Mortgage holders 'may benefit from getting advice'

Home owners in the UK who are unsure how their mortgage repayments will be affected by rising interest rates should seek advice.

This is according to Martijn van der Heijden, head of mortgages at HSBC, who said that the next few years could see the base rate increase, meaning home loans may become more expensive.

The bank noted that at 0.5 per cent, there is effectively only one direction in which the base interest rate can go.

Mr van der Heijden added that the next few years are likely to be difficult to predict in terms of loan rates and some degree of volatility "may well be unavoidable".

He went on to advise: "The message for borrowers is that if you couldn't afford an increase of up to three per cent on your mortgage, you should seriously look to fix your payments."

Three and five-year deals can relieve borrowers of the uncertainty, the expert noted.

The Bank of England lowered the base rate of interest in a bid to stimulate the economy, including the property market.