Remortgaging means you take out a new mortgage, either with the same lender or a different provider. The new mortgage pays off the old one, and your repayments switch to the new product.

The most significant factor is usually how much you can borrow and what interest rates you are offered. It is always advisable to keep an eye on your mortgage since for most homeowners this is the biggest outgoing they will pay.

Mortgages tend to run for 25 years or so, which means almost every homeowner will benefit from remortgaging at some stage. Refinancing or consolidating debt is one of the most common reasons to remortgage, but it can have many other positive impacts.

Provided you have sufficient equity, yes you can remortgage and increase the loan value to consolidate your debts.

Maximum LTVs (Loan to Value ratios) are around 90%. Therefore, if you have a property worth £100,000, you can borrow up to £90,000. In this scenario, if you have an £85,000 mortgage, you could consolidate another £5,000 of debt into that mortgage product.

Say your home is worth £200,000 and you owe £110,000, then you can borrow another £70,000 taking the total mortgage up to £180,000.

The below illustration highlights how your monthly repayments might change by consolidating debts:

If you were to remortgage to include all of those debts, the situation would change as follows:

This is purely an indicative scenario, but you could save £362 per month, and combine three separate forms of debt into your mortgage.

It's worth noting that although the monthly saving is £362, you might pay more in total given that the mortgage has a 22-year term.

Refinancing debt through remortgaging is mainly aimed at reducing your outgoings to a manageable level. In this illustration, we have used 4% as the interest rate, but it is possible to achieve a lower interest charge depending on what LTV you need.

Another option is to change the mortgage term to extend the time you have to pay back the borrowing.

This example shows the same mortgage on the same interest rate, but how the monthly repayment would change if you switched to a longer-term:

To apply for a remortgage, you will need to find a lender who is happy to lend to the value you need to pay off your debts.

Each lender has a different policy on maximum lending, and some will limit the amount you can borrow for debt consolidation.

Every lender has its own calculation process for affordability assessments. You will need to demonstrate that you can keep up with the remortgage payments.

Credit scoring is also part of the process. Again, the importance depends on the lender. Some will refuse any applicant with less than perfect credit history, and others may offer bad credit remortgage products.

In some cases, you can take out a debt consolidation remortgage even if you have adverse credit. However, you will usually be offered higher interest rates.

Revolution Brokers work with a vast number of lenders who offer competitive rates, including those specialising in the bad credit sector.

Generally speaking, a lender will take your annual income and multiply it by four to arrive at the maximum they will lend. Others work on a five-times salary basis, and others will lend more.

Remortgages are often most cost-effective, but you might decide to opt for a different debt consolidation product.

For example, suppose you have an excellent interest rate that isn't available anywhere else. In that case, you might be interested in a secured or unsecured loan rather than remortgage and lose your mortgage terms.

Secured loans are more expensive than remortgages. Rates range from 7% up to 30% and even higher, which usually depends on your credit history.

However, a secured loan can be taken out over a longer-term, and have fewer restrictions on affordability and LTV caps.

Unsecured loans are another option but tend to be just as high in terms of interest, ranging from 6% to over 50%. However, the term is limited to seven years and up to £25,000 borrowing, which does mean repayments will be higher each month.