Product Transfer vs Full Remortgage: Which Is Right for You?

When your mortgage deal ends, you face a binary choice: stay with your current lender and take one of their new deals (a product transfer), or move to a different lender entirely (a full remortgage). The right answer depends on your circumstances — and it is rarely obvious without running the numbers.

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What a product transfer involves

A product transfer is the simplest form of remortgage. You contact your current lender — or your broker contacts them on your behalf — and switch to a new rate without leaving. There is no new application, no valuation, and in most cases no hard credit search. The process can often be completed in a single day.

Most lenders open their retention product range six months before your deal end date, allowing you to lock in a rate early. The rate activates automatically when your current deal expires — meaning you get the certainty of a locked rate without paying any early repayment charges.

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What a full remortgage involves

A full remortgage means applying to a new lender — going through a complete underwriting process, providing income evidence, having the property valued, and appointing a solicitor to carry out the legal transfer of the mortgage. The process typically takes 4–8 weeks from application to completion.

The costs involved include a valuation fee (often offered free by the new lender as an incentive), legal fees (sometimes also covered by the lender), and potentially a product arrangement fee. The lender will run a hard credit search, which will appear on your credit file.

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When a product transfer wins

A product transfer tends to be the right choice when: your current lender's retention rate is competitive with the open market (within 0.2–0.3% of the best available); your circumstances have changed in a way that makes a new full application risky (for example, you have moved to self-employment, have new debt, or have had a credit issue); you need to move quickly; or the cost of a full remortgage (fees, time, hassle) outweighs the rate saving.

The misconception many borrowers have is that their current lender will automatically offer them the same rate as a new borrower. This is sometimes true but far from guaranteed. Always ask your lender for their best retention rate and compare it to the open market before deciding.

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When a full remortgage wins

A full remortgage makes sense when: the open market rate is meaningfully lower than your lender's retention offer; you want to release equity (increasing your borrowing above the current outstanding balance); you want to add or remove a borrower from the mortgage; or you want to switch from interest-only to repayment (or vice versa).

The rate differential that justifies a full remortgage depends on your loan size. On a £400,000 mortgage, a 0.3% rate difference saves approximately £100 per month — or £2,400 over two years. Even after accounting for arrangement fees, a full remortgage is likely worthwhile at that difference. On a £150,000 mortgage, the same rate difference saves only £37.50 per month — making the case for a full remortgage much weaker.

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The broker advantage

A whole-of-market broker can compare your current lender's retention range against the full open market simultaneously, quantify the net saving after all costs, and recommend the right route for your specific circumstances. Critically, they can also handle a product transfer for you — many borrowers assume they need to deal with their lender directly for a product transfer, but a broker can manage the process end-to-end, often securing better retention rates through their lender relationships than the rates available on the public retention portal.