First-time buyer mortgage rates jumped as high as 28 basis points last week, despite inflation falling, says Rightmove.  

The average mortgage payment on an FTB home (of one to two bedrooms) valued at £225,552 on a five-year fix at 85% loan to value rose to £1,256, up £32 per month compared to last week.  

While average mortgage payments on the same FTB property on a five-year fix at 60% LTV lifted to £864, up £9 per month from a week ago, says the property portal.  

The data comes even though last week inflation fell to a sixteen-month low of 7.9% in the year to June, according to the Office for National Statistics, from 8.7% in the year to May.     

Financial markets are betting that this ease in the rise of the cost of living will reduce pressure on the Bank of England to aggressively lift the base rate, currently at 5%.  

Investors forecast a peak base rate of 5.75%, compared to predictions earlier in the week of the rate hitting 6.5% next March.    

However, Rightmove mortgage expert Matt Smith says any hopes of early mortgage rate cuts by lenders late last week were “premature”.  

Although he adds that some lenders may bring small rate cuts to market over “the coming days”.   

Smith says: “After the market turbulence over the last two months, the signs are there that mortgage rates are reaching a peak.   

“There’s been an increase in average rates compared with last week, but we may now see some lenders begin to cut rates as soon as the coming days.   

“However, any cuts to rates are likely to be small, at least to begin with, as lenders will be looking to balance their desire to reduce rates with the need to account for any further market surprises as the economy looks to get onto a more stable footing for the long term.   

“It takes some time for lenders to respond to market conditions and feed these through to mortgage rates offered to borrowers.   

“Today’s numbers confirm that some of the reports of immediate mortgage rate falls at the tail end of last week may have been slightly premature.”  

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