[cascom]

“Remortgaging every couple of years takes a bit of time, and shopping around, but is much cheaper”

This is an incorrect statement. It is true only if short term interest rates (on average) remain flat or decrease over the next 30 years.

Put another way, by getting a fixed rate loan you are paying for insurance against rising interest rates (+inflation), you’re saying it’s ALWAYS cheaper not to buy insurance - but the honest answer thsts probably been true recently, but not always historically, and may not be true in the future.

[oliwarner]

Well this way of doing things has been a vastly cheaper way of borrowing in the last 50 years, in the UK.

If the interest rates tip up for an extended duration, yes, it's possible that longer term fixed rates could be cheaper, but of course the banks insulate themselves against that possibility with even higher rates if they suspect it's likely.

It's possible they won't insulate enough. IME, betting against banks looking out for #1 is foolish.