Rightmove reacts to Bank of England Base Rate decision

Rightmove reacts to Bank of England Base Rate decision

Matt Smith, Rightmove's mortgage expert said: "The highly anticipated rate cut has finally arrived, and while those looking to take out a mortgage soon shouldn't expect to see drastically lower mortgage rates, we would expect the downward trend we've started to see continue. This sets us up for hopefully further cuts to come, and when we have seen further reductions to the Base Rate, people should really start to see the impact. However, it's important to keep in mind that mortgage rates are widely expected to eventually settle at higher levels than previously, with the market view that the base rate may eventually fall to about 3.25%."

Tim Bannister, Rightmove's property expert said: "This year we've seen signs that more people have adjusted to higher mortgage rate levels and generally, if they can, have been getting on with moves. The property market has been resilient, and even through the uncertainty of the recent election campaign, we saw home-moving activity continue on trend. Whilst I wouldn't expect today's Base Rate cut to lead to a rush of activity - as mortgage rates are still high and won't drop significantly in the short term - it is likely to have a positive impact on home-mover sentiment which bodes well for the Autumn selling season."

Average buyer paying £581 more on mortgage since first Base Rate rise

• Rightmove analysis shows that since the first Base Rate increase in December 2021, the average home-purchaser is paying £581 more on monthly mortgage costs
• Since December 2021, the average cost of a monthly mortgage has risen by 46% - by contrast, the average asking price for a home has risen by 10%
• The average five-year fixed, 15% deposit mortgage rate is now 4.91%, compared with 2.23% in 2021

*The calculations are based on the home-purchaser having a 15% deposit, and choosing a 25 year term

*The average five-year fixed, 15% deposit mortgage rate is now 4.91%, compared with 2.23% in December 2021

About Rightmove

• Rightmove has the UK's largest selection of properties for sale and to rent, adds more listings than anyone else, and over 80% of all time spent on property portals is on Rightmove
• Rightmove's vision is to give everyone the belief that they can make their move by giving people the best place to turn and return to for access to tools and expertise to make it happen
• People can search Rightmove for residential resale, new homes, rentals, commercial property and overseas properties and use tools and information including getting a Mortgage in Principle, checking local sold prices, property valuations, market trends, maps and schools
• Customers include the following key groups: estate agents, lettings agents, new homes developers, rental operators, commercial property operators and overseas property agents
• Using the UK's largest housing datasets, we issue a number of regular reports to track housing market indicators: our monthly House Price Index (established 2002), our quarterly Rental Trends Tracker (established 2015), and a weekly Mortgage Rates Tracker (established 2023). Historical data is available on request
• Founded in 2000, Rightmove listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2006 and is a member of the FTSE 100 index