Northern cities surge in mortgage searches

As buyers consider more affordable housing options beyond the capital, the six major Northern cities of Leeds, Bradford, Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield and Newcastle have witnessed a significant increase in purchase mortgage searches and now account for almost 11% of all mortgage search activity, up by two-thirds on last year¹. This surge in demand highlights a broader shift for affordability and life improvements.  

Is your home energy efficient?

Over half of the UK’s housing stock, that’s at least 18 million homes, have EPC ratings of D or below, with D currently the most common rating. New data² has shown the vast difference between average annual energy bills for the highest rated homes (A) and the lowest rated homes (G). The difference can amount to thousands. For a three-bedroom house, average annual energy bills vary from £508 (A EPC rating) to £5,674 (G EPC rating), with the most common (D) averaging £2,340.  

600,000 homeowners on SVRs

Around 600,000 mortgage holders are currently on standard variable rate (SVR) mortgages³. Typically, SVRs are significantly higher than rates on mortgages tracking Bank Rate, or many fixed-rate products. Borrowers are automatically switched on to SVRs if they haven’t remortgaged before their existing deal ends.  

¹Twenty7tec, 2024

²Rightmove

³UK Finance, 2024

As a mortgage is secured against your home or property, it could be repossessed if you do not keep up mortgage repayments.

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