How to remortgage: a step-by-step guide
Remortgaging means moving your existing mortgage to a new deal — either with a new lender (a remortgage) or your current one (a product transfer). The process runs from comparing the market three to six months before your deal ends, through application and valuation, to completion the day your old rate expires. For contractors, the key is choosing a lender that reads your contract income properly rather than the figure on your tax return.
What does it actually mean to remortgage?
Remortgaging means replacing your current mortgage deal with a new one. In practice that takes one of two forms: a remortgage, where a new lender pays off your existing mortgage and you start a fresh deal with them, or a product transfer, where you simply switch to a new rate with the lender you already have. Both leave you with a new interest rate; the difference is whether you change lender.
People remortgage for a handful of reasons — most commonly because a fixed or tracker deal is ending and they want to avoid rolling onto the lender’s expensive standard variable rate, but also to release equity, fund home improvements, consolidate debt, or move to a lender that suits a changed situation. Whatever the reason, the mechanics are broadly the same.
When should you start the process?
Answer first: begin comparing deals three to six months before your current rate ends. A remortgage takes several weeks to complete, and most mortgage offers stay valid for three to six months, so starting early lets you line up the new deal and have it complete the day your old one expires — never touching the SVR.
Leaving it to the last minute is the most common and most expensive mistake. If your deal ends before the new one completes, you spend time on the SVR, and that gap is rarely cheap. The detailed timing logic — including how to grab a falling rate if the market moves while you wait — is covered in when to remortgage. If you’re switching before your deal is technically over, watch for early repayment charges.
Step by step: how a remortgage works
1. Check your current position
Find your current rate, your outstanding balance, your remaining term, and crucially your deal end date and any early repayment charge. These four numbers determine everything that follows. Your latest mortgage statement has them all.
2. Compare the market
This is where a whole-of-market broker earns their place. Rather than checking one lender, you compare the whole market against your circumstances. For employees this is mostly about rate and fees; for contractors it’s also about which lenders will read your income correctly — a distinction that changes the answer entirely.
3. Decide remortgage vs product transfer
Weigh the wider choice of a full remortgage against the speed and simplicity of a product transfer with your existing lender. The right answer is the one with the lowest total cost over the whole deal, not the lowest headline rate.
4. Apply, with your documents ready
A remortgage is a full application, so the lender assesses affordability, runs a credit check, and values the property. Having your evidence ready speeds everything up — our contractor document checklist sets out exactly what to gather by income type.
5. Valuation and legal work
The new lender values your home to confirm the loan-to-value, and a conveyancer handles the legal switch. Many remortgage deals include free valuation and legal work, which removes most of the upfront cost.
6. Offer and completion
Once the lender issues its offer and the legal work is done, the new mortgage completes — the new lender pays off the old one, and your new rate begins. Time this for the day your old deal ends and the handover is seamless.
What documents will you need?
Answer first: expect to provide proof of identity, proof of income, your latest mortgage statement, and recent bank statements. The income evidence is where contractors differ from employees, and getting it right is the difference between a smooth approval and a declined application.
An employee provides payslips and a P60. A contractor or company director provides their current contract, recent bank statements, and — depending on the lender and structure — accounts or an accountant’s reference. The point is that the right lender asks for the evidence that reflects how you actually earn. We map this out by contractor type in the document checklist.
How is a remortgage assessed if you’re a contractor?
This is the heart of it. A remortgage is reassessed from scratch, which is both the risk and the opportunity. The risk: a lender whose process can’t read contract income may offer a weak rate or decline you. The opportunity: the right lender annualises your day rate — typically day rate × days × 46 weeks — and lends against that, not the minimised profit on your tax return.
Many contractors took their original mortgage as an employee and have since gone independent. At remortgage time, their existing lender often can’t reassess them well, so they assume they’re stuck. They’re not — they simply need a lender that does contract-based underwriting. The full route is set out in remortgaging as a self-employed contractor.
How much will it cost, and is it worth it?
A remortgage can involve a valuation fee, legal fees, and a product (arrangement) fee — but many deals are designed to be fee-free, covering the valuation and legals and either waiving the product fee or letting you add it to the loan. The honest comparison weighs any costs against the saving over the whole deal; the full breakdown is in remortgage costs and fees. For most people leaving an SVR, the maths is decisively in favour of switching.
The bottom line
Remortgaging is a well-trodden process: check your position, compare the market three to six months before your deal ends, choose between a remortgage and a product transfer on total cost, apply with your documents ready, and complete the day your old rate expires. The one thing contractors must get right is lender choice — the same income that one lender shrinks, another reads in full. If you’d like that mapped to your own deal, speak to an adviser. For independent, official guidance on switching, MoneyHelper is a good neutral starting point.
- Start three to six months before your current deal ends so the new one completes the day it expires.
- Your two routes are a remortgage (new lender, whole market) or a product transfer (same lender, quicker).
- A remortgage is a full application: affordability, credit and a property valuation all apply.
- Costs — valuation, legal, and any product fee — are often covered by fee-free remortgage deals.
- For contractors, the lender you choose matters more than the headline rate: pick one that annualises your day rate.
Remortgage, answered
How long does a remortgage take?+
From application to completion, a remortgage typically takes four to eight weeks, depending on the lender, the valuation and the legal work. Because of that, you should start comparing deals three to six months before your current rate ends, so the new one is ready to complete the moment your existing deal expires.
Do I need a solicitor to remortgage?+
Usually yes, but many remortgage deals include free legal work as part of the package, with the lender appointing a conveyancer to handle it. A product transfer with your existing lender generally needs no solicitor at all, because you're not changing lender or title.
Will remortgaging affect my credit score?+
A remortgage involves a full credit check, which leaves a footprint, so it can have a small short-term effect. A product transfer with your current lender often needs only a soft check. Either way, the long-term effect of securing a better rate usually outweighs a temporary dip.
Can I remortgage if my income has changed since I last applied?+
Yes — and for contractors this is often the whole point. If you've gone self-employed, limited or onto a day rate since your last mortgage, a remortgage is the chance to move to a lender that assesses your current income correctly rather than being stuck with one that can't.