7
Dec
Mortgage providers pass on interest rate cut
Major mortgage lenders have fully passed on the Bank of England's
0.25 per cent interest rate to borrowers.
It had been speculated that many leading lenders would not pass on
the full cut in a bid to recover profits which have been hit by
recent turmoil in the financial markets.
However, today Nationwide, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Halifax
and First Direct all confirmed they will cut their rates by the
full amount.
Other lenders are now expected to follow suit, according to Louise
Cuming, head of mortgages at price comparison site
moneysupermarket.com.
She said: "It is interesting that because there was a feeling that
lenders would use this opportunity to tweak their rate. But they
have obviously realised that the bad publicity they would get form
not passing on the full rate reduction at a time when a lot of
borrowers are struggling would be too much to take."
Nationwide and Halifax's cuts will come into effect as of January
1st, while First Direct and RBS' cut will be effective
immediately.
