases.

[somebody]

Not quite that black & white.....Rent is much lower than a mortage, and your first 5+ years of a mortgage is also money gone.

You are also responsible for your repairs, rented get free double glazing, central heating, repairs included, etc,

You also have the convenience factor of being able to move when you want without paying a bank fine.

...and on top of that, 10,000's are now trapped in mortgages paying 15%+ over the odds .....and many of those will be losing jobs, and lose the house, and all payments.

Plus when paying rent, with councils, and some housing associations, after a set number of years you can buy the property at a reduced market rate of up to 40% in some cases.

Yep agree with that so why i suggested shared ownership if the aim is to own a propety.Which is done though housing associations some offer deals like you mention with the shared ownership.

Problem with rented and getting repairs done is when times are hard and vaule is dropping so do repairs it seems from what I have heard from friends. Before the landlord would rush out, now theres a delay and bodges are performed etc.

But if your paying to much for a house thats just like any other purchase. You make a judgement if you can afford it and if its value for money for you.
I bought a propety in the last low and missed out on all the silly prices and saved my money. Im sure i lost out on a huge "profit" as well, but I would have needed more to upscale if we moved so a bigger burden.
The Wife and I are now luckily in the sitaution where whatever the flat is worth and the saved deposit is more than we need even with huge deposits for decent deals. We lived frugally and saved hard always hard the cheaper option as opposed to many who are now the ones complaining about there 125 percentage mortages and self certifed nightmares.

From speaking to older people at work and where have you. Those that did ok were those that saved and saved so had smaller ratio mortages.

Many people like parents had a tough time in the past where they had negative equity or crazy payments but in the long run they got though them and now have bought the house and for the last ten years had no rent or mortage to pay. As they never remoratged, paid off as quickly as possible and live within their means.

As you say overexceeding your budget is silly just like buying a car or handbag at a price you cant afford to budget for the particular item.

At the end of the day if you cant afford a new mercedes you dont buy one you buy some thing in your price range or rent one if you only need for a while.


At present you can get new bulids for cost price if you haggle so if you wanna stay in that area then I would say a ok deal.

[KeithD]

Banks have been handing out 100% mortgages than included all the taxes, fees, etc So the idiots who took advantage of that end up paying double everything

[somebody]

Banks have been handing out 100% mortgages than included all the taxes, fees, etc So the idiots who took advantage of that end up paying double everything

Although stupid when younger I learned to pick up why people do things a certain way. As Engineer comes naturally sometimes you wonder why you do some time consuming steps but you soon learn there is a reason when you miss them out and everything goes wrong.

So Jay and Zobel learn from those with nothing to gain from you moving or staying and those who have memories of previous propety crashs. Find out what they learned. Like you im to young but did a lot of reading and listening and will continue to do so.

Also dont treat your House as a profit/loss item, its your home you dont wanna lose loads of money on itand nice to make money. But more importantly you want a house for as long as you need it which fulfils your needs.

one house im looking at the moment, a wide boy self bulit and owned has inside pool loads of bedrooms and all mod cons. He had bentleys and every other flash car. A year or so ago the family moved out all of a sudden

Instead of over a million the house can be picked up for about 250k

If the couple had not been so over ambitous....

[benb]

Also dont treat your House as a profit/loss item, its your home you dont wanna lose loads of money on itand nice to make money. But more importantly you want a house for as long as you need it which fulfils your needs.

Spot on!
Many think that their home is an investment which is silly. Only additional houses are investments.

Cheers

[Jay&Zobel]

Spot on!
Many think that their home is an investment which is silly. Only additional houses are investments.

Cheers

yeah...
thank you for all the comments...

that was also my thought the 1st time, why people keep on moving from place to place in order to get money from the old house... an investment...
why not stay where you want and you love and be happy... build memories and lots more...

but hey, we still dont want to lose in an investment right? that is why you call it an investment... to reap the benefits in the long run...

maybe, just save & save & save a lot of cash. do not overspend. then buy a house (maybe in CASH!!) that you think is worth livable.

thank you!!!


when it comes to renting:
Boss Keith is right. I agree with him.
Mortgage + interests and wotnot...

We never had any problems with our rented apartment. Our landlord is also a firsttime landlord. so are we, 1st time to rent & our home is also new... So got no probs at all...

Maybe, it's best to look at the newer properties if you are thinking of renting!

[benb]

yeah...
thank you for all the comments...

that was also my thought the 1st time, why people keep on moving from place to place in order to get money from the old house... an investment...
why not stay where you want and you love and be happy... build memories and lots more...

but hey, we still dont want to lose in an investment right? that is why you call it an investment... to reap the benefits in the long run...
maybe, just save & save & save a lot of cash. do not overspend. then buy a house (maybe in CASH!!) that you think is worth livable.

thank you!!!


when it comes to renting:
Boss Keith is right. I agree with him.
Mortgage + interests and wotnot...

We never had any problems with our rented apartment. Our landlord is also a firsttime landlord. so are we, 1st time to rent & our home is also new... So got no probs at all...

Maybe, it's best to look at the newer properties if you are thinking of renting!

Its not.

You can only call it investment when you move house and retain the old house for rent.
You cannot call moving to a bigger home an investment as there is no return in investment, unless maybe you rent out the rooms etc.

Perhaps, when you eventually plan to downgrade to smaller house, then maybe you can call it investment, but that is too late in life.

Cheers

[somebody]

yeah...
thank you for all the comments...

that was also my thought the 1st time, why people keep on moving from place to place in order to get money from the old house... an investment...
why not stay where you want and you love and be happy... build memories and lots more...

but hey, we still dont want to lose in an investment right? that is why you call it an investment... to reap the benefits in the long run...

maybe, just save & save & save a lot of cash. do not overspend. then buy a house (maybe in CASH!!) that you think is worth livable.

thank you!!!


when it comes to renting:
Boss Keith is right. I agree with him.
Mortgage + interests and wotnot...

We never had any problems with our rented apartment. Our landlord is also a firsttime landlord. so are we, 1st time to rent & our home is also new... So got no probs at all...

Maybe, it's best to look at the newer properties if you are thinking of renting!

Renting sounds like the best option. Then hopefully you can save, remeber even with the low rates as prices drop your still making money by saving in a savings account.

As you can see on the news the propety issue due to many people losing jobs, the banks and proples investments being badly hit means things will not pick up for a while.

Ignore the rest of the world, think tortoise and the hare. Go at your own pace. Seriously at the moment we are house hunting and the state some people have got themselves in by over strecthing is terrible. The amounts people seem to have spent on the house and improving.

Get some serious savings at the moment its the only way to get a good mortage and generally be safe in todays enviroment. deposits between 25 percent which should have been always the minimum i belive and 40 percent in some cases sounds high but prices are dropping. As people need to move and sell so the market will adapt. So the prices will not be so scary in a few years time. Also ignore the prices in the estae agent window check the actual prices on right move etc they are nearly always much lower. Prices were silly due to some huge scams where the banks lost a lot of money but i haven't heard much coverage of in this country, by to let where people with a small amount of capital or even no capital were buying propeties like sweets. Then people got worried that they were going out of sight so tried to jump on at all costs.

Also bear in mind will you want a propety in phill or at least bulid an extension do up a realtives place? dont put all your eggs in one basket. many people with a propety in two countries have two smaller houses.

Prices in the recent past have increased but the times are a changing and it may well never happen like this again. So buying a house and it increasing quicker than inflation and intrest rates may never not happen which is why people were calling it a investment.

But do also be aware intrest rates may shoot up in the next few years. As you can see the pound is in a bad way compared to other currencies.

[PeterB]

Only additional houses are investments.

When I bought a second house in UK, it was not intended as an investment, but as a holiday get-away. However, it did turn a profit when it came to selling!

[Belmontboy]

Although interest rates have fallen very sharply to the lowest rate in centiries, be VERY wary. Rates WILL go up again, maybe not next month or next year, but they will go up, and mortgage payers will be hit with much higher re-payments.

Just be carefull !

[somebody]

Although interest rates have fallen very sharply to the lowest rate in centiries, be VERY wary. Rates WILL go up again, maybe not next month or next year, but they will go up, and mortgage payers will be hit with much higher re-payments.

Just be carefull !

Word and in fact we should have not reduced them as much in the first place, would have been short term misery for many but better for the country long term imo.

[KeithD]

I think you'll find the bank rates haven't gone down!

[PeterB]

Indeed. I'm still not sure that I fully understand the logic. The western world is in crisis because it has been too easy to obtain credit ... why should the 'fix' be a reduction of interest rates - designed to encourage borrowing.

I think that interest rates should have been doubled, then I could have lived in an even better style to that with which I've become accustomed!