The majority of remortgagers (72%) said that their motivation for purchasing a fixed rate was security over their monthly payments.
The LMS Monthly Remortgage Snapshot has found that instructions increased by 35% in October 2021.
In addition, 15% more remortgages completed in October, and the overall cancellation rate decreased by 0.37% to 4.82%.
The average monthly payment decrease for those who remortgaged in October was £219.
Among those who remortgaged in October, 47% took out a 5-year fixed rate product, making this the most popular product, followed by 2-year fixed (43%).
The majority of remortgagers (72%) said that their motivation for purchasing a fixed rate was security over their monthly payments; 12% were motivated by recommendations from their broker, while 14% said they were worried about the economy and wanted to lock in their rate.
For 28%, the primary goal when remortgaging was to lower their monthly payments, while 26% it was to release equity, and 18% wanted to lock in a good deal or gain longer-term security.
More than two-fifths (44%) of borrowers increased their total loan size, 33% saw no change, while 23% reduced their total loan size.
Meanwhile, 43% increased their monthly loan repayments, 14% saw no change in their monthly repayments, and 44% reduced them.
The average remortgage loan amount in London and the South East was £317,433, while the average for the rest of the UK stood at £154,314, putting remortgage loan amounts 105% higher in London and the South East than the rest of the UK.
The longest previous mortgage length was found in the North East at 62.74 months (5.23 years) and the shortest was in the West Midlands at 53.12 months (4.43 years), putting the longest previous mortgage term 18% longer than the shortest.
The average mortgage amount across the UK was £203,856, up 5% in October, while the UK average length of previous mortgage was 56.78 months, down 11% in October.
The majority of respondents (67%) said they expect an interest rate rise within the next year; 19% said this was more than a year away, while 14% expected no change to interest rates.
Nick Chadbourne (pictured), CEO of LMS, said: “Despite the Bank of England’s decision to maintain the base rate at 0.1%, our research shows that two thirds (67%) of people expect interest rates to rise within the next year.
"This, paired with the increase in product rates which came as lenders pre-empted a possible rise, could be part of what fuelled the surge in instructions cases in October, as many borrowers shopped around to lock in the best rate available.
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“The number of remortgage completions continue to climb for the second consecutive month due, in part, to the high volume of fixed rate mortgages which expired at the end of September.
"It’s a promising sign to see the industry efficiently progressing the high levels of pipeline activity.
“Purchase pipelines remain high, and the ending of the stamp duty holiday failed to dampen demand in the home mover market.
"This, combined with the high levels of ERC expiries due on December 31st and the continued buzz surrounding interest rates, should contribute to busy few months.
"Those in the industry should ready themselves for this increased activity.”
