One in two UK homeowners don’t understand the basics of offset mortgages.
This is according to the latest Mortgage Mood report, which was published by the Legal and General Mortgage Club.
A survey of 1,000 people shows that 52 per cent of respondents couldn’t outline what an offset mortgage is and 48 per cent didn’t know the main benefits of using this kind of product.
Some 31 per cent were honest enough to tell researchers they didn’t know what the service even was, while ten per cent thought it allowed consumers to defer payments for 12 months. Another ten per cent believe it allows them to switch to a new rate at any point.
Residents in the East Midlands are most educated when it comes to offset mortgages, with 65 per cent able to identify the product, while only 31 per cent of people in the north-west of England could do the same.
Jeremy Duncombe, director at the Legal and General Mortgage Club, said: “It’s worrying that such a lack of understanding persists about a product that could be ideally suited for some UK homeowners.”
