Moving from Fixed Mortgages

Mortgagedeals.ie founder Jeremiah Ryan has joined the list of campaigners calling on the Minister for Finance to help people tied into exorbitant fixed rate mortgages and facing excessively punitive penalties if try to switch to more cost effectiver variable rate mortgage products.

"A lot of our users are desperate to find a solution. More and more are suffering from heavy mortgage repayments made worse by reduced incomes or recent unemployment. Borrowers in these difficult situations are also faced with huge financial penalties to be allowed by their lending banks or building societies to switch to a cheaper variable rate. There has to be some quid pro quo, given that it is these very people who are contributing to the bail out of the lending institutions themselves. IF the banks wont't give way, it is incumbent on our Minister of Finance to introduce legislation and regulation, to compel banks and Building societies to renegotiate mortgages and allow people to switch to different rates without penalty. They should also be compelled to pass on all interest rate decreases to variable mortgage holders and even retrospectively refund tax contributions where delays in switching occur"

Jeremiah Ryan Founder at MortgageDeals.ie