26
Aug
Mortgage holders plan overpayments, survey shows
A new survey has shown that more people are intending to make extra
payments on their mortgage than are seeking to underpay or take a
payment holiday.
Research by Abbey has found that the former group constitutes 12
per cent of mortgage customers, while the number looking to take a
payment holiday stands at three per cent and underpayers at one per
cent.
The proportion of mortgage holders in the south-east that are
looking to make an overpayment was the highest in Britain at 17 per
cent, despite mortgages in the region being larger than average due
to higher housing costs.
Commenting on the trends, Abbey's director of mortgages Phil Cliff
said: "A large proportion of mortgages offer borrowers flexibility
and the research shows that many people are planning to take
advantage of these benefits."
The news comes at a time when the cost of new mortgages is
falling.
Announcements of new deals last week included Nationwide's
reduction of fixed-rate deals by up to 0.2 per cent and the
statement by Alliance & Leicester that it is withdrawing a
two-year tracker product in advance of the launch of a new range of
deals later this week.
