As the property market makes a small move from the torpor of the last five years, as always the key players are the first-time buyers. Mortgage lenders are now going all out to attract first-time buyers to become first-time borrowers. There is now a plethora of mortgage deals hitting the market. Even though rates are becoming more competitive, the big question for new borrowers is, do they fix, or do they track? For the more mature amongst us, this is not a reference to the latest dance craze, but a question of whether you choose to set your repayments for the next few years or do you gamble on a tracker rate that may see your payments decrease, but also, possibly increase. The Telegraph Money page on Saturday 18 May reported that the money markets in the square mile (that’s London, not Aberbargoed), are, “now pricing the first increase in bank base rates for late 2016” (sic). If this proves to be correct, interest rates can hardly get any cheaper. In my opinion, the obvious answer to the title question, is, fix now. If choosing a tracker rate mortgage, the lender can increase their rate at any time, simply because the small print says that they can.
