The pandemic was expected to cause problems across all sectors of the economy. However the housing market in the UK surprised even the most optimistic forecasters this year. Lockdowns created a new desire in the pandemic lifestyle for more space. Home buyers sought homes that had more space indoors and outdoors. The race for space produced an unexpected demand from buyers and the housing market grew at the fastest pace in almost a decade and a half.

The UK housing market has shown an amazing amount of resilience during the global pandemic. The strong demand from buyers surprised even the most optimistic experts. Rather than settle in during lockdowns, people sought out a more comfortable home to endure the restrictions and lifestyle imposed by Covid-19. A never ending conveyor belt of buyers entered the housing market, and even in areas that had been all but ignored in the past few years.

Inflation is growing and that means that most everything is costing more than it did before. Saving money is more important than ever when inflation is growing and looking for ways to do so in a household budget can be next to impossible when also facing a winter with rising energy costs. Homeowners have a unique opportunity to save hundreds of pounds per month and gain peace of mind against the stresses of financial strains. Experts have encouraged all homeowners to shop for a remortgage as there could be substantial savings waiting for them.

Homeowners are being encouraged to shop for a remortgage sooner rather than later or miss out on many financial opportunities. Gathering remortgaging information before the New Year could be a smart strategy according to experts. Interest rates are still very attractive despite the increase in the standard base rate by the Bank of England this month to 0.25%. The move caused lenders to remove their lowest offers, but many of those were only possible for the strictest of qualifications such as low loan to value (LTV) ratios, top credit histories, and high equity levels. Therefore, the deals still available are definitely worth taking a look at and discovering what savings are available.

This year has brought an amazing amount of growth to property values. Not only has it helped build homeowner investments, but it has helped put those homeowners into a category of more attractive remortgage offers. As the property value grows, the divide between the amount of a loan and the value of the property narrows. The loan to value or LTV is one part of determining which remortgages a homeowner can choose from, and the narrower the loan to value the better the remortgage offers. 

Remortgage brokers and lenders are expecting a strong boom in the lending market from homeowners looking to take advantage of low interest rates before further rate hikes. The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) shocked many experts by choosing to raise the interest rate last Thursday from the historic low of 0.1% to 0.25%. The rate increase came at a time when inflation was climbing rapidly, but also in the midst of another large outbreak of Covid-19 which was thought to put off a vote to hike the rate. The increase took many by surprise and left homeowners without an opportunity to take advantage of the lowest interest rate remortgages.