Spotlight On: Yorkshire's 10-year fix

The deal

Yorkshire building society is offering a 10-year fixed rate mortgage at 4.99 per cent.

The good points

The rate is competitive. There's also an option at 5.09 per cent, which includes free legal and valuation costs for re-mortgagers or free valuation and £250 cashback for homemovers.

The bad points

You'll need a 25 per cent deposit. There are much cheaper deals over five years, such as Co-operative's 3.99 per cent.

Conclusion

The thing to ask yourself when considering a fix is will you end up paying more than you need to? If interest rates remain low, then you will. But experts predict rates will start to climb from next spring so getting a fix before then could make sense. Over 10 years, who knows what will happen to rates, but the advantage of fixing for that length is the certainty. If you know how much you'll be paying for your mortgage, you'll be able to budget better. There's also the fact that you'll save having to pay arrangement fees every couple of years or so. At around £1,000 a pop, they add up - which could mean saving thousands over a decade.