Millions of homeowners are set to see their mortgage repayments soar once again as rates have now hit a 15-year high, passing the levels seen in the aftermath of last autumn’s mini-budget.
The average two-year fixed-rate mortgage rate on the market reached 6.66% on Tuesday (July 12), up from 6.63% on Monday, Moneyfactscompare.co.uk said. The last time two-year fixed rates were this high was in August 2008.
Many mortgage holders are now baring the brunt of unaffordable repayments after the Bank of England chose to raise interest rates 13 consecutive times in a bid to lower inflation.
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As part of an 'emergency' programme, Martin Lewis returned to screens on Tuesday night (July 11) to host a 'mortgage special' of The Martin Lewis Money Show Live, which saw him address viewer's concerns over the mortgage crisis.
Ahead of the ITV show airing, the Money Saving Expert founder made an appearance on Good Morning Britain amid the news that mortgage rates were now at a new high.
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Good Morning Britain host Ed Balls asked Martin what people should do if they are unsure about what to do with their mortgage.
Speaking live from his home, Martin responded: “I do worry about the concept as I have had people say to me 'I’m going to wait until rates go back to normal’ and I think that’s a really dangerous thing to say.
"What is tough for anybody say under the age of 35 to understand is the last 15 odd years from 2007 onwards, that's an anomaly."
He continued: "If you look at a historic context, where rates are now is the normal, that's what we'd had roughly for the prior 300 years.
"So there is no guarantee that interest rates will drop down to those super low levels, but that is not the same as me saying they won't, but you can't say they must."
Martin added: "If there is a fix out there that you can afford and it gives you surety so you know exactly what you want to pay and that surety is most important to you, then fix.
"If you've got room to pay the variable rates for a few months then you may want to do that but there is a risk things can get more expensive."
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