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In these tough times you have to be prepared to save, not spend, if you are going to have any chance in surviving the recession and then coming out as a better borrower.

You might be a super-low interest rate right now thanks the low base rate, and that's great – if your adviser helped you get that deal they are probably pretty chuffed for advising on such a great mortgage – but you should be looking to overpay as much as you can.

This might be a hard ask – if you have found yourself with a few hundred pounds extra each month there is undoubtedly 1000 things to do with that money. You might have debts to clear, you might need a new car, you might be looking to improve your home – you might even be saving for that dream holiday. It is tough to stop spending and pay too much for your mortgage.

But it will work out in the long run. It might hurt to give your bank or building society and extra few hundred a month, but that extra money is taking years off your mortgage and bringing you a few steps closer to the ultimate dream of being debt-free.

You will also improve your credit score no end – lenders in the future will see that you took the sensible, pro-active approach and decided to pay more on a lower rate. This will tell a lender that you can not only handle a debt, but can also look to the future and manage your finances accordingly.

So talk to a mortgage adviser about how much you can afford to overpay. You may have debt that need servicing, and that has to be considered, as well as any future outgoings. But do what you can and think long term – saving now means more choice, more flexibility and more freedom to any future mortgages.

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