Fixed mortgage rates have continued to fall in recent days after Nationwide Building Society became the latest to ramp up competitive deals among lenders.
As of Tuesday, average two-year fixed rates sat at 5.43%, against Monday’s 5.45%, according to comparison site Moneyfacts.
Five-year fixed rates slipped to 5.09% from 5.12% in the meantime, as lenders kept tussling to attract buyers in spite of last week’s move by the Bank of England to hold base interest.
Nationwide on Monday became the latest to try and tempt new buyers with better offers, lifting its lending limit to six times prospective owners’ salaries in a first for a major bank.
Mortgage Advice Bureau chief executive Ben Thomspon commented that such a move meant “conditions for first-time buyers had improved markedly”.
He noted the move saw Nationwide stray from offering the typical four-and-a-half-times buyers’ salaries in “a welcome boost to the homeownership dream many have”.
“Seeing more lenders launching new products and innovating the sector is [...] always welcome.”
L&C Mortgages director David Hollingworth added Nationwide’s offer looked to solve “twin challenges” for buyers of a cap on loans as house prices continued upwards.
This followed Lloyds Banking Group PLC's (LSE:LLOY) recent move to allow five and a half times worth of buyers’ salaries to be borrowed.