When your mortgage deal is ending you have two main ways to avoid the standard variable rate: a product transfer with your current lender, or a remortgage to a new one. Both get you a new rate. They differ in speed, paperwork and price.
Product transfer
A product transfer is a new deal from your existing lender on the same property, usually for the same amount.
Advantages
- Fast: often arranged online in minutes, with offers in days
- No legal work and usually no valuation
- Often no full affordability check, which helps if your income has fallen or you’ve become self-employed
- Can usually be booked 3–6 months before your deal ends
Disadvantages
- You’re limited to one lender’s rates
- Borrowing more may need a full application anyway
- Loyalty doesn’t always pay. New-customer deals elsewhere can be cheaper
Remortgage
A remortgage moves your mortgage to a new lender. The new lender pays off your old one.
Advantages
- Access to the whole market, including lenders with cheaper rates or cashback
- Many remortgage deals include free valuation and free legal work
- An opportunity to borrow more, change the term or add or remove a borrower
Disadvantages
- Takes 4–8 weeks or more
- Full credit and affordability checks
- Your circumstances need to fit the new lender’s criteria
How to choose
| Your situation | Usually best |
|---|---|
| Income fallen, new job, or newly self-employed | Product transfer |
| Credit file has worsened | Product transfer |
| Want to borrow more or change ownership | Remortgage |
| Lender’s offer is uncompetitive | Remortgage |
| Need speed (deal ending in weeks) | Product transfer |
| Big cashback or free legal offers elsewhere | Remortgage |
Compare like with like
The headline rate isn’t the whole story. A complete comparison includes:
- the product fee (and whether it’s added to the loan)
- cashback
- legal and valuation costs
- any early repayment charge if you’re leaving before your deal ends
- what you’ll still owe at the end of the new deal
The remortgage calculator adds all of this up over the period you choose, so a product transfer and a remortgage offer can be compared directly by true cost. Enter your lender’s product-transfer offer as Deal A and the best market deal as Deal B.
Using a broker
A whole-of-market mortgage broker can compare remortgage and product-transfer options, and many charge nothing to the borrower (the lender pays them). Some lenders’ product transfers are only available direct, so check both routes.
Don’t drift onto the SVR
Whichever route you choose, start around six months before your deal ends. Every month on a 7–8% SVR instead of a 4–5% deal costs a typical borrower hundreds of pounds.
Common questions
Is a product transfer cheaper than a remortgage?
Not always. It’s quicker and simpler, but other lenders may offer lower rates or cashback. Compare the true cost with the remortgage calculator.
Does a product transfer affect my credit score?
Usually not. Most are done without a hard credit search.
Can I borrow more with a product transfer?
Sometimes, but extra borrowing usually needs a full application. See how much you can borrow.
When should I start?
About six months before your deal ends. See what happens when your fix ends.
This guide is general information, not financial or tax advice.