One in three UK mortgage holders don’t know their interest rate, survey finds
One in three UK mortgage holders do not know what interest rate they are on, according to a new study.
YouGov and digital mortgage broker Habito, which launched last month with the mission of bringing the market into the "21st century", surveyed more than 1,200 mortgage owners.
Some 33 per cent did not know what interest rate they were on. Habito said this equated to five million Brits over the country.
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The survey also found that 12 per cent did not know if they have an interest-only mortgage and nine per cent did not know if they have a fixed or variable rate interest rate.
YouGov also found five per cent did not know who their lender was and nine per cent were unaware of how long their mortgage contract was for.
Habito said its research exposed “widespread lack of knowledge among homeowners over the basic details of their mortgage”.
This, Habito said, is potentially “caused by the complexity and hassle of the mortgage application process” and a “reluctance to manage mortgages effectively over the long-term”.
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It found Wales was the savviest area in the survey, with 79 per cent in that region knowing their rate. This compared with 65 per cent in London and 63 per cent in the South East.
The survey also found a gender divide, with 61 per cent of women knowing how much interest they pay compared with 73 per cent of men.
Habito chief executive and founder Daniel Hegarty said: “For most people, a mortgage is the biggest financial commitment of their lives, yet the application process is opaque, slow and untouched by technology.
“It’s no wonder there is such a widespread lack of awareness among existing mortgage holders and such reluctance to manage their mortgages over the long-term.
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“Applying for a mortgage with a traditional broker is stressful and confusing – people just want it to be over as quickly as possible and then forget about it.”
The number of mortgage owners surveyed in the study totalled 1,258 adults.