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A typical two-year fixed mortgage deal now has an interest rate of more than 6% for the first time since December.
Mortgage lenders have been putting up rates and pulling deals at a rapid rate in recent weeks, driving up costs for homeowners seeking new deals.
Recent high inflation and strong pay growth figures mean interest rates are now expected to rise by more than expected, pushing up borrowing costs.
Interest rates have risen 12 times since 2021 to try to slow price rises.
On Monday, the average rate for a two-year fixed-rate mortgage stood at 6.01% according to the financial information service Moneyfacts.
The interest rates on mortgages soared to 6.65% after last autumn’s mini-budget before calming slightly. But rates have climbed sharply again recently.
A typical five-year fixed rate is now at 5.67% compared with last year’s peak of 6.51%.
Expectations that interest rates will stay higher for longer have been reflected in the funding cost of mortgages, hitting new borrowers, and those trying to remortgage. Lenders have been pulling deals and putting up rates at short-notice, while some have been inundated with demand and so forced to pull or raise rates again.
More than 400,000 people will see their existing fixed deals end between July and September, a comparatively high number. Many face the prospect of having to budget for monthly repayments that are hundreds of pounds more expensive than they have become accustomed to.
The base rate, set by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee and currently at 4.5%, will be reviewed on Thursday and is widely expected to increase for the 13th time in a row.
But at the weekend, a former deputy governor of the Bank, Sir Howard Davies, argued that it should “wait and see” to see the full effect of the rate rises made so far.
“We have a mortgage market where most people are on a fixed rate – when you put up interest rates you only have an impact on the small number of people paying the variable rate and on the people whose fixed rate happens to come up for renewal,” he said.
“So it’s arguable the interest rate rises we’ve already seen have not yet fed fully through into the impact onto consumer spending.”
Inflation – the rate at which prices rise – is remaining stubbornly high in the UK. The annual inflation rate was 8.7% in April, still well above the Bank’s 2% target.
By raising interest rates, the Bank expects people to have less money to spend and buy fewer things, which should help stop prices rising as quickly.
However, it also makes it harder for firms to borrow money and expand.
The latest official inflation data will be published on Wednesday.
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