Would you fix your mortgage for 5 years?

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In the process of re-mortgaging; currently on 1.59% with Santander, but mortgage advisor seemed to be encouraging a 5-year fixed rate at 1.96%, due to uncertainty about rates/Brexit etc.

I've always stuck to 2 year deals before, as I feel a lot can change over the longer term.

WWYD?

Yes. We’ve had one five year fix previously and are currently on a ten year fix. Interest rates will not go down from here, they can only go up.

We fixed for 10 recently as we figured that rates couldn't really get much lower, if anything they'd go up.

Yes, I would, but then I'm not planning to move in next five years and I don't like uncertainty.

It's a low rate so even if rates did crash (incredibly unlikely) you're unlikely to be paying much over the odds.

I probably would do 5 years

1.96 is low, definitely fix it for 5.

Interest rates won’t go down from here, they’ll only go up. We just fixed for 5 years.

I wpuld definitely fix for 5 years at that rate. Interest rates are only going to go up, albeit slowly!

Yes we just did. Should take up over the brexit mess.

We fixed for 5. No plans to move in that time and can’t see interest rates dropping

We fixed for 5 years last year

I'd be scared that once the 5 years is up, the jump would be a bit too much of a shock rather than paying a slower increase.

We fixed for 10yrs at 2.49 and thought that was a great deal so I def would if you’re not planning on moving. Like others have said, it can only go up.

Wow, thanks for the fast responses - and pretty unanimous too!

I suppose a 2-year fix takes us right to the middle of Brexit, so it might not be a good time to be re-mortgaging.

Very helpful to have your points of view - thanks!

Absolutely. We always fix for 5

Huh. Posted too soon.

We always fix for 5. Gives us that certainty that we know what we have to pay each month.

Ours is fixed for 30 years at 3.45% (USA)

I'm going to fix for 5 when I hopefully get mine. Knowing the payment won't change for 5 years would be a huge deal for me.

Yes. We fixed for 5 years last July.

I'm in the process of fixing for 5 years. If we can afford it, we're going to overpay too so that if there is a big leap in interest rates after the 5 years, we'll have less to pay off.

Something to bear in mind is that if you fix, you can’t take advantage of the value of your house going up to access a better LTV ratio and therefore cheaper rates. This matters if you live in a part of the country where house prices are likely to increase a lot, eg London. Possibly not so relevant at crazy cheap rates now but something I wish someone had explained to us when we fixed five years ago at a rate that would be considered very high now

@annoyed. I plan on over paying so hopefully won’t be a huge jump

Yes I would fix for as long as possible in the current climate. Rates are good now and are due to go up.

It depends on how much of a difference you can get from a 2 year deal. I figure rates are only likely to go up really slowly, so you might still save money. I fixed for 2yrs the last 3 times and made the right decision. You can always arrange a rate up to 6 months before your deal runs out. Also depends on your affordability and how much you can afford the gamble.

Yes I would if everything in your life is likely to stay the same. We fixed 10 years ago for 10 years at what was a very low rate historically, but has turned out to be much higher than current rates. It was a mistake on my part but it was an excellent deal at the time

Rates are so low now that you arent going to fall into the trap we did. Do think about whether you might want to move during that time, and investigate what the implications of that might be.

Yes. I always fix and always over pay. I'm a LP and need the stability of a fixed payment every month.