What the rise means for your monthly mortgage payments

What should I do about my mortgage?

(written on 19th May 2022) “Following the Bank of England base rate increase to 1% announcement, we have received lots of calls from clients asking what they should do about their mortgages. Should they fix, switch or stay is a question we often get asked.

“The answer, depends on the type of mortgage that you currently have. So, I’ll address each one in turn.

• Fixed term mortgages

Most of our mortgage clients have a fixed-rate mortgage. If this is you, then nothing will change with your existing deal. However, it is worth checking when your fixed term deal is due to end. If you are nearly at the end of your current fixed term, it might be a good idea to contact us to look for a new arrangement. As rates are changing at the moment, it might be prudent to lock in a new rate sooner rather than later. You can often lock in a rate up to six months prior to yours coming to an end.

• Standard Variable Rate mortgages (SVR)

If you are on the SVR, it’ll probably be because your fixed rate or tracker has ended. These can be more expensive than other types of mortgages. And, are likely to increase now the base rate has gone up. With this in mind, it might be worth getting in contact with your mortgage broker to see if you can change to a fixed term rate or something cheaper.

• Tracker mortgage

These track the base rate, so your monthly mortgage payment will increase. You will probably have picked a tracker rate because the base rate has been so low for quite a while now. If you are worried that your payments might be too much now, then get in contact with us. We will look to see whether we could save you money on a different arrangement such as a fixed rate. We can also look to see if you have to pay any penalties such as early repayment charges for switching.

We will, of course, be watching the markets carefully. If you want the latest information and the most informed across market understanding, we would recommend you speak to an impartial mortgage broker like Your Mortgage Expert.

Searching the market yourself can be time-consuming. But with our help, we can search thousands of mortgages, including exclusive deals and lenders that you wouldn’t otherwise have access to. We have regular contact with a wide range of lenders, some of whom you may not even know exist! With our help, you won’t have to search or contact each individual lender in order to compare the mortgage terms and rates; we’ll do all that for you.

If you  have read about the Bank of England increasing the base rate to 1% and are interested in having a no obligation chat about your mortgage, why not get in touch? We don’t charge anything up front, so by speaking to us, you are under no obligation. We are based in Salisbury, Wiltshire, but we can help you no matter where you live in the UK.

Simply call us on 01722 322683 or complete a contact us form on our website and tell us when it would be best to get back in touch with you.

The information contained within this article was correct at the time of publication. It is intended for information only and does not constitute advice. Your Mortgage Expert Ltd and Mortgage Advice Bureau cannot be held responsible for information that was correct at the time of publication but subsequently changes or goes out of date due to changes in legislation.