A quarter of borrowers are unlikely or very unlikely to afford their mortgage payments if interest rates hit five per cent.
According to the Anthony Ward Attitudes to Moving survey, which collated responses from 2,000 people, around 13 per cent said that they didn’t know if they could pay their mortgage in this scenario.
According to Capital Economics research from earlier this week, the base rate could peak at four per cent next year.
Over a third, 36.5 per cent, said that if they were to buy a home then they would be likely or somewhat likely to choose a longer-term mortgage.
Several lenders have come to the market with longer-term mortgages of over 30 years. This includes Perenna, Kensington Mortgages, Habito and Landbay.
‘People are increasingly uneasy’
Around a quarter, 24 per cent, of respondents said that they still planned to move in the next 12 months, and 67 per cent were confident that property prices would remain the same or rise over that period.
Anthony Ward Thomas, founder of Anthony Ward Thomas removals, said: “The soaring cost of living is a growing concern. Interest rates are rising as the Bank of England tries to control runaway inflation and borrowers are clearly worried as to just how high they will have to go.
“Throw in higher energy, fuel and food bills on top of greater mortgage costs and it is no surprise that people are increasingly uneasy.”
Anna is currently the deputy editor for Mortgage Solutions and editor for Specialist Lending Solutions. She has worked as a journalist since 2019, having secured her Gold Standard NCTJ diploma from News Associates in a fast-track six-month course.
She started her career as a report at specialist publication The Insurance Insider covering a wide range of areas before joining Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions in 2021.
In her role, she helps put together and structure the news agenda for the day and writes up press releases, reports, interviews, analyses and exclusives across both titles. She also commissions blogs for Specialist Lending Solutions and hosts online masterclasses and in-person events across the business.
She has been shortlisted for three journalism awards, which include BIBA Journalist and Media Awards Scoop of Year Award in 2020, Headline Money Mortgage Journalist of the Year Award (B2B) in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to being a journalist, Anna worked in ecommerce across Snow + Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need websites, and before that worked at specialist financial PR firm Rostrum.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading, seeing live music, and cooking for friends and family. When she gets a chance, she also enjoys hiking, skiing and indoor rock climbing.
