The information is collated from the Moneyfacts.co.uk user polls. These polls show the mortgage trends of Moneyfacts.co.uk’s 90,000 monthly users.
- 4 out of 10 consumers are planning to move house in 2005.
- Thoughts on house price and base rate movements are fairly evenly split with about half of the consumers predicting they will go up.
- Almost 9 out of 10 consumers know what their mortgage repayments are but 3 out of 10 do not know what interest rate they are paying.
- Despite the benefits of switching to a better deal, almost 50% of consumers switched mortgages over 3 years ago. However, this could be partly due to the fact that 3 out of 10 would incur a penalty if they did switch.
- The fact that people are borrowing more is shown by three quarters of people still having £50,000+ outstanding on their mortgage balance. Half of these people have £100,000+ remaining.
- Rather surprisingly, almost 50% of consumers would not or did not use an IFA when getting their mortgage and also do not think that the new mortgage regulation will benefit them.
- Variable rate mortgages still remain the most common type of mortgage with 50% having a variable rate product. The chances are that many of these will be at the lenders’ standard variable rate.
Emma Butler, Moneyfacts Web Editor comments: “It is worrying that many consumers do not know much detail about their mortgage and that so few people have changed their mortgage for some time – showing how many will probably be on their lenders’ standard variable rate. With mortgage balances being so high the potential savings of changing to a better deal can be thousands of pounds. The other concerning fact is that so many people did not or would not seek independent advice before taking out a mortgage. Some of these people may be financially aware, or may have gone to their existing bank and got a good deal, but others will have uncompetitive products.”
FULL SURVEY RESULTS. (Sample)
Are you planning to move house this year? (8807)
YES: 41% NO: 59%
Do you think house prices will go up or down this year? (2869)
UP: 45% DOWN: 55%
Do you think interest rates will go up? (2332)
YES: 51% NO: 49%
Do you think new mortgage regulation will help consumers? (1709)
YES: 53% NO: 47%
When did you last switch mortgage and/or provider? (3608)
Under 1 year: 10% 1-3 years: 47% 3 years +: 43%
What balance do you have outstanding on your mortgage? (3596)
£0-£50K: 24% £50-£100K: 40% £100K+: 36%
Do you know how much your mortgage repayments are each month? (6698)
YES: 86% NO: 14%
Do you know what your current mortgage rate is? (3688)
YES: 73% NO: 27%
Would you incur a penalty if you switched mortgages? (2845)
YES: 34% NO: 66%
What type of mortgage do you have? (4555)
FIXED/CAPPED: 43% VARIABLE: 50% OFFSET: 7%
Did you, or would you, use an IFA to help choose and apply for a mortgage? (2226)
YES: 54% NO: 46%
