Avant Money has become one of Ireland’s most talked-about lenders since entering the market in 2021. Their two core products — Avant Money One and Avant Money Flex — represent fundamentally different approaches to mortgage lending. This guide explains how they work, who they suit, and how to choose between them in September 2026.
What Is Avant Money One?
Avant Money One is a fixed-rate mortgage that locks in your interest rate for the entire term of the loan — typically 25 or 30 years. You pay the same rate from day one until your final payment.
As of September 2026, Avant Money One rates are:
| LTV Band | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to 50% | 3.15% |
| 50.01–80% | 3.35% |
| 80.01–90% | 3.55% |
The appeal is simple: rate certainty. If the European Central Bank raises rates again, or if Irish mortgage rates climb, your repayments stay the same. If rates fall significantly, you’re stuck at your original rate unless you break the contract.
Avant Money One is available for:
- Purchase and remortgage (switching)
- Owner-occupiers only (no buy-to-let)
- Loan amounts from €75,000 to €1,000,000
- Terms up to 30 years
- Maximum LTV 90% for first-time buyers, 80% for movers
You cannot make unlimited overpayments. Avant allows up to 10% of the original loan balance per year without penalty. Overpay more than that, and you face an early repayment charge.
What Is Avant Money Flex?
Avant Money Flex is a traditional fixed-rate mortgage where you choose a fixed period — 2, 3, 4, 5, or 7 years — and then revert to a variable rate or choose a new fixed term when that period ends.
September 2026 Avant Flex rates:
| Term Length | Up to 50% LTV | 50.01–80% LTV | 80.01–90% LTV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Year Fixed | 3.05% | 3.25% | 3.45% |
| 3 Year Fixed | 3.10% | 3.30% | 3.50% |
| 4 Year Fixed | 3.15% | 3.35% | 3.55% |
| 5 Year Fixed | 3.20% | 3.40% | 3.60% |
| 7 Year Fixed | 3.30% | 3.50% | 3.70% |
After your fixed term ends, you move to Avant’s standard variable rate (currently 4.95% as of September 2026) or choose a new fixed rate available at that time. You’re not locked into the original rate for the life of the loan.
Avant Flex suits borrowers who:
- Expect to sell or switch lenders within 5–10 years
- Want lower initial rates
- Value flexibility to remortgage without break fees when the fixed term ends
- Don’t want to commit to a 30-year fixed rate
The same lending criteria apply: €75,000 to €1,000,000, up to 90% LTV for first-time buyers, owner-occupiers only.
Rate Comparison: One vs Flex
The rate difference is marginal in September 2026. For an 80% LTV mortgage:
- Avant Flex 4-year fixed: 3.35%
- Avant One (lifetime fixed): 3.35%
They’re identical. The 5-year Flex is only 0.05% higher (3.40%), and the 7-year Flex is 0.15% higher (3.50%).
This pricing tells you Avant expects rates to stay relatively stable. The premium for lifetime certainty is minimal, which makes Avant One unusually competitive compared to fixed-rate products in other markets like the US or UK, where 25-year fixed mortgages typically carry much higher rates.
For a €300,000 mortgage over 30 years at 80% LTV:
- Avant Flex 4-year at 3.35%: €1,325 per month
- Avant One at 3.35%: €1,325 per month
The monthly cost is the same initially. The difference emerges after year four.
Break Fees: The Critical Difference
This is where Avant One and Flex diverge sharply.
Avant Money One Break Fees
If you break your Avant One mortgage early — by selling, remortgaging, or overpaying beyond 10% annually — you face an early repayment charge based on the remaining term and prevailing market rates.
Avant calculates the break fee using a standard formula: the present value of the interest rate differential over the remaining term. If market rates are higher than your fixed rate when you break, the fee is zero. If market rates are lower, you pay a fee.
In practice, if you took out Avant One in 2024 at 3.15% and try to switch in 2027 when market rates are 2.80%, you’ll pay a break fee — potentially several thousand euros depending on your remaining balance and term.
Example: €350,000 remaining balance, 27 years left, breaking from 3.15% to 2.80% = approximately €4,200 break fee.
If you’re certain you’ll stay in the property and won’t switch lenders for the full term, this doesn’t matter. If there’s any chance you’ll move, remortgage, or pay off the loan early, this fee becomes a major consideration.
Avant Money Flex Break Fees
Avant Flex carries the same break fee structure during the fixed period. If you break a 5-year fixed in year three, you’ll face an early repayment charge.
The key difference: once your fixed term ends, there’s no break fee. You’re free to remortgage, switch lenders, or sell without penalty.
This makes Avant Flex significantly more flexible for borrowers who expect their circumstances to change within a decade.
Real-World Scenarios: Who Should Choose What?
Scenario 1: First-Time Buyer Planning to Upgrade
Profile: 30-year-old couple buying a two-bed apartment for €320,000. Plan to start a family and move to a house in 5–7 years.
Recommendation: Avant Flex 5-year fixed.
Reasoning: They’ll likely sell within seven years. Locking into Avant One creates a break fee risk when they sell. Flex gives them certainty for five years, then they can sell or switch without penalty once the term ends.
Scenario 2: Established Family in Forever Home
Profile: 42-year-old couple buying a four-bed house for €450,000. Children are settled in local schools. Zero plans to move. Not interested in tracking rates or switching lenders every few years.
Recommendation: Avant One.
Reasoning: This is the ideal Avant One customer. They want to set their mortgage and forget it. Rate certainty for 25 years means they’ll never face payment shock, never need to re-engage with lenders, and never worry about refinancing.
Scenario 3: Professional Expecting Income Growth
Profile: 35-year-old solicitor earning €75,000, borrowing €280,000. Expects significant income growth over the next 5–10 years and plans to make large overpayments.
Recommendation: Avant Flex 3-year fixed, then reassess.
Reasoning: Avant One’s 10% annual overpayment cap becomes restrictive. If this borrower wants to pay off €50,000 in year five when they receive a partnership payout, they’ll face break fees on Avant One. Flex allows them to overpay freely once the fixed term ends or remortgage to a lender with unlimited overpayments.
Scenario 4: Remortgager Switching from High Rate
Profile: Homeowner with €200,000 remaining on a 4.2% variable rate mortgage, 20 years left. Property is worth €400,000 (50% LTV).
Recommendation: Avant One at 3.15%.
Reasoning: They’re already in their long-term home. The 1.05% rate reduction saves €135 per month immediately. Locking that in for 20 years protects against future rate rises. If they were planning to sell or switch again, Flex would make more sense, but for a settled homeowner, One is ideal.
Scenario 5: High Earner Borrowing at 90% LTV
Profile: First-time buyer earning €95,000, borrowing €360,000 at 90% LTV for a €400,000 property.
Recommendation: Avant Flex 4-year fixed, then switch when LTV drops.
Reasoning: At 90% LTV, they’re paying 3.55% on Flex or One. Once they pay down the mortgage or the property appreciates enough to drop below 80% LTV, they can switch to a lower rate. Flex gives them a clean exit after four years to remortgage at a better LTV band with any lender.
Overpayments and Flexibility
Avant Money One allows up to 10% of the original loan amount per year in overpayments without penalty. This is fairly standard for long-term fixed products.
Example: €300,000 mortgage. You can overpay up to €30,000 per year without a break fee.
If you want to pay €50,000 in year five, you’ll face an early repayment charge on the excess €20,000.
Avant Flex has the same 10% rule during the fixed period. After the fixed term ends, you’re on the variable rate and can overpay freely without penalty.
For borrowers who expect windfalls (inheritance, bonus, equity release from another property), this flexibility matters. Avant One’s restrictions remain for the full term.
What Happens After the Flex Fixed Period?
When your Flex fixed term ends, you have three options:
-
Choose a new fixed rate with Avant: You’ll get whatever rates Avant is offering at that time. In September 2026, this might be 3.30% for a new 5-year fix. In 2031, it could be 2.50% or 4.50% depending on ECB policy.
-
Move to Avant’s variable rate: Currently 4.95%. This is higher than the fixed rates, so most borrowers avoid it.
-
Switch to another lender: No break fee. You can remortgage to any Irish lender offering better rates.
Option 3 is why many Irish borrowers choose Flex over One. The mortgage switching market in Ireland is active, and lenders frequently offer discounted rates to attract switchers. If Avant’s new fixed rates aren’t competitive in 2029 or 2031, you’re free to move.
Avant Money One vs Lifetime Trackers
Avant Money One is not a tracker mortgage. A tracker follows the ECB rate plus a margin (e.g., ECB + 1.0%). Avant One is a fixed rate for life.
Before 2008, Irish banks offered lifetime trackers, and those who have them are paying exceptionally low rates today (ECB rate is currently 3.0%, so ECB + 1.0% = 4.0%, but early trackers had margins as low as 0.75%).
Avant One doesn’t move with ECB rates. If the ECB cuts to 2.0% in 2027, your Avant One rate stays at 3.35%. If the ECB goes back to 4.5%, you’re protected.
This is rate certainty, not rate tracking.
Should You Ever Break Avant Money One?
Breaking Avant One early only makes financial sense if:
-
You’re selling the property: You have no choice. The break fee is part of your exit cost.
-
You can remortgage at a rate low enough to offset the break fee: If Avant One is at 3.35% and another lender offers 2.50%, you need to calculate whether the €4,000 break fee is worth the long-term savings.
-
Your circumstances change drastically: Relationship breakdown, job loss requiring relocation, inheritance allowing full repayment.
In September 2026, with ECB rates falling from the 2023 peak, some Avant One customers who fixed at 3.5%+ in 2023 are considering breaking to switch to lower rates. Whether this makes sense depends on:
- The break fee calculation
- The new rate available
- How many years remain on the mortgage
For most borrowers, breaking Avant One is expensive and should be avoided unless circumstances force it.
Application Process and Requirements
Both Avant One and Flex have the same eligibility criteria:
- Minimum loan: €75,000
- Maximum loan: €1,000,000
- Maximum LTV: 90% (first-time buyers), 80% (movers)
- Maximum term: 30 years
- Income multiples: Up to 3.5× gross income (4× for first-time buyers earning under €70,000 combined)
- Mortgage protection insurance required
- Property valuation required
Avant Money is an online-first lender. Applications are submitted online or through a broker. They don’t have branch offices.
Processing times in September 2026 are typically 3–4 weeks for approval in principle, then 2–3 weeks for final approval after valuation.
Avant is not part of the Help to Buy Scheme as a direct lender, but HTB applies to the purchase, not the lender. You can claim HTB and use Avant Money.
Switching to Avant: One or Flex?
Avant Money actively targets switchers (existing homeowners remortgaging from another lender). As of September 2026, roughly 60% of Avant’s new business is switchers.
If you’re switching:
-
Choose Avant One if you’re settled long-term and want certainty. You’ve already been in the property for several years, you’re likely staying another 15–20, and you don’t want to think about mortgages again.
-
Choose Avant Flex if you want to keep your options open. Lock in a good rate for 4–5 years, then reassess. If Avant isn’t competitive when your term ends, switch again.
Switching typically takes 8–12 weeks. You’ll need a new valuation (Avant arranges this), proof of income, and mortgage protection insurance. There’s no need to rearrange your life — the property stays the same, your repayments come from the same account, you just change lenders.
The Bottom Line: One or Flex?
Choose Avant Money One if:
- You’re buying your long-term family home
- You value certainty over flexibility
- You don’t plan to sell or switch in the next 10+ years
- You prefer to set your mortgage and forget it
- You’re comfortable with the 10% annual overpayment limit
Choose Avant Flex if:
- You expect to sell or move within 5–10 years
- You want the option to switch lenders without break fees when the fixed term ends
- You plan to make large overpayments beyond 10% annually
- You’re a first-time buyer who might upgrade as your family grows
- You want flexibility as your financial situation evolves
The rate difference in September 2026 is minimal. Avant has priced One and Flex competitively against each other. This means your decision should be based on your life plans, not on squeezing out a 0.05% rate difference.
If you’re unsure, Flex is the safer choice. You lock in a competitive rate for 4–5 years, and you’re free to switch after that if your circumstances or the market changes. Avant One is brilliant for the right borrower, but it’s a 25–30 year commitment with real financial penalties for early exit.
For most Irish homebuyers in 2026 — especially first-time buyers and those in starter homes — Avant Flex offers the better balance of certainty and flexibility.
See also: Fixed vs Variable Rate Mortgages | Switching Your Mortgage in Ireland | Breaking a Fixed Rate Mortgage | Mortgage Rates Ireland 2026 | How Much Can I Borrow?