Repayments on home loans have fallen to their lowest levels in seven years, giving homeowners some much needed financial relief, and a timely boost to the property market. Mortgage repayments now account for an average of just 29 per cent of a family’s disposable income, a huge decrease from the 48 per cent of two years ago.
The fall has been largely the result of the relentless interest rate cuts from the Bank of England . Although lenders have been accused of failing to pass on the cuts to fixed rate customers and those on standard variable deals, homeowners on tracker mortgages have been the main beneficiaries, with the base rate cuts dragging down their monthly repayments. Following the decision by the Bank of England to hold rates at 0.5 per cent, analysts predict that rates will remain low for a significant chunk of 2010.
With the London inter-bank lending rate (Libor) also at its lowest level since the credit crunch started – just 0.64 per cent, lenders are becoming more willing to lend. The 1.99 per cent tracker deal from HSBC is a vivid illustration of this.
This has had a positive impact on the property market, with figures from The Halifax revealing a 0.8 per cent increase in prices during August.





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