Remortgages are attractive to people for various reasons. Some people remortgage to borrow additional funds against their homes in order to release cash to buy treats, others do it to consolidate their unsecured debts and reduce outgoings and sometimes it's just to reduce the cost of the mortgage.

Another great use of a remortgage is to change your repayment method. First time buyers often opt for interest only to keep repayments low in the first few years, but as their financial situation improves they may want to look at paying off the capital as well as the interest.

The difficult part when seeking a remortgage is being able to negotiate a better mortgage contract than your existing one and we've put together these tips to help you negotiate like a professional and get the best deal possible.

Make sure that you know your existing mortgage contract inside out. If you don't, how can you compare it to other mortgage contracts offered by competing lenders? The answer is, you can't. So check your interest rate and any other benefits included in your existing mortgage.

This will give you an idea of what rates you want to start looking at so that you'll know whether another contract will save you money and put you in a better position. You'll then be able to search for a more competitive mortgage contract with a better rate of interest .

Although it costs money, a financial adviser can be an asset to you when looking for a remortgage deal. For one, they have access to deals that are not available on the high street. Secondly, their job is to know everything about mortgages, so their knowledge can give you a good standing.

A great tip is to get the lenders fighting for your custom. By getting mortgage quotes, you can use the cheapest quote as a tool and see if a lender will drop the price or rate in light of the fact that if they don't, you'll obviously go with the cheaper lender. This won't always work, but you might just get lucky.

But don't just be sold on a lower interest rate. There are other benefits that may be on offer such as free or low cost legal fees, no upfront costs or a free valuation of the property. All of these things could contribute to a lower overall cost of a mortgage contract.

If you have a large deposit or high equity in your home, this will also help to keep costs down because the interest rate will be lower as you'll be seen as a lower risk customer to the lender. In the current climate, many people cannot afford a large deposit or have little equity which means you have good terms to negotiate on.

Finally, go into the branches and speak to the friendly staff. Not many people do this anymore, but you'd be surprised at how a face to face meeting could see a representative seeking a competitive contract for you, as they are trained to offer the best possible customer service.