The decision to remortgage or not is currently quite challenging.  With house prices bouncing up and down each month like a rubber ball, the corresponding change in equity from month to month is inconsistent at best.  One month could be attractive on paper, while the very next month is not attractive at all.  Thus is the nature of the UK housing market right now.  Taking on an original mortgage or deciding to remortgage has the potential to put many people in bad financial water before they can even turn around and reverse their decision.

House prices did a flip flop once again in the month of January, as recently released figures from the Halifax indicate a 0.6% increase took place.  Contrary to the recent increase, a 1.8% slide in the three months to January took place compared with twelve months ago.  That decrease brought the average price of a home in the UK down to just under 161,000 pounds.

The Halifax housing economist, Martin Ellis, commented on the bottom dwelling level of current interest rates and how they affect demand, saying: "The continuing very low level of interest rates has helped to support housing demand, resulting in little overall movement in house prices since last spring.”

He continued with his remarks on interest rates, saying: "Low rates have contributed to mortgage payments falling to their lowest level as a proportion of disposable earnings for a new borrower for 14 years. A recent improvement in employment trends may also have supported demand.”

Overall, the activity level within the housing market for the coming year is expected to range from flat to inactive.  Factors which will positively affect the amount of activity are a lower unemployment level, lower inflation and a sustainable solution for the financial conundrum which still exists in the Eurozone.