Many households are struggling with the impact from the global pandemic caused by Covid-19. Businesses are having to learn to operate differently to keep staff and customers safe, with some unable to do so and survive. Jobs are less secure and finances are a worry to many due to that lack of security. Those with budgets are finding it a worrisome state to make ends meet and plan for the future while also having to fight an illness that is running rapid through communities. It is hard to set goals, especially financial ones, in such an environment that is changing day to day.

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee met yesterday to review and make decisions on the state of the current UK economy. There had not been an expectation that the MPC would choose to cut the standard base interest rate as they had twice in the month of March. No change to the rate was the outcome. The base rate will remain at the historic low of 0.1%.

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is due to meet this week on 6 August. Probably never has there been so much attention given to the meeting. In March, the MPC met not once, but twice, in which they cut the then standard base interest rate to a historic low of 0.1%. The response to the global pandemic from Covid-19 led to the cuts and many are anxiously awaiting the possibility of another cut and perhaps a move to UK negative interest rates.

In an effort to help homeowners during the pandemic lockdown, the government helped bring about the possibility for a mortgage payment holiday. It was intended to help those that were cash strapped and finding it difficult to make ends meet financially. However, it is estimated that 70% of those that took a payment holiday did not do so because they had a financial difficulty according to banking trade organization UK Finance. No matter the reason, that skip in payments could have caused the homeowner to experience difficulty in remortgaging over the next twelve months.

Homeowners that may have been sitting on the fence waiting out the remortgage lending market for even better deals might have missed their opportunity. In the last week or so, lenders have been adjusting their interest rates on remortgage and mortgage products. This has prompted experts to encourage homeowners to take action sooner rather than later if remortgaging is their goal.

The remortgage lending market is evolving quickly. One day the loan to value (LTV) levels are in reach of more homeowners, then the next they are changing to more restrictive levels. Interest rates attached to remortgages from a lender can offer amazing savings only to be replaced by new ones quite quickly with higher rates or perhaps higher fees which cuts into the possible savings. So, homeowners are being encouraged to take action when they find the right deal sooner rather than later or take the risk of missing out.