Most mortgages for recent first-time buyers in England had a loan term of over 30 years in 2024. Nevertheless, the share of mortgages with a loan duration of over 30 years decreased from 55.5 percent in 2022 to 54.5 percent in 2024. Additionally, mortgages with a shorter duration of up to 19 years became slightly more common.

Mortgage rates increased at a record pace in 2022, with the 10-year fixed mortgage rate doubling between March 2022 and December 2022. With inflation increasing, the Bank of England introduced several bank rate hikes, resulting in higher mortgage rates. In September 2023, the average 10-year fixed rate interest rate reached 5.1 percent. As borrowing costs get higher, demand for housing is expected to decrease, leading to declining market sentiment and slower house price growth. How have the mortgage hikes affected the market? After surging in 2021, the number of residential properties sold declined in 2022, reaching close to 1.3 million. Despite the number of transactions falling, this figure was higher than the period before the COVID-10 pandemic. The falling transaction volume also impacted mortgage borrowing. Between the first quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024, the value of new mortgage loans fell year-on-year for fourth straight quarters in a row. How are higher mortgages affecting homebuyers? Homeowners with a mortgage loan usually lock in a fixed rate deal for two to ten years, meaning that after this period runs out, they need to renegotiate the terms of the loan. Many of the mortgages outstanding were taken out during the period of record-low mortgage rates and have since faced notable increases in their monthly repayment. About five million homeowners are projected to see their deal expire by the end of 2026. About two million of these loans are projected to experience a monthly payment increase of up to 199 British pounds by 2026.

The mortgage term length on about 28 percent of new mortgage lending in the UK was 30 to 35 years in September 2023. That includes first-time buyers, repeat buyers, and remortgages. Mortgages with a term of over 35 years were the least common. Nevertheless, they gained increased popularity between 2022 and 2023, rising from 7.3 percent to 12.5 percent of new lending. Longer terms imply lower monthly principal repayments. Nevertheless, they result in a higher interest payment over the life of the mortgage.

Since 2004, the median value of a mortgage advance for a home purchase in the UK has more than doubled. In 2023, the average mortgage advance stood at 185,000 British pounds. The increase has been a direct result of the overall rise of house prices in the UK.

Mortgage interest rates in the UK were on a downward trend for more than a decade before soaring in 2022. In the second quarter of 2024, the average weighted interest rate stood at 4.8 percent - nearly three times the Interest rate in the fourth quarter of 2021. Mortgage rates also vary depending on the type of mortgage: Historically, fixed rate mortgages with a shorter term had on average lower interest rates. What types of mortgages are there? In terms of the type of interest rate, mortgages can be fixed and variable. A fixed interest rate is simply a mortgage where the rate of repayment is fixed, while a variable rate depends on the lender’s underlying variable interest rate. Furthermore, mortgages could be for a house purchase or for refinancing. The vast majority of mortgages in the UK are fixed rate mortgages for house purchase, and only a small share is for remortgaging. How big is the UK mortgage market? The UK has the largest mortgage market in Europe, amounting to nearly 61 billion euros in gross residential mortgage lending as of the second quarter of 2023. When comparing the total outstanding residential mortgage lending, the UK also ranks first with about 1.9 trillion euros.

The average value of mortgage loans granted in the UK since 2016 ranged between 156,000 British pounds and 203,000 British pounds. In the third quarter of 2024, the average mortgage loan amounted to nearly 196,390 British pounds - the second-highest figure on record after the third quarter of 2022. The overall increase in the average value of mortgages granted can be explained by the accelerated increase in house prices since the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Business mortgages, or buy-to-let (BTL) mortgages, are a loan sold to property investors, rather than to people who want to purchase a home to live in. In 2022, the five-year fixed mortgage interest rate for a BTL property in the United Kingdom was 3.47 percent, which was an increase by 0.27 percent compared to the same quarter of 2021. Conversely, the 10-year mortgage rate decreased from 3.81 percent to 3.7 percent. The vast majority of UK landlords had a fixed mortgage, with 5-year fix being the most popular mortgage term.

The mortgage credit interest rate is the average interest rate on mortgage loan products offered to individuals and households by the commercial banks in the country. The mortgage credit is a loan used to finance the purchase of real estate. The table shows the latest available data from the national authorities as well as the values from three months ago and one year ago. The data are updated continuously.

Housing affordability in the UK has worsened notably since 2020, with the share of income spent on mortgage rising for first-time and repeat buyers. In 2023, homebuyers spent, on average, 20.6 percent of their income on mortgage payments, 4.4 percentage points higher than in 2020. This increase was higher for first-time buyers than for repeat buyers. House prices have soared since the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by a dramatic increase in interest rates. As fewer people can afford to buy a home, the number of mortgage approvals for house purchase has dropped.

United Kingdom UK: Lending Interest Rate data was reported at 0.500 % pa in 2014. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.500 % pa for 2013. United Kingdom UK: Lending Interest Rate data is updated yearly, averaging 6.963 % pa from Dec 1967 (Median) to 2014, with 48 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 16.313 % pa in 1980 and a record low of 0.500 % pa in 2014. United Kingdom UK: Lending Interest Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Interest Rates. Lending rate is the bank rate that usually meets the short- and medium-term financing needs of the private sector. This rate is normally differentiated according to creditworthiness of borrowers and objectives of financing. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.; ; International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics and data files.; ;

The benchmark interest rate in the United Kingdom was last recorded at 4.50 percent. This dataset provides - United Kingdom Interest Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Mortgage interest rates in Europe soared in 2022 and remained elevated in 2023. In many countries, this resulted in interest rates more than doubling. In Denmark, the average mortgage interest rate rose from 0.67 percent in 2021 to 4.98 percent in 2023. Why did mortgage interest rates increase? Mortgage rates have risen as a result of the European Central Bank (ECB) interest rate increase. The ECB increased its interest rates to tackle inflation. As inflation calms, the ECB is expected to cut rates, which will allow mortgage lenders to reduce mortgage interest rates. What is the impact of interest rates on homebuying? Lower interest rates make taking out a housing loan more affordable, and thus, encourage homebuying. That can be seen in many countries across Europe: In France, the number of residential properties sold rose in the years leading up to 2021, and fell as interest rates increased. The number of houses sold in the UK followed a similar trend.

Mortgage rates in the United Kingdom (UK) have risen dramatically since the beginning of 2022, causing concerns about households with loans up for renewal facing notable increases in costs. That is the case for 1.4 million fixed rate mortgages up for renewal in 2023. This type of mortgage is a popular choice among homebuyers because it allows them to lock in the interest rate for a specific period. After the period runs out, homebuyers need to renegotiate the loan or switch to a variable interest rate. The vast majority of loans up for renewal until 2024 have an initial effective mortgage rate of less than 2.5 percent - significantly lower than the current mortgage rates.

This dataset provides values for INTEREST RATE reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

The average number of years individuals spent in their current home in England between 2010 and 2024 varied by tenure. Outright homeowners, on average, stay in the same home far longer than any other tenure type. Private renters, spend on average 4.6 years in their current residence in 2024, up from 3.7 years on average in 2011. In 2024, there were around four million of such private rented households in England.

Mortgage interest rates worldwide varied greatly in 2024, from less than four percent in many European countries, to as high as 44 percent in Turkey. The average mortgage rate in a country depends on the central bank's base lending rate and macroeconomic indicators such as inflation and forecast economic growth. Since 2022, inflationary pressures have led to rapid increase in mortgage interest rates. Which are the leading mortgage markets? An easy way to estimate the importance of the mortgage sector in each country is by comparing household debt depth, or the ratio of the debt held by households compared to the county's GDP. In 2023, Switzerland, Australia, and Canada had some of the highest household debt to GDP ratios worldwide. While this indicator shows the size of the sector relative to the country’s economy, the value of mortgages outstanding allows to compare the market size in different countries. In Europe, for instance, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France were the largest mortgage markets by outstanding mortgage lending. Mortgage lending trends in the U.S. In the United States, new mortgage lending soared in 2021. This was largely due to the growth of new refinance loans that allow homeowners to renegotiate their mortgage terms and replace their existing loan with a more favorable one. Following the rise in interest rates, the mortgage market cooled, and refinance loans declined.

Bank Lending Rate in the United Kingdom remained unchanged at 8.50 percent in February. This dataset provides - United Kingdom Prime Lending Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In 2023, the average mortgage rates in European countries varied from 2.6 percent in Bulgaria to over eight percent in Hungary. The mortgage rate for a home purchase is decided depending on the individual situation of the homebuyer, their credit history, and income, but they also follow macro determinants including the base lending rate, inflation, economic growth, and the health of the housing market. Starts, completions and prices The supply of new housing varies in different countries in Europe. In 2023, the number of new housing units completed per 1,000 citizens was between 0.8 and seven, with this number varying greatly in different countries. Ireland and Poland were among the countries with most completed housing units. When it comes to housing starts, Ireland tops the ranking. The average transaction price of a new dwelling in 2023 ranged anywhere from roughly 1,300 euros per square meter to under 5,000 euros per square meter. Housing stock As the most populous country in Europe, Germany has the largest housing stock. Comparing the number of housing units per 1,000 citizens is an easy way to identify housing shortages. In Greece and the UK, for example, the number of dwellings per 1,000 citizens measured less than 400, compared to Bulgaria and Spain, where it was around 600.

Just as in many other countries, the housing market in the UK grew substantially during the coronavirus pandemic, fueled by robust demand and low borrowing costs. Nevertheless, high inflation and the increase in mortgage rates has led to house price growth slowing down. According to the forecast, 2024 is expected to see house prices decrease by three percent. Between 2024 and 2028, the average house price growth is projected at 2.7 percent. A contraction after a period of continuous growth In June 2022, the UK's house price index exceeded 150 index points, meaning that since 2015 which was the base year for the index, house prices had increased by 50 percent. In just two years, between 2020 and 2022, the index surged by 30 index points. As the market stood in December 2023, the average price for a home stood at approximately 284,691 British pounds. Rents are expected to continue to grow According to another forecast, the prime residential market is also expected to see rental prices grow in the next years. Growth is forecast to be stronger in 2024 and slow down in the period between 2025 and 2028. The rental market in London is expected to follow a similar trend, with Central London slightly outperforming Greater London.