Homeowners are certainly facing much better remortgage offers now than just weeks ago. Lenders have become competitive as economic optimism has grown with the lowering of inflation and the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) making a cut to the standard base interest rate in August. It was the first cut to the base rate since March 2020 when the rate was reduced to the all-time historic low of 0.1%. The most recent reduction took the base rate from a sixteen year high of 5.25% to 5.0%. 

Once a home buyer becomes a homeowner, they likely want little to do with the consideration of loans, mortgages, or interest rates. They have handled that process and want to put it behind them and enjoy their new journey as a homeowner. However, homeowners should make it a habit of shopping for a remortgage. It takes only minutes to shop online for a new deal. At the very least, the result will bring valuable information, and the biggest reward would be the opportunity to save money with a lower interest rate. 

The latest data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed that the increase in house prices in the year to July grew 2.2%. It is the fifth consecutive month of recorded annual increases. The previous month’s data revealed a 2.7% annual increase, but last year as interest rates remained high and inflation was taking a toll on the economy, the housing market had less buyer demand. Prior to the five consecutive months of house price increase, the ONS had reported eight consecutive months of annual house price declines. The average house price is now £290,000.

It may have been expected, but it doesn’t mean it wasn’t still a disappointment as the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted on Thursday to hold the standard base interest rate steady at 5.0%. This vote followed the meeting held in August that resulted in the first cut to the base rate since March 2020. Another cut is hoped for this year, and many had thought it would be in September. Now, the wait for the next possibility will be for the meeting in November or December as there is not a MPC meeting scheduled for October. 

In 2024, more than one and half million homeowners were to come to the end of their mortgage terms according to UK Finance. Some of those at the expiration of their mortgage term have failed to remortgage to secure a new deal and were moved to their lender’s standard variable rate or SVR. The reasons could be varied, but it might be guessed that some may not have understood the benefits of a remortgage, while others could have chosen to wait for cheaper interest rates. The choice to wait was likely helped along by the forecasts of cuts to the standard base rate by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). 

Next week is the gathering of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). The meeting will be on Thursday, 19 September and will follow the previous day’s release of the most recent inflation data. The expectation is for another rate cut to occur in 2024, and if it happens this month it would mean two consecutive meetings with a reduction. There will not be a meeting held in October, so after the September meeting, the next opportunity for a majority vote by the MPC to cut the base rate will be in November or December. The possibility of a second-rate cut has pushed some hopeful home buyers and homeowners in need of a remortgage to wait for the possibility of lower interest rates.