Experts are encouraging homeowners to review their current mortgage and determine if a remortgage might be helpful. There are many that have had their mortgage deal end and have been moved to their lender’s standard variable rate (SVR) and are at risk of being caught off guard and rushed should an interest rate hike occur in May. There are those that are still in their mortgage term or are about to have it end that might want to consider a remortgage as well.

Should the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) increase the interest rate in May as is forecasted, then it will put the standard base rate at three times what it was in May of last year. In May 2017, the standard base rate set by the MPC was at 0.25% an historic low level for the rate, and then in November of 2017 the Bank increased the rate by double to 0.50%, which might be followed by an increase as soon as May by another 0.25% pushing the rate to 0.75%.

Homeowners may have become comfortable on their SVR, but it could be putting them at risk if higher interest rates would cause them a financial burden. The only way to truly lock in a low interest rate for years to come against rising rates is to remortgage, yet many homeowners are choosing to wait out the warnings or are simply unaware of their options.

Even those in a mortgage term at present might consider a remortgage and paying any penalty fees to end it early to simply secure a fixed low interest rate for a long term, for experts do not expect an interest rate hike in May to be the last for 2018.