People looking to buy a house in Scotland may decide to wait and see if interest rates continue to fall following the news that the Bank of England has maintained its interest rate at 5.5 per cent.
Ray Boulger from mortgage broker John Charcol said that the Bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) minutes, revealing a unanimous decision to cut the rate from 5.57 per cent, had implied another cut in February.
The choice not to shave off another 0.25 per cent would cost homeowners, which includes those looking to buy or sell a house in Scotland, more than £100 million in interest payments.
Meanwhile, head of Abbey Mortgages Nici Audhlam-Gardiner warned: "Borrowers are still feeling stretched after the rate increases from the last couple of years and those coming to the end of their fixed rate deals are still likely to see their interest rates go up."
However she added that there are still good deals on fixed rate mortgages and this type of product would remain popular until the base rate settled at a lower level.