You have your number. Here's what to do with it.
Once you know roughly what your payment could look like, the next question is timing: when to apply, whether to talk to your own lender first, and when it's worth calling a broker. This page sets out that order. Before you apply, it's worth checking what a new deal means for your wider budget: the affordability calculator estimates what you could borrow and repay based on your income and outgoings. If you're also weighing up overpaying your current deal instead of switching, the mortgage overpayment calculator shows how extra payments change your outstanding balance and remaining term. If you're comparing deals with different arrangement fees, the fee analyser shows how those costs weigh against the rate on offer. And if you're unsure how exposed you'd be if you ended up on a variable rate, the variable rate stress test estimates how your payments could move under different scenarios.
See the six-month remortgage checklist Browse the UK mortgage lenders directoryTurning your number into a next step
A number on its own does not get you a new deal. The next move is to work out which route fits your timing and your mortgage, then start the process with enough time behind you rather than against you.
Which route applies to you
If your current deal still has time to run, check whether you are looking at one of the following:
- Remortgage: switching your mortgage to a new deal, possibly with a new lender.
- Moving to a new lender: a full new application assessed on your current income and circumstances.
- Product transfer: your existing lender simply switches you to a new rate without a full new application.
Which one applies depends on your lender's rules and how close you are to the end of your fixed-rate deal, so this is worth confirming directly with them rather than assuming. The routes can carry different arrangement fees, valuation fees or exit charges, and those costs can change which option actually works out cheaper once you add them up. The Fee analyser lets you enter the fees quoted for each option and see how they weigh against the rate on offer.
When to start
Timing matters more than most people expect. Most lenders will accept an application up to six months before your current deal ends, and applying early does not commit you to anything if a better rate appears later. The six-month checklist sets out what to do at each point between now and your renewal date.
Some readers use the time before their fix ends to reduce the balance itself rather than only shopping for a new rate. If you have some spare cash and are weighing that up, the Mortgage Overpayment Calculator shows how regular overpayments would reduce your outstanding balance and shorten your remaining term, which can change what kind of new deal makes sense. If you are instead weighing up a variable-rate deal, or thinking about what happens if you end up on your lender's Standard Variable Rate while you decide, the Variable Rate Stress Test shows how a rate rise would feed through to your monthly repayment.
What an AIP is
Before you apply anywhere, a lender will usually want to give you an Agreement in Principle (AIP): an initial check, based on a few basic details, of roughly how much they would lend you. It is not a guarantee, but it is normally the first concrete step once you have decided which way you are going. Before you get that far, the Affordability calculator can give you a sense of what a lender might consider you able to borrow, based on your income and outgoings, so an AIP result is less of a surprise either way.
Where a broker fits in
You have your number. A broker can tell you what deals are actually available to you, based on your full circumstances, and handle the application itself. This calculator cannot do that part, and it is not trying to.
The mortgage lenders directory lists regulator status and product types for reference if you want to check a lender before you talk to anyone about your mortgage.
Why this page is different from a general mortgage guide
A sequenced plan, not a list of tips
This page tells you what to do this week, this month, and before your fix ends, in that order. Most mortgage guidance lists options without saying when to act on them, which leaves you to work out the timing yourself. The six-month checklist is built the other way round, starting from your own end date.
A clear line between what this site does and what a broker does
This calculator gives you a number. A broker can tell you what deals are actually available to you and handle the application, and this site does neither. If you want to see how overpaying your mortgage would change your outstanding balance and term, a mortgage overpayment calculator can show that too, but the line between a number and a recommendation is stated here rather than blurred to make the site look more useful than it is.
Timelines tied to your own dates
Instead of telling you to act soon, this page works from the month your fixed rate ends. Most fixed-rate applications can be submitted up to six months before the deal ends, so the steps here are dated against that, not left as a vague suggestion to get moving.
No figures this site cannot stand behind
Where a figure depends on your lender, such as an early repayment charge or a product fee, this page says so and points you to your mortgage offer document or your lender directly. A fee analyser can show how arrangement fees and other costs weigh against the rate on offer, and the affordability calculator can show whether a new monthly payment still fits comfortably once the fix ends. If you want to see what a rate change could mean for your monthly payment once you move onto your lender's Standard Variable Rate, the variable rate stress test covers that. See what your number means for what the calculator can and cannot tell you about your own situation.
You have your number. Here's what to check next.
Before you switch, it helps to know what leaving your current deal early would cost you, and what order to tackle things in. If arrangement fees are part of the comparison, the fee analyser breaks down how those costs weigh against the rate you're being offered. If you're also weighing up extra payments before your fix ends, the Mortgage Overpayment Calculator shows how they'd change your outstanding balance and remaining term. And if there's a chance you'll end up on your lender's Standard Variable Rate (SVR) before a new deal is in place, the Variable Rate Stress Test estimates how a rate rise would affect your monthly repayment. If you want to check whether a new deal would fit your overall budget, the affordability calculator gives you an estimate based on your income and outgoings.