Every Friday, we take an overview of the mortgage market with industry experts and round up the best rates with Moneyfactscompare.co.uk.
Mortgage “prisoners” could now “break free” from their high variable rates as cuts to fixed rate deals look set to continue.
Several major lenders made reductions this week, as competition heats up across the market.
NatWest moved to cut fixed rates by 0.21%, with a similar drop of 0.2% made by TSB.
Slightly smaller cuts were made by HSBC of 0.07% and from Halifax and Lloyds Bank of 0.13%, with Barclays joining the fray, cutting by up to 0.13%.
“Over recent weeks, borrowers may be pleased to see mortgage rates have been on a downward trend, and it looks promising for more fixed rate cuts to continue due to swap rate moves (which lenders watch very closely to re-price their loans),” said Rachel Springall, finance expert at Moneyfacts.
“Now is a great time for anyone looking for a new deal to seek advice from a broker to assess the latest options.
“Mortgage prisoners who have not been able to borrow more could now break free of their costly variable rate mortgage and secure a lower fixed rate deal.”
Here’s a look at the cheapest deals on the market…
Moneyfacts also rounds up the top Best Buy deals, which can be the more cost-effective option if you are looking to save on the upfront price of your mortgage…
Outside of rate moves, the latest Money and Credit statistics from the Bank of England revealed a rise in house purchase activity in September.
However, remortgage activity fell for another month.
“As we get closer to the end of the year, there will still be some borrowers looking to remortgage, and those still locked into a fixed deal could still agree a new one in readiness for when a fixed term expires,” Springall added.
“There will be borrowers sitting on the fence until the budget, and others stuck due to a short supply of affordable housing.
“Depending on the area of the UK, house prices may be stretching borrowers searching for a new deal, so it’s important to try to increase their deposit or build up more equity in their home to make up the difference.”