For how many years of fixed interest period would you currently finance?

I also believe that the inquiry leads to nothing. The constellations are too different for that.

We only had to borrow 185,000. I hesitated between 10 years with < 50,000 remaining debt or 15 years full repayment.
We decided on the 15 years because the interest rate of 1.33 was very low anyway and we did not want to feel pressured to repay as much as possible within the next 10 years to reduce the remaining debt.
Nevertheless, we have paid special repayments of almost 20,000 in the first two years after the house was built.

The only thing I would say is, the tighter the financing and the worse the loan-to-value ratio, the longer the fixed interest period should be. Tight and short is a really bad combination that can go seriously wrong.

I can fully agree with that. There is no worse financing than having to take out a large sum with a short fixed interest period and low repayment rate just to "afford" the installment. You are blindly running into property liquidation after the fixed interest period if the interest rate rises in the future.

Sad enough that such things exist as well. Unfortunately, most of those with a +100% financing (loans around €200k-€250k) come up with such brilliant ideas. Those who finance over €350k usually know what they are doing for the sake of the family.

If you put yourself under a little pressure with the financing like I did with my 10 years, you always have in the back of your mind that you might make an extra payment with the odd coin you might otherwise spend on nonsense.

Of course, this only works if there is capacity with the money. I don't know if I would have saved my current savings amount if my interest rate lock-in period were 20 years instead of 10 years.

The only thing I would say is, the tighter the financing and the worse the loan-to-value ratio, the longer the fixed interest period should be.

But that also means that home builders with relatively limited financial resources are supposed to take the most expensive financing option.

In any case, one should know the different costs. It is often written here, "The 20 years were hardly more expensive than the 15 years." I always hope then that people know the actual absolute numbers.

Just took a quick look at biallo for a loan of €400,000 at 80% loan-to-value ratio using the example of HVB, just to show the differences

10Y 1.26%
15Y 1.65%
20Y 1.89%

Just looking at this, 15Y is IMHO out.

Based on a monthly payment of €1,500, you can compare the balance after 15 years. At that point, the 20-year loan has already cost €13,000 more, or the remaining debt on the 15-year loan is €13,000 lower. Some people use that for landscaping. This is not meant to be a judgment.

We financed a very similar amount over 10 years at very similar conditions, although after moving in it was only 9 years, and now only 8 years remain. We are very satisfied with that. If the interest rates are significantly higher in 8 years, the money saved could of course be lost again – but with the new negotiations the loan-to-value ratio is much, much better, so I am optimistic. Also, we could easily afford a higher payment. If interest rates rise above 5%, home builders with fully amortizing loans will of course laugh at the decision for the 10-year terms as the right one. The opposite would never happen because the typical German consumer has a rather distorted perception of what risk avoidance really costs, or they do not consider the necessary means as a controllable cost factor but simply as a necessary evil. Many calculations are always made as part of financial planning about income and expenses, returns, interest costs, and remaining debt. But I estimate that an in-depth consideration of different future scenarios, with their probabilities and impacts, rarely takes place. In other words: the risk analysis ends with the question of whether the payment can still be managed when a child is born.

If you put a little pressure on yourself with the financing like I do with my 10 years, you always have in the back of your mind that you might bring in the occasional coin that you might otherwise spend on nonsense as an extra repayment.

Of course, this only works if there is capacity with the money. I don’t know if I would have saved my current amount if my fixed interest period were 20 years instead of 10 years.

We have the right attitude.

Starting from a monthly installment of 1,500 euros, you can compare the balance sheet after 15 years. At that point, the 20-year loan has already cost 13,000 euros more, or the remaining debt on the 15-year loan is 13,000 euros lower

And you still have over 200K remaining debt. If the interest rate then actually stands at 5%...

In times of 1-2% interest, I personally see no reason for me to make a bet on the future. We still have a maximum of 28 years ahead of us (some end earlier); without having to make special repayments or worrying about ZiÄR.

My colleagues from other countries, also European ones, envy me. Some of them only know variable mortgages and such fun