OwnerCost

United Kingdom · Refinance

When does switching pay back the fees?

Compare the break-even period with how long you expect to keep the new financing. OwnerCost starts with an editable 36-month planning horizon.

For example, until the end of the new deal's fixed or initial rate period, or until you expect to move.

Example with the default inputs. Change any field to recalculate.

Break-even in 7.2 months

Break-even occurs 28.8 months before your stated horizon of 36 months. This compares timing only; it does not show whether switching is right for you.

36 months is the editable OwnerCost planning default, not a lender or regulatory threshold. Replace it with how long you expect to keep this financing before selling or switching again.

Current P&I
£2,262
New P&I
£2,055
Saving / month
£207

Switching costs in the United Kingdom

  • Leaving a deal early can trigger an early repayment charge. Under FCA rules it must be a cash amount and a reasonable pre-estimate of the lender's costs from the early repayment.

    Source: FCA Handbook — MCOB 12.3 Early repayment charges

  • Where a lender uses the simplified affordability check for a like-for-like remortgage, it must warn you that its comparison ignores any early repayment charge on your current mortgage.

    Source: FCA Handbook — MCOB 11.9 Remortgaging with no additional borrowing

  • If your new deal charges a product or arrangement fee, add it to the switching costs; whether there is one depends on the lender.

    Lender-specific: no official source sets this.

Checked against these sources on 24 September 2026.

What this estimate includes

  • Current and new payments on today's balance over the same remaining term
  • The switching costs you enter (fees, penalties, charges)
  • Break-even months = switching costs ÷ monthly payment saving

What it does not include

  • Penalties or fees you do not enter — none are calculated for you
  • Cash-out or extra borrowing
  • Changing the loan term or amortization
  • Total interest over the life of either loan
  • Your horizon: it only positions break-even in time and never changes the break-even figure

How we calculate

Break-even months = fees and early repayment charges ÷ (current repayment − new repayment) on today's balance and remaining term. Monthly rate = quoted nominal annual rate ÷ 12 (enter the interest rate, not the APRC). Payment = P·i / (1 − (1 + i)^−n) over n months.

Rules checked against these sources on 24–25 September 2026.