interest rates up after election?

jonf

Hi,

can anyone speculate as to whether the building societies will increase interest rates just after the election depending on who will win? Can they change rates when they like or would they do it on a particular date?

Sorry if this is a silly question, I am on SVR off a fixed at the moment and am wondering if I should fix before the election, time is running out,

Jon

House_owner

Interest rates can only go up now, they can't go any lower, If I were you I would go onto a fixed rate a.s.a.p

redpete

jonf wrote: »

can anyone speculate as to whether the building societies will increase interest rates just after the election depending on who will win?

I don't know. But interest rates will go up from where they are, not down, sometime. My opinion is that they are unlikely to go up enough to make it worth going for a 2-yr fixed but it's more a hunch than informed speculation. I'm prepared to take the risk given my circumstances, only you can make the call for yourself.

Lenders would have built into their fixed rates what their view is of the future for base rates and/or SVRs. The uncertainty on the outcome of the election might mean that there is more uncertainty about this than normal. Either way it's a gamble to try to outguess the lenders.

Can they change rates when they like or would they do it on a particular date?

The mortgage providers can alter their interest rates whenever and by whatever amount they like. The BoE base rates are set by the BoE each month on a set date, but these are governed by economic judgement to control inflation rather than political expediency.