Remortgage Costs and Fees: Complete UK Guide 2026

Remortgage costs and fees can include a lender product fee, valuation, legal work, broker fees, exit fees and an early repayment charge. Some deals have no product fee or include standard legal and valuation services, but the lowest advertised interest rate is not always the cheapest overall. The right comparison depends on your balance, mortgage term, existing deal and when you switch.

This guide explains the charges, when they apply and how to compare the true cost of switching in 2026. If you are deciding when to act, see our remortgage timing guide. For the full process, start with our UK remortgage guide.

How much does it cost to remortgage? What affects the price?

There is no single typical remortgage cost. Some suitable deals have no lender product fee and include a standard valuation or legal service, so upfront costs can be low. Other deals charge a product fee in return for a potentially lower interest rate. Your loan-to-value (LTV), borrowing amount, lender, product and timing all affect the overall cost. An early repayment charge can make switching before your existing deal ends significantly more expensive.

A fee-free product is not automatically cheaper. For a smaller mortgage, avoiding an arrangement fee may outweigh the benefit of a slightly lower rate. For a larger balance, a lower rate might justify paying a fee. These are possibilities, not rules. Compare the interest, repayments, fees and remaining balance over the same period, as the worked example below demonstrates. Option Finance’s £499 broker fee is explained separately below.

What fees do you pay when remortgaging?

Potential cost	When it may apply	What to check
Lender product or arrangement fee	A fee-paying new deal or product transfer	Amount, refund terms and whether it can be added to the loan
Mortgage valuation	The new lender requires a valuation	Whether a standard valuation is included
Legal and conveyancing costs	Normally when changing lenders	Free standard legals, cashback, exclusions and extra work
Mortgage broker fee	If your adviser charges for arranging the mortgage	The personalised fee disclosure before proceeding
Early repayment charge (ERC)	Redeeming the existing mortgage during a chargeable period	Exact amount and date the charge ends
Mortgage exit or account closure fee	If specified by your current lender	The fee in your original agreement and redemption statement
Other charges	Depending on property, borrowing and lender	Telegraphic transfer, title, leasehold or additional borrowing costs

Published fee benchmarks, not a personal remortgage quote

For context, MoneyHelper’s mortgage fees and costs guidance gives the following general mortgage-market illustrations. These are not Option Finance quotes and do not mean every fee applies to a remortgage:

Cost	Published indicative amount	Important limitation
Lender booking fee	£100 to £200	Not charged on every product. Check whether it is separate from the product fee.
Lender arrangement or product fee	£1,000 to £2,000 or more	Some deals charge £0. Compare the interest rate and total cost.
Mortgage account fee	£100 to £300	Not charged by every lender. Check the offer and fee illustration.
Lender mortgage valuation	£150 to £800 if payable	Often covered by the lender. This is a general valuation benchmark, not a guaranteed remortgage fee.
Electronic funds transfer	£25 to £50	MoneyHelper’s mortgage fees guidance. Check whether it is included in your legal quote.
Remortgage conveyancing (your own solicitor)	Around £300 to £1,000 for the basic legal fee, plus VAT and disbursements	Indicative 2026 market range, not a fixed tariff or an Option Finance quote. A lender’s standard free-legal package may cover the basic work. See the remortgage-specific sources below.
Early repayment charge	Depends on the existing mortgage	No reliable flat amount. Ask for a redemption statement for the proposed completion date.
Option Finance broker fee	£499 total	£299 on application and £200 on offer, subject to the refund terms explained below.

Important: MoneyHelper’s broader buying-and-selling guidance also includes legal fees for property purchases. Those figures must not be presented as the typical price of straightforward remortgage conveyancing. A new-lender remortgage may include standard legal work or cashback, while leasehold, title changes or transfers of equity can cost more. Obtain a remortgage-specific written quote for any extra work.

Remortgage-specific legal cost evidence: Published 2026 remortgage conveyancing guides from Conveyancer Plus and SAM Conveyancing give indicative solicitor-fee ranges starting around £300, with higher charges possible. Conveyancer Plus gives £300 to £600 and SAM Conveyancing gives £300 to £1,000 plus VAT and disbursements. These are indicative published ranges, not an average of all completed remortgages. VAT, Land Registry charges, searches, bank transfers and any leasehold or title work may be extra. Get an itemised quote and check which costs a lender’s free-legals offer actually covers.

MoneyHelper’s mortgage fees guidance says that changing a mortgage may cost £1,000 or more, depending on the charges involved. That is a broad warning about potential switching costs, not a minimum fee or a claim that every remortgage costs £1,000.

There is no universal remortgage fee total. A straightforward product transfer may have fewer costs than a remortgage to a new lender, but it may not offer the lowest total cost. Fees and incentives vary by lender and product.

What is a mortgage arrangement or product fee?

A product fee is a charge attached to a particular mortgage deal. It may be payable upfront, at completion or, where permitted, added to the mortgage. Some products have no fee.

A deal with a lower interest rate and a larger fee can be more expensive than a fee-free deal, particularly on a smaller mortgage. On a larger balance, even a modest rate difference may outweigh the fee. Compare both deals over the same period rather than judging the headline rate.

Is it cheaper to add the product fee to your mortgage?

Adding a fee avoids paying it immediately, but increases the amount borrowed. If you keep that extra borrowing for longer, you pay interest on it.

Illustration only: a £1,500 fee added to a repayment mortgage at a constant 4.5% interest over 25 years would add approximately £8.34 a month and about £2,501 in total repayments if left outstanding for the full term. Actual rates, terms and early repayments change the result. This is not a current lender quote.

Ask whether the fee is refundable if the mortgage does not complete and whether adding it changes your loan-to-value band.

Do you pay valuation fees when remortgaging?

A new lender will assess the property offered as security, sometimes using an automated valuation and sometimes requiring a physical inspection. Some remortgage products include a standard valuation at no extra charge.

An additional valuation may be needed for unusual properties or where the lender cannot rely on an automated assessment. Check what is included and whether a fee is payable if the application does not proceed. A lender valuation is for lending purposes, not a full structural survey.

Do you need a solicitor and how much will legal work cost?

A remortgage to another lender normally requires conveyancing to redeem the old mortgage and register the new lender’s charge. Some lenders offer a standard legal package or cashback towards your own legal costs.

Free legals does not always mean every legal cost is covered. If you use your own solicitor, a straightforward remortgage may attract a basic legal fee of around £300 to £1,000, plus VAT and disbursements. This is an indicative market range, not a quote. Additional work may attract charges, for example leasehold notices, a title restriction, a transfer of equity, additional borrowing or a complex property title. Ask for the exclusions and any disbursements in writing.

A simple product transfer with your existing lender usually does not require the same new-lender conveyancing process, provided the ownership and security are unchanged.

Will you pay an early repayment charge?

An early repayment charge (ERC) may apply if you redeem your mortgage before the chargeable period ends. Check the original mortgage offer and ask your current lender for a redemption statement showing the charge on your intended completion date.

Worked example: how an ERC changes the calculation

Suppose your outstanding mortgage is £200,000 and the ERC is 3%. The illustrative charge would be £6,000 (£200,000 × 0.03).

If a different deal appears to reduce monthly repayments by £100, dividing £6,000 by £100 gives 60 months. That simple calculation is not a reliable measure of savings because payments also repay capital, the mortgage term may differ and fees or interest over the comparison period may change the result.

You may be able to secure a rate in advance and arrange completion for after your ERC ends. Read our dedicated early repayment charge guide and remortgage timing guide.

Are there mortgage broker fees?

Some brokers charge an advice or arrangement fee, while others are paid by the lender or use a combination. The amount and when it becomes payable depend on the firm and service.

Option Finance’s mortgage broker fee is £499 in total. You pay £299 on application, which is fully refundable if the mortgage is declined, followed by £200 when the mortgage offer is issued. If you decide to withdraw after your mortgage application has been submitted, the £299 application fee is not refundable. We confirm the payment stages and refund terms in writing before you proceed.

What are exit fees, deeds release fees and other charges?

Your existing lender may charge a mortgage exit fee, sometimes called a deeds release or redemption administration fee, when the mortgage is repaid. This depends on your mortgage terms. This is different from an ERC. Ask for an up-to-date redemption statement and check whether any exit fee is already included.

Other costs can include bank transfer charges, specialist legal work, leasehold administration charges, valuation upgrades and additional borrowing fees. Cashback incentives may be subject to terms. Confirm which charges are paid by you and which are covered by the lender.

Can you remortgage without paying fees?

Sometimes, but a fee-free product is not necessarily the cheapest deal. A product transfer may avoid new-lender legal and valuation charges. A new-lender remortgage may offer a no-fee product, standard free valuation or free legal service.

Check whether there is still an ERC on your current deal, an exit fee, a broker fee or a higher interest rate. A product advertised as fee-free can still cost more over the deal period.

How do you compare a fee-free mortgage with a fee-paying deal?

Compare the same borrowing amount, repayment type, mortgage term and deal length. Include product fees and any incentives. Then compare total interest paid and the balance remaining at the end, not just monthly repayments.

Illustrative feature	Deal A	Deal B
Starting mortgage balance	£200,000	£200,000
Repayment term	25 years	25 years
Illustrative fixed interest rate	4.50%	4.70%
Product fee paid separately	£999	£0
Illustrative initial monthly repayment	£1,111.66	£1,134.49
Approximate payments over 24 months	£26,679.96	£27,227.77
Product fee plus payments over 24 months	£27,678.96	£27,227.77
Approximate balance remaining after 24 months	£190,935.22	£191,181.50
Total of payments, product fee and remaining balance	£218,614.18	£218,409.27

What this shows: Deal B requires higher monthly payments but lower cash outlay over the first 24 months in this simplified illustration. After including the different remaining balances, Deal B is about £205 cheaper in this simplified two-year example. A real comparison must also account for any ERC, legal costs, cashback and how the fee is paid. Rates are hypothetical and not currently available products.

Is a product transfer cheaper than a remortgage?

A product transfer is a new deal with your current lender. It can involve less paperwork and may avoid the valuation and conveyancing costs of switching lenders. However, your current lender’s available rates and fees still need comparing with suitable new-lender options.

If your circumstances have changed, eligibility and affordability checks may also differ. A simple existing-lender switch does not always require a new affordability assessment, whereas changing lender generally involves underwriting. The FCA’s mortgage rules explain relevant affordability requirements.

Does remortgaging trigger stamp duty?

A straightforward remortgage where the property ownership stays the same does not normally trigger Stamp Duty Land Tax in England or Northern Ireland. But a transfer of equity, adding or removing an owner or transferring a property to a company can have different tax consequences, especially where mortgage debt is taken over.

Do not assume the tax treatment is the same for every ownership change. For the official rules, see HMRC guidance on chargeable consideration and seek conveyancing or tax advice where appropriate.

What if you are borrowing more or have adverse credit?

Additional borrowing can change the loan-to-value ratio, the interest rate and the affordability assessment. Debt consolidation may reduce monthly payments but can increase total interest paid and turn unsecured debt into debt secured on your home. Read our debt consolidation remortgage guide.

A recent missed payment, default or CCJ can affect lender choice and pricing, but there is no universal fee or rate for borrowers with adverse credit. See our bad credit remortgage guide.

For self-employed borrowers, lenders may ask for accounts, tax computations or SA302s and corresponding tax year overviews. See our self-employed remortgage guide.

When is paying remortgage fees not worthwhile?

Switching may not make financial sense if the ERC and other costs outweigh the benefit, the new mortgage extends the term unnecessarily or the savings disappear when total interest and remaining balance are compared.

Before proceeding, confirm your deal end date, outstanding balance, current rate, ERC, any exit fee, new product fees, legal and valuation incentives, and whether the lender permits you to reserve a rate ahead of completion.

For guidance on fee types, see MoneyHelper’s mortgage fees and costs guide. For neutral guidance on switching, see MoneyHelper’s remortgaging guide.

Frequently asked questions

Speak to Option Finance about remortgage costs

We can help compare the total cost of a product transfer against remortgaging to a different lender, including fees, interest, early repayment charges and the intended completion date.

Use the enquiry form below to tell us when your existing deal ends and what you want to achieve. We will explain the available options and any applicable advice fee before you decide whether to proceed.