Taking out a mortgage is one of the most important decisions in life. A small mistake, however, can cause big problems, because it usually involves sums of several hundred thousand francs. So that everything runs smoothly for you, we have the ten most important tips about mortgages:
1. Don't just sit on the house bank
Unfortunately, a widespread mistake: Many mortgage customers go to the house bank and have an offer made that they accept without further comparison. Instead of using comparison sites like neotralo.ch, the first best offer is chosen, which was certainly well sold by the consultant. But the account balance will notice this negatively, because only rarely is the house bank really as cheap as it claims to be.
Always consider alternative offers and look for the possibility to renegotiate. It is often possible to negotiate discounts that affect, for example, the amount of interest or fees associated with the mortgage.
2. Compare interest
Above all, compare the interest rates, but not only! The other conditions should also be examined more closely, because they are decisive for the assessment of the offer as a really good offer or only as apparently good. Use our comparison page and find the best provider with the lowest interest rates. The key benchmark interest rates are updated daily, so when making a comparison, also pay attention to the date from which the respective figures come.
3. Include online providers
You should definitely include online banks and insurance companies. Online providers themselves have lower costs than branch banks and are happy to pass these savings on to their customers. This makes it possible to find significantly better offers in interest rates. However, advice is often not possible in person or is only offered via chat or email.
If you value being able to sit directly opposite your advisor, you can safely ignore the online banks. All others should get the necessary information about the online providers and include them in the search. Only then can real comparisons be made with the offers available from the local bank or other branch banks.
4. Show negotiation skills
If you bet that you want to get the mortgage particularly cheap, you should show negotiation skills. This means that you cannot simply accept the interest, fees and other conditions offered. Negotiate cleverly and may even threaten to turn away from this provider and choose the competition. However, you should not gamble blindly, but rather know from which bank there is another, realistic offer.
5. Bet on the right mortgage
Variable mortgages are very expensive in Switzerland, so the fixed-rate mortgage or the Libor mortgage is the better choice. Think about which term of a fixed-rate mortgage is best for you and don't tie yourself up unnecessarily long.
If interest rates are very low when the mortgage is taken out, however, long-term commitment is highly recommended, as this way you can secure these rates for the specified period of ten or sometimes even twenty years. However, if you like it more flexible, stick with the Libor mortgage.
This is to be set for one or three months, for six months or for a whole year. You benefit from changing interest rates, which can also be negative for you if interest rates rise on the money market. However, you can also switch to a fixed-rate mortgage when extending the mortgage.
6. Early exit
The premature
Withdrawing from the mortgage is really only recommended under certain conditions. These exist when the prepayment penalty is rather low and when this is offset by the interest saved.
You need a good offer from another bank or insurance company in advance, which you can find out about at neotralo.ch. Only cancel the existing mortgage if this procedure is actually worthwhile for you, otherwise you will sometimes pay several tens of thousands of francs on it.
7. Beware of intermediaries
Professional mortgage brokers describe a mortgage in the brightest colors and only highlight its advantages. Everything seems great, super and cheap here. Pay attention if someone wants to sell you a product that is only for your benefit.
Let's face it: a bank earns money from a mortgage, so it has an advantage in itself. Anyone who negates this in the consultation is obviously lying and is not a consultant, but only a more or less good seller. Many intermediaries are not neutral, so you should definitely do your own research and obtain offers on mortgages.
8. No carving
The carving is only sensible from a mortgage amount of CHF 250,000, it is mandatory if the amount of external funds required exceeds 65 percent of the purchase price of the property.
Even though bank advisors often describe tranches as very useful, they are only if they are close together and expire within 24 months. Otherwise, the extension of the mortgage is only possible with this one bank, because another bank does not take second place in financing. In the worst case, you will have to continue the tranche on bad terms.
9. Use different sources of equity
You need at least 20 percent of the purchase amount as equity to get a mortgage. Use different sources of money for this and make sure that you still have enough liquid funds available for unforeseen expenses.
As equity, you can use savings as well as money from the sale of securities, early advances, loans from relatives, gifts or unused mortgages. At least ten percent of the lending value must consist of so-called hard equity. Balances from the second pillar are excluded from being counted as equity.
10. Pay off until retirement
A common problem with mortgages is that when you retire, they are no longer sustainable. Then in most cases the income and thus the portability decrease. That is why financial institutions check all inquiries about a mortgage so precisely if the applicant has reached or exceeded the age of 50.
The mortgage lending should at best be reduced with age. As a rule of thumb, 120 minus age is the recommended maximum amount of the lending value in percent.