New mortgage price battle focuses on fees and charges - Mortgages, Money - The Independent

New mortgage price battle focuses on fees and charges - Mortgages, Money - The Independent

From next Tuesday borrowers can get half-price arrangement fees at Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks. While it's a gimmicky approach to a major financial decision, it reveals that home loans are beginning to become more competitive and, more crucially, that the focus is moving away from just the headline interest rate on to the total cost of the deal.

The banks aren't the first to slash arrangement fees to encourage borrowers: FirstDirect has been offering mortgages with a £99 fee since last July. But as we hit the prime spring homebuying season, the move signals a new price war, with both new borrowers and remortgagors set to benefit.