The big question I keep getting through LBC and other outlets is ‘how can I remortgage?’. So many people seem to be having problems as they come to the end of their mortgage term. I even had one caller on last week’s LBC show who had £13,000 left on her mortgage (home worth about £100,000) and her mortgage company told her they didn’t want to remortgage her! I told her she should pay it off with a 0% credit card like the Virgin card which is offering 0% on balance transfers for 20 months. For goodness sake – they’re nuts!

The issue for most mortgage lenders is primarily loan to value. With over 1 million people now in negative equity, the mortgage companies are even more nervous. If you had a 100% mortgage recently or even 90% and your home has lost value, you’re not the mortgage company’s favourite person.

One glimmer of light, though, is that Standard Variable Rates (SVRs) have come down a lot, on the whole, thanks to base rate being incredibly low. This means that when you come off your fixed deal, if you can’t get another one, it won’t be too much of a financial shock. 

However, as soon as you can, check what the SVR would be once you get to finishing your current deal and see how much more you will have to pay each month to keep the mortgage going. The earlier you work it out, the better. You might need to make some extra cash so see our Making Money section for ideas. 

If it’s at all possible then pay off more of your mortgage now to help your loan to value ratio. It also helps generally (as you know I’m a BIG fan of paying off your mortgage early). See our article here on paying off your mortgage in double-quick time.

If you’re really worried about being repossessed, take heart (and advice) from our article on dealing with repossession. Also, check out the Credit Action website which has resources on housing and repossession.