5
Mar
Rate cut 'could save first-time buyers £29 a month'
Over £29 could be trimmed off the cost of the average
first-time buyer mortgage if the Bank of England's monetary policy
committee votes to trim the base rate by 0.5 per cent today, it has
been projected.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has stated that in December
2008 the average mortgage for those taking the first step on the
housing ladder was £100,145.
A 25-year repayment mortgage for £100,000 would see the
monthly bill drop by £29.25 from £590.09 to £560.84,
it calculated, while there would be a reduction of £14.71 on
average for a 0.25 per cent cut.
Lloyds TSB said yesterday it will pass on any cut to its tracker
and standard variable rate (SVR) customers, while Skipton Building
Society pledged that its SVR product holders would also see any
reduction applied to their repayments.
According to CML figures, 40 per cent of mortgage holders are on
tracker or discounted variable rate mortgages, while just under ten
per cent have SVR-based deals.
