No "smoke and mirrors" from Ipswich

Ipswich Building Society has introduced a fixed-rate, fee-free re-mortgage deal at 5.85 per cent.

09:37 23 June 2004

Ipswich Building Society has introduced a fixed-rate, fee-free remortgage deal at 5.85 per cent.

The society points out that their offer has no arrangement fee, application fee, or compulsory insurance - it adds that legal fees are paid as well. The mortgage rate is fixed until the end of October 2007.

Paul Winter, sales and marketing director of Ipswich Building Society, said: "Our new fee-free product is precisely what it claims to be - totally fee-free. It has no smoke-and-mirror devices.

"This is something that cannot be said about other 'fee-free' products. Consumers could have a 'fee-free' mortgage with some lenders and end up paying charges equivalent to an extra half percent on the interest rate in the first year."

The product is not entirely free of costs - given that there is a three per cent early repayment charge over the period of the fix. However, Ipswich does allow borrowers to cut their balance to half of their original loan without incurring the early repayment charge.