Borrowers believe base rate has 'peaked'

Borrowers Believe Base Rate Has ‘Peaked’

Keywords: base, rate, peaked, believ, borrowers, lending, loans, secured, finance

Consumer confidence is increasing, the results of a new study have intimated.

The news comes as figures released by Spicerhaart Financial Services revealed a growth in the number of consumers opting to take out a variable-rate mortgage over the course of last month. During July, the number of homeowners opting for such a product increased to 14 per cent - the highest proportion noted since October 2006. Although the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) chose to increase the base rate for the fifth time in the last year (now standing at 5.75 per cent) in a move putting further pressure on homeowners’ finances, Britons are reported to believe this will fall in the coming months.

Steve Cox, operations director of the financial services firm, said: “The increasing proportion of variable mortgages indicates that borrowers are starting to believe that interest rates have finally peaked, as inflation stabilises and are likely to come back down again before the end of the year. With interest rates still historically low, homeowners and first-time buyers, still confident in their financial security, are as keen as ever to move up the property ladder, even if this means borrowing slightly more.”

Research from the company also showed that fixed-rate products continue to be the most popular option among secured loans consumers, as this accounted for some 86 per cent of all mortgages borrowed last month. However, uptake of short-term deals was revealed to have fallen. Offers lasting for two years were made up 55 per cent of all borrowing in July, down from the 60 per cent noted in June. Meanwhile, contracts for fixed-rates lasting three years and four years or more were reported to have remained consistent at 13 and 18 per cent respectively.

“Perhaps surprisingly, shorter-term fixed-rates saw a slight slip in popularity last month. However, the majority of consumers are still opting for fixed-rate deals to protect themselves against further rate rises,” he added.

Out of the market, tracker deals (which follow moves to the base rate carried out by the MPC) were said to account for 11 per cent of mortgages taken out by borrowers during the month. Some 1.7 per cent of consumers opted for a discount contract as a further 1.3 per cent chose other types of variable-rate products.

Findings from Spicerhaart additionally indicated that the proportion of high loan-to-value mortgages increased for the sixth successive month as it reached a peak of 21 per cent. Consumer confidence was also shown to be lifting as the level of first-time buyers rose slightly to make up 37 per cent of all those purchasing a property.

However, Mortgage Financial representative Paul Davies warned prospective first-time buyers to ensure that they will be able to afford repayments when looking to purchase a home. With “the way interest rates have been going up over the last 18 months or so”, Mr Davies also urged young professionals to make certain that their salary will be able to cope with potentially increasing mortgage costs in the future. Findings from the company also showed that such consumers are tending to choose fixed-rate products and are getting larger secured loans than average buyers in a bid into the housing market.

Tom Dawson is the Editor in Chief for Essentially Home Loans where visitors can apply for cheap loans online. We also specialise in debt consolidation loans, and secured loans. Visit our site today news.essentiallyhomeloans.co.uk


Previous Articles Highlighter:

10 Questions To Assess Your Succeess In Property Investing (1)
How will I keep from losing my shirt? No one recommends negative cash flow, so don't go into a deal that appears to be negative from the beginning. However, if you have a setback, like more repairs than you anticipated, look at the numbers.

A Guide To Buying Your First Rental Property And Becoming A Landlord (2)
Working as a realtor in the Austin Texas Real Estate market. Escapeso Austin Texas Real Estate www.escapesomewhere.com is dedicated to providing its clients with honest and experienced advice when they are looking to purchase in the Austin market.

Commodity Trading - Trading Uranium (3)
The deficit is made up by supplies that are stockpiled from the 1970s, the dismantling of Russian nuclear warheads and other sources. That supply, however, is dwindling. Fuel costs are relatively small expenditures for power plants, but fuel it vital to their operation.

Repayment Plans For Student Loan Debts (4)
If you need to then set up an automatic debt payment plan to help you remember month after month. You will continue receiving delinquent letters after the first bill statement for a while.

Personal Credit Report Via The Internet (5)
The private citizens can access the personal credit report of any business that they are considering using in the future. This loophole has created a huge market for the top three credit bureaus.

Commodity Trading Strategies - The Spread (6)
A hedge is the other purpose. Hedging is a method of minimizing risks by attempting to purchase some form of insurance. As well as minimizing risks, it also usually caps potential profits.

Giants Steps To Financial Freedom (7)
When the list is complete then examine what is being spent, what can bills can be cut out completely, and what bills can be reduced. Next, place the bills in order of priority.

Car Insurance Companies As Different As Their Drivers (8)
If the company fails to respond in a timely manner to requests for insurance quotes and is slow in returning calls for questions about their coverage, they will likely be slow in responding to claims or complaints.

Commodity Trading - Trading Oil (9)
However, North Sea oil production, which saw its peak in 2000, has seen a gradual decline. Until the time that political changes come around, releasing the massive reserves that are known to be in Alaska, it is not expected that there will be new discoveries of sources that will be utilized.

Investing In The Car Of Your Dreams (10)
Remember, dealerships want your business and are willing to bargain. However, you must have the ability to say no and keep saying no if you want to get the price you are willing to pay.

The Influence Of Foreign Oil On The American Economy (11)
However, gas prices have not only stayed high have continued to increase. There were also several Iraqi pipeline problems having to do with the kidnappings in the Middle East during late 2005.

Understanding What Makes The Stock Market Move Up And Down (12)
Generally the stock market is supposed to grow in value over a period of time. This growth is actually an average of all of the stocks included on the market.

When Is The Best Time To Start Investing (13)
Unfortunately, many of us fail to understand how valuable even a few years can be in making a difference to the funds that you have earned during your investing. This is due to the power of compound interest.

Long Term Value Investing With Mutual Funds (14)
The investment account requires constant management to ensure the success of the fund. Insurance It used to be that insurance companies were only associated with planning for the future as far as life insurance or health insurance to protect against emergencies.

Learning Effective Money Management (15)
Your neighbor that lives across the street could also be a millionaire. The most common misconception that most people have about the wealthy is that they always drive around in fast and fancy cars, take lavish vacations, and live on large estates.

How To Get Rich Quick And Risk Losing Everything (16)
Or at least take it, invest it in something high-risk, and have no obligation to you or others when all of the money is lost. This isn't to suggest that you should never take a risk in investing, but it is to say that you should carefully consider any kind of instant wealth promises by asking yourself a few questions.

Sticking With Your Trading Plan (17)
Inexperienced and nonprofessional investors run a very high risk of losing money. Stick with a trading plan and you may just find yourself at Point B of your financial road map.

How To Get Rich Slowly - Sound Solid Investment Principles Take Time To Pay Off (18)
Second, you need to understand a principle regarding the time value of money. This says that the money you have in your accounts or pocket now won't be worth the same as an equal amount of money that you get tomorrow, next month, next year or ten years from now.

Do You Really Need To Be Thinking About Investing (19)
Of course, in that example, we assumed that you never added any additional money to your original $1,000. Since true investing will involve regular, consistent investing, lets take a different example.

Taking Your First Steps In The Investment World (20)
But this is just the first step. Taking responsibility for your financial well being is not something that can happen over night, but it certainly can happen. It will require time, effort, patience and the willingness to learn, as well as the understanding that you may make some mistakes.

Newer Articles Highlighter:

'Shopping Around' Recommended For Financing Car Purchase (1)
The findings also showed that 40 per cent of car loans go towards buying a brand new automobile. However, the financial services provider reported that although Britons often take their time in picking out the right car, the same principles often do not apply when choosing the financing of their purchase.

Property Buyers 'Prepared To Pay Out For A Garden' (2)
In related news, recent research carried out by Abbey has shown that prospective first-time buyers are evermore prepared to get larger loans to help them make their initial steps into the housing market.

Deferred Student Loans - What You Must Know!! (3)
(c) 2007 Best Student Loan Guide. Products, services and step-by-step guidance to help you make the best decisions you can. Checkout Martin Haworth's website for all you need at www.Best-Student-Loan-Guide.com

Unwise Student Spending Can Leave Brits With 'Debt Mountain' (4)
After graduating from Leeds Metropolitan University, the 25-year-old found himself owing more than 60,000 pounds as he increasingly took out personal loans to cover daily expenses such as paying rent.

Assortments Of Mortgage Loans (5)
Others are looking at house buying as a lucrative investment option. Still others are hoping to purchase real estate in order to give it out on a high rent.

Consumers Need To Be 'Wiser' With Debt Difficulties (6)
"You've just got to be totally sensible. Debt in this country is completely out of hand. At some point you've got to start clawing back and be sensible with your spending," Ms Hannums added.

Credit History 'Can Improve Access To Cheaper Borrowing' (7)
One method consumers can take in improving their credit rating, Mr Jones asserted, is to make sure they are registered properly on the electoral roll. By doing so he claimed that lenders will check clients' name and address to make sure that they are living at the address records say they are.

Savings Shortfall 'Remains Crucial Problem' (8)
Julia Clayworth, wealth management customer marketing manager for the financial services provider, said: "This suggests more households are finding themselves in a position where they can afford to save rather than struggling to make ends meet".

Debt Problems Can Leave 'Lasting Impact' On Ability To Get Credit (9)
Keywords: debt, credit, rating, loans, consolidation, personal, jessica, Hollyoaks Dicing with debt at a young age could leave Britons with greater financial difficulties as they get older, it has been suggested.

Retired Britons Owe 'Thousands In Mortgage Debt' (10)
Meanwhile, a quarter of consumers between the ages of 60 and 64 are still paying back on this area of spending, with 42,800 pounds the average amount owed. The Scottish Widows study also showed that thousands of retirees are financially supporting their children.

Buying A Car With Bad Credit: Get A 0 APR Card And Rebuild Your Credit History (11)
Some banks apply 0 APR for new purchases only or for transferred balances only. Make sure you have read carefully all conditions and charges applicable after the zero APR expires before signing your credit card contract.

Types Of Health Insurance Plans (12)
Preferred Provider Organizations The Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs) is some kind of combination between the fee-for-service plan and a health maintenance organization. If you are insured under this plan you will have to choose a doctor or a hospital from the list of approved health care providers.

Home Makeovers Lead To Higher Value (13)
This amount can then be used to take care of other expenses such as education and emergencies among other things. If you do not want the risk of losing your home, you could go in for an unsecured home improvement loan.

Breaking Down The Financial Breakdown (14)
The hit the banks took on the Chrysler deal is a good example. This problem will work itself out by the end of the year. Banks with private equity financing exposure could have one or two bad quarters.

Your Guide To Stock Trading Online (15)
You need to find a good online broker. There are many choices in the United States as well as other countries. You need to do your research to find out which online broker is best for you.

When Not To Cancel Credit Cards (16)
The reporting agencies use many different factors when figuring out your credit score and one of the factors that they use is the total amount of debt you have on your credit cards and the revolving accounts that you have divided by the total amount of debt available on those accounts.

Student Health Insurance (17)
In many cases if you will be traveling abroad you will need an additional health insurance. Check how long your health insurance will last. Some student health insurance plans cover only under graduates.

How To Use The Credit Card Wisely (18)
Remember that this should be an asset that you must maximize the use. Don't turn it to a liability that will dump you to a deep crisis. Aaron Ballantyne writes about a variety of topics online and also has a credit card website.

The Benefits Of Shopping Around For Credit Card Deals (19)
All you have to wait for is the actual card in the mail. Smart shopping for your credit card means you will get the best benefits from your card.

How To Travel Around The World On A Budget (20)
If you are going to travel overseas, you can exchange homes with a family in the country you are going to. You can rent an apartment instead of staying in a hotel.


Leave a Comment