Mortgages · 6 min
The deposit, the rate and what happens when your deal ends decide how much it really costs. Get those right and you save tens of thousands.
5%
is the smallest deposit most lenders will take. More usually means a cheaper rate.
The 10-second version
The lender covers the rest. The bigger your slice, the safer you look and the lower your rate.
You: £12,500
A 5% deposit.
The lender: £237,500
The mortgage. That's 95% loan-to-value.
Rates usually drop at 90%, 85% and 80% LTV. A few extra thousand can be worth it.
Pick one. It points you to the kind of deal to look at.
Same £200,000 mortgage over 25 years. The only difference is the interest rate.
4.5% interest
about £1,112
monthly payment
5.5% interest
about £1,228
monthly payment
Illustration only. Assumes the rate stays the same for the whole 25 years. Set a reminder to switch before your deal ends.
Ready to dive deeper? The full First Home Deposit guide has the mechanics, worked examples and fine print.