The race is on to remortgage. According to QCAS, the conveyancing division of Leeds legal firm Shulmans, the most active fortnight of mortgage and remortgage transactions for the past five years has just occurred with no slowing down in sight. The combination of lender competition, attractive deals featuring even more attractive interest rates, and the fear of a rise in interest rates within months has prompted many to act, and act they have. August has typically been a quiet month for any type of mortgage lending activity, but not now.

Victoria Mortimer, head of QCAS, summed up the feeding frenzy for lending recently, saying: "Normally transactions are low in August due to holidays, but we've got more work on than ever compared with the same time in previous years. As a national conveyancer we are well placed to spot emerging trends, and there's no doubt about this one. People are getting their finances sorted before the end of the year."

To say the remortgage market is hot is quite an understatement. House owners seeking a safe place for the near and long term are seeking deals in a manner which hasn’t been seen in years. The Council of Mortgage Lenders recently unveiled a recent report detailing remortgage activity. A 30% increase took place during the month of June alone. Remortgages last reached this level back in the fall of 2013.

Paul Smee, the director-general of the CML, described the landscape which is now clearly visible within the housing market currently, saying: "Notable is the uptick in remortgage activity among homeowners, perhaps reflecting an increased desire to lock into competitively priced mortgage deals in advance of any rise in rates. It is likely that people are now beginning to feel a rate rise is a realistic prospect, and not just a distant theoretical possibility."