Question to Helen Cooke, mortgage manager at Hepburns: Is this a good time to move out of my fixed-rate mortgage?

She said: AT first glance there are some tempting rates on offer. These are the main things you should check in order to make your decision:

Penalty charges: Take a close look at the terms and conditions of your existing fixed rate. Your mortgage lender will certainly charge you a penalty to exit your existing deal, and this could be significant – perhaps as much as 5% of the mortgage balance.

Check out your options: What new rates are available to you from the whole market, not just your existing lender? Be especially careful here, as many of the headline rates are available only under very specific criteria.
What are the other costs? A new rate will have an admin fee. You may also pay legal or valuation fees.

So is there a saving? Once you know how much you will save on the new rate and how much it will cost you to get there, the decision is usually straightforward.

One final thought: Even if it does seem to be worth changing, take a moment to recall why you took a fixed rate in the first place. At the moment, the cheapest rates are generally tracker rates, not fixed rates, so you could enjoy a short-term benefit and then find yourself out of pocket once the rates start going back up, as they surely must.