Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 I have just had a really good afternoon. I decided the money seemed to be disappearing all too quickly so we sat down, worked out what we needed to ask and then started asking around. Results (so far) £162 refund from BT and a monthly reduction of £37 (email has made my phone bill much cheaper!), £7 per month reduction in electricity costs (with British Gas - no gas here!!!), cancelled the mobile phone contract having discovered that DH (BT employee) can get a sim card for £4.99 with £5 worth calls already on it so that's another £15 per month saved - and I don't have to buy a new phone as they don't want the old one back. As I only use it for emergencies anyway I am going to save wholesale there. Then I started on motor and home insurance - and these won't kick in yet - but I have quotes that will save approx £100 per year on motor insurance and over £200 per year on home insurance. So, feeling really brave by now, I had a look online at mortgages. Can't find anything that looks better than ours in the long term and we would have to pay to transfer until 2 more years time so I think I'll defer that for now. And - at work this morning - I got a 5.5% pay rise - so all in all I am straightaway £129 per month better off with the prospect of another £25pm to come. Yippee!!! Sue :-)))) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 > > So, feeling really brave by now, I had a look online at mortgages. Can't > find anything that looks better than ours in the long term and we would have > to pay to transfer until 2 more years time so I think I'll defer that for > now. > > And - at work this morning - I got a 5.5% pay rise - so all in all I am > straightaway £129 per month better off with the prospect of another £25pm to > come. Have you tried moneysupermarket.com? They have loads of mortgage products and will compare products to find the best deal for you. BTW I used this site to find my cheapest gas & electric supplier. I don't wish to brag but I got a 11.5% pay increase last week and I'm not even at work! I'm on maternity leave :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 > Did you look at the VirgonOne account? www.virginone.com no I didn't so ta muchly for this :-))) how much hassle is it to swap mortgage providers (we have an endowment policy)? I like the idea of all in one deals like this. trouble is I think there would be charges if we swapped before 2003 - because of the cashback and low initial interest that we got when we took out this mortgage 4 years ago. Sue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 > Have you tried moneysupermarket.com? They have loads of mortgage > products and will compare products to find the best deal for you. BTW > I used this site to find my cheapest gas & electric supplier. thanks , will have a look > I don't wish to brag but I got a 11.5% pay increase last week and I'm > not even at work! I'm on maternity leave :-) Hey, good for you, they must want you back! love Sue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 > > So, feeling really brave by now, I had a look online at mortgages. Can't > find anything that looks better than ours in the long term and we would have > to pay to transfer until 2 more years time so I think I'll defer that for > now. > Sue :-)))) > Did you look at the VirgonOne account? www.virginone.com We changed out mortgage over to them in January and I am really pleased with it. You have all you finances together, offsetting any savings against your mortgage to save interest. And they also reduce interest rates on the day that base rate is cut, unlike most mortgage lenders who wait until the 1st of the following month to reduce rates. And interest is calculated daily, which also helps savings. (sorry - can you tell I'm a fan!!!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 28, 2001 Report Share Posted April 28, 2001 > how much hassle is it to swap mortgage providers (we have an endowment > policy)? I like the idea of all in one deals like this. trouble is I think > there would be charges if we swapped before 2003 - because of the cashback > and low initial interest that we got when we took out this mortgage 4 years > ago. > > Sue Our mortgage was endowment/ISA linked. However, because they were giving such awful returns, we bit the bullet and switched to repayment and then cashed in the policies (NOT that I am recommending this to anyone, this just happened to be best for our circumstances). If you are locked into a redemption clause it may not be worth switching - you will have to weigh up the costs. And check with your current mortgage provider about the charges. I had managed to get out of our early repayment clause (thanks to some sweet-talking!), so switching wasn't a problem. Cost us c.£250 in solicitors costs and c.£180 in valuation fees. But given the savings we are seeing, was well worth it. There was no hassle in switching - all the forms were sent to us and the change over was easy. And, their customer service is excellent. (BTW - I work for a bank and I wish we offered a product like this!) There is a calculator on the site - why not give it a go and see if it will make a difference to you? If you want any more info, feel free to contact me offlist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 29, 2001 Report Share Posted April 29, 2001 We are very pleased with virgin one too - and they make the changeover really hassle free. Caroline > Did you look at the VirgonOne account? www.virginone.com > > We changed out mortgage over to them in January and I am really > pleased with it. You have all you finances together, offsetting any > savings against your mortgage to save interest. And they also reduce > interest rates on the day that base rate is cut, unlike most mortgage > lenders who wait until the 1st of the following month to reduce rates. > And interest is calculated daily, which also helps savings. (sorry - > can you tell I'm a fan!!!) > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 29, 2001 Report Share Posted April 29, 2001 We changed our mortgage about 3 years ago once our previous one was out of its penalty period. Got a 5 year fixed rate of 6.49% which is still pretty good considering the current base rate. On this one penalty clauses only in operation until 1 month after the 5 years is up. Sue you're probably right to hold off until your's penalty clause runs out but after that..... > So, feeling really brave by now, I had a look online at mortgages. Can't > find anything that looks better than ours in the long term and we would have > to pay to transfer until 2 more years time so I think I'll defer that for > now. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 29, 2001 Report Share Posted April 29, 2001 > Sue you're probably right to hold off until your's penalty clause runs > out but after that..... Yup, I looked it all up this afternoon and the penalties would come to near £4,000 right now. But I also looked at the virgin one website and found some advertising stuff that came thro' the door that I'd been saving until I was less busy (!) and it does look impressive - so January 2003 here we come! thanks for all your help :-) Sue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 29, 2001 Report Share Posted April 29, 2001 Child tax credit? DH reckons we are £100 better off a month. Lesley, Antenatal teacher, trainee breasteeding counsellor. Demented mother of 3. Worthing. " We are born naked, wet and hungry. Then things get worse " . saving money > I have just had a really good afternoon. I decided the money seemed to be > disappearing all too quickly so we sat down, worked out what we needed to > ask and then started asking around. > > Results (so far) £162 refund from BT and a monthly reduction of £37 (email > has made my phone bill much cheaper!), £7 per month reduction in electricity > costs (with British Gas - no gas here!!!), cancelled the mobile phone > contract having discovered that DH (BT employee) can get a sim card for > £4.99 with £5 worth calls already on it so that's another £15 per month > saved - and I don't have to buy a new phone as they don't want the old one > back. As I only use it for emergencies anyway I am going to save wholesale > there. > > Then I started on motor and home insurance - and these won't kick in yet - > but I have quotes that will save approx £100 per year on motor insurance and > over £200 per year on home insurance. > > So, feeling really brave by now, I had a look online at mortgages. Can't > find anything that looks better than ours in the long term and we would have > to pay to transfer until 2 more years time so I think I'll defer that for > now. > > And - at work this morning - I got a 5.5% pay rise - so all in all I am > straightaway £129 per month better off with the prospect of another £25pm to > come. > > Yippee!!! > Sue :-)))) > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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