Multiple switches

dexterdempsey

Registered User
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Just finished switching three times in 10 weeks and I would like to thank this forum for the initial advice.
Originally with BOI on 5 year fixed from 2015 and got the cashback
Broke out of this to move to PTSB €5k cashback
PTSB to EBS another €5k cashback
EBS to Ulster and got €1500 cashback and a rate of 2.6% for 4 years

Have received €11,500 (before costs)and dropped €180 from my monthly repayments.
All in all was €6000 in my pocket after costs of breaking, solicitors, valuations etc sure where would get it for about 12 hours work

The biggest hassle of it all was trying to convince my solicitor that the banks wouldn't come looking for the money back!

I switched each time before cash was paid and there was no bother

If you only have one property and don't have a tracker its a no brainer
 
I am very interested in switching again having done so last September. However my main concern is 1) break fees may be very high. At this moment they do appear to be low but that's not to say at the time of the switch they could be 1% and b) Paying solicitor fees again as those eat into the cashback rewards. I've emailed my solicitor to check if there is any way the fees for switching again in 2019 would be lower and if for example we could re-use some of the work done last year to minimize costs.
 
The banks are making plenty of money on the back of people not switching and are making huge margins on their mortgages compared to the rest of the EU.
If there more people switching and if the banks could enforce their security on the mortgages(another story alltogether) then we possibly could have European style mortgages where rates are fixed for longer terms at competitive rates
 
Just finished switching three times in 10 weeks and I would like to thank this forum for the initial advice.
Originally with BOI on 5 year fixed from 2015 and got the cashback
Broke out of this to move to PTSB €5k cashback
PTSB to EBS another €5k cashback
EBS to Ulster and got €1500 cashback and a rate of 2.6% for 4 years

Have received €11,500 (before costs)and dropped €180 from my monthly repayments.
All in all was €6000 in my pocket after costs of breaking, solicitors, valuations etc sure where would get it for about 12 hours work

The biggest hassle of it all was trying to convince my solicitor that the banks wouldn't come looking for the money back!

I switched each time before cash was paid and there was no bother

If you only have one property and don't have a tracker its a no brainer

If you have done this and you've been successful I congratulate you Sir. You just might have beaten the banks at their own game;)
 
OP, what (do you mind me asking) where the breakage fees the bank charged you? I'm guessing you had/have a mortage of around 190k.

Also, why 5 years, and not 1 year?
 
The breakage was around €2800. I picked 5 years because at the time in 2015 I thought rates would increase and I was comfortable with what I was paying back
 
The breakage was around €2800. I picked 5 years because at the time in 2015 I thought rates would increase and I was comfortable with what I was paying back
Was that 2800 to break from boi, or 2800 total to break from all 3? I've just switched to boi on A 1 year fixed so I'm looking to move again to ebs. Curious to have an idea what it might cost
 
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Brilliant work , fair play to you. I am thinking you took my advise and got the 3 mortgage offers at the same time and then drew them down one at a time? 10 weeks is great going , i always liked to get the cash back in my account before i switched again but there is nothing the banks can do because once you draw down the mortgage they have to pay you the 2% cash back. Everyone should be switching and taking advantage of these offers.
 
Why doesn’t the third bank refuse the business?
Because they don't know about the other switches. Approval is provided for all while still with 1st bank.

You need a very willing solicitor to do this, as they give undertakings to clear mortgages and register charges, although the charge is never registered as you've switched again within the timeframe it would take - mf1 has outlined the issues elsewhere.
 
I have a PPR mortgage with Ulster and a tracker mortgage with AIB on a rented apartment (previously my ppr). Would you guys think I should stay away from switching to EBS for fear of raising questions about the apartment mortgage?
This would leave me with switching to BOI, PTSB and KBC.
Thanks
 
Because they don't know about the other switches. Approval is provided for all while still with 1st bank.

You need a very willing solicitor to do this, as they give undertakings to clear mortgages and register charges, although the charge is never registered as you've switched again within the timeframe it would take - mf1 has outlined the issues elsewhere.

Very interesting, thank you
 
Yes Red Onion that was always my strategy to get all the approvals first before switching. You go into PTSB and say you want to switch, they look at everything and see you are with AIB for 3 years and everything is ok, they say no problem and start the process. The nest day you walk into BOI and say to them "i want to switch from AIB", they look at everything and say "yes", the next day you walk into EBS and say "i want to switch to you from AIB for the cash back offer and lower rate", they look at your accounts etc and say "yes" no bother lets switch. You get full mortgage approval from the 3 lenders which is valid for 6 months, and then draw down each mortgage as you close the previous one. I would advise going for a variable rate although higher it stops the possibility of high breakage fees and delays with breaking from a fixed rate mortgage.
 
So is that the only strategy? What if you switched last year without getting a second/third approval would a bank like EBS now entertain a switch knowing you are with your current bank for less than 6 months. That would be helpful for folks to know I think.
 
So is that the only strategy? What if you switched last year without getting a second/third approval would a bank like EBS now entertain a switch knowing you are with your current bank for less than 6 months. That would be helpful for folks to know I think.

they did in my case, i took a mortgage with EBS, switched to BOI 4 months later and to UB 4 months after that, did them all seperately
 
This is encouraging and well done on your multiple switches. The concern I would still have is what the break fees could be when it comes to the switch as I guess we cannot pre-determine what those fees would be. But as long as you do not incur any legal fees until the switch completes then I guess you have an opportunity to back out if the break fees were very high. Thats something the banks could start doing (increase break fees if allowed) if they see a trend in people doing multiple switches in a short time.
 
No need to get a fixed rate, just get a variable rate, it won't matter as hopefully you will switch asap so 1 maybe 2 repayments max.
 
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