Yorkshire Building Society offers a wide range of different types of mortgages - fixed rates, offset accounts, Bank of England trackers, first time buyer mortgages and other specialist products - many with special deals and features.
Many of our mortgage products have a specified end date so, for example, what may be called a 2 year fixed rate, could actually last for longer or shorter than 2 years. Read more about this
A fixed rate mortgage has a fixed rate of interest for a given period.
Choosing a fixed rate mortgage allows you to plan your finances, safe in the knowledge that your mortgage will not be affected by interest rate fluctuations during the period in which the fixed rate applies.
If your interest rate is fixed it could be higher or lower than other variable or fixed interest rates in the market depending on these fluctuations. There may also be early repayment charges payable, depending on the product taken, if you want to come out of a fixed rate mortgage before the end of the fixed rate period.
Our simple Offset account allows you to combine your mortgage and savings to make your money work harder. Your Offset mortgage and Offset savings accounts remain separate, so you still have access to your savings, but your savings reduce the interest charged on your mortgage. This means:
You could reduce your monthly payments
* If you wish to use offsetting to pay off your mortgage quicker you must choose the Reduced Term Option.
No interest is earned on your savings but interest on your mortgage is only charged on the difference between your Offset mortgage balance and your Offset savings balance.
In effect the money in your savings account will achieve the equivalent rate that you are being charged on your mortgage. The equivalent savings rates shown in the Offset products descriptions are based on the current interest rate of the mortgage product and, therefore, where this rate is variable or reverts to a variable rate the equivalent savings rate will change when the relevant mortgage interest rate changes.
With traditional mortgage and savings products you usually pay a higher rate of interest on your borrowings than you receive on your savings. If you are a taxpayer you may also pay tax on the interest that you earn on your savings.
With a Yorkshire Building Society Offset account the balance on your savings account is taken into consideration before we calculate the amount of mortgage interest you are charged. So, you reduce the interest you pay, which is equivalent to your savings achieving a benefit at the mortgage interest rate and you don't have to pay tax because your savings don't earn any interest.
Buying your first home can be an expensive time. We have a range of mortgages specifically for first time buyers that will help you with some of the costs, and offer these benefits:
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No product fee to pay |
This compares to a typical fee of £495 which may apply to some of our other products. |
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| If your loan is more than 75% of the value of the home you want to buy, a higher lending charge is payable. However we pay this charge for you. | |
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Help with your legal fees |
We offer to pay part of the legal costs as agreed with our legal adviser acting on behalf of the Society in completing the purchase and mortgage.
Get more details of our first time buyer legal service.
If you have already instructed a legal adviser, or simply prefer to choose your own, then we may have alternative mortgage products available, which may suit your circumstances better. |
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Help with your valuation cost |
We will pay the full cost of the standard valuation for you. |
Please note that some of our mortgages have early repayment charges - please refer to individual mortgage products for more information.
For details of the products currently available please take a look at our current first time buyer mortgages, and only one applicant needs to be a first time buyer to qualify.
If you have any questions about our special products for first time buyers please visit one of our branches and talk to our friendly mortgage advisers, or phone our Member Contact Centre.
These are mortgages where the interest rate payable is set at a certain level in relation to the Bank of England Base Rate. As the Bank of England Base Rate is variable, it can go up or down during the term, the interest rate you pay may vary.
This can mean that the Bank of England Base Rate, and therefore the interest rate you pay, may at times be higher than our standard variable rate.
A minimum rate of interest, referred to as a 'collar' or 'floor' usually applies to our Bank of England Base Rate tracker products and is detailed within the relevant product web pages, the mortgage product factsheets, KFI and any mortgage offer we may make. With a collared Bank of England Base Rate tracker product, when the Bank of England Base Rate falls, the interest rate you pay on your tracker product also falls by the same amount but cannot go any lower than the minimum rate of interest payable. In other words, the interest rate which you pay will never fall below the collar/floor applicable to the mortgage product.
These products are offered from time to time.
With a capped rate mortgage, you pay a variable rate of interest, but any future increase is capped at a specified rate for a set period of time.
This means that if the variable rate falls below the level of the cap, you are charged a lower interest rate but if the variable rate increases, you have the reassurance that your interest rate will not rise above the specified capped rate.
The variable rate of interest on a capped product is usually linked to or tracks either the Bank of England Base rate or our Standard Variable Rate.
Help when a relationship ends
It's sad, but relationships do sometimes come to an end. That doesn't mean there shouldn't be help and support available to deal with this though. Fresh Start is a special service for people starting again after the end of their relationship.
What does Fresh Start involve?
Fresh Start is primarily about helping you finance a new home. However, it also offers access to independent experts and professionals who will be able to help you deal with the wider aspects of your situation in confidence.
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Fresh Start mortgages Fresh Start mortgages are developed specifically to minimise your monthly mortgage payments until you find your feet. |
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| Borrowing Benefits Learn more about some additional benefits built around our standard lending rules tailored to customers using the Fresh Start service. | |
| Expert advice Access Family Law practitioners and qualified counsellors who can help with some of the non-financial aspects of your situation. Also, get a FREE Fresh Start Advice Guide to separating your finances when a relationship ends. | |
| Protecting your family If you have a family and you want to help make their future more secure, Family Protection cover could help. |
Most lenders have what's known as a standard variable rate. As the name suggests, the rate of interest can vary upwards or downwards. At the end of special deals, many borrowers may pay this rate, so even if you initially opt for a special deal, you should take note of it.
The majority of our mortgage products refer to the fact that the interest rate is applicable until a specified date, the product end date.
This means that although the product may be referred to as a '2 year fixed' for example, then depending on when your mortgage (or mortgage product transfer or additional loan) completes, the rate of interest may last slightly more or slightly less than 2 years.
For example:
A '2 year fixed rate with a product end date of 31/07/11' is chosen.
- If the mortgage completes on the 1st of July 2009, the interest rate is fixed from 1st July 2009 (the date of completion) to 31st July 2011 (the product end date), which is almost 2 years and 1 month.
- If the mortgage completes on the 1st September 2009, the interest rate is fixed from 1st September 2009 (the date of completion) to 31st July 2011 (the product end date), which is 1 year and 11 months.
Yorkshire Building Society is one of the largest building societies in the UK. We offer a range of financial products and services including: savings & investment accounts, insurance products, loans, mortgages and more.
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Yorkshire Building Society is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
