One in five homeowners on expensive SVRs

The top 10 lenders by market share have a typical standard variable rate of 4.16%.

More than one in five homeowners are paying through the nose on their mortgages by sitting on expensive standard variable rates, research from comparison website money.co.uk has found.

The top 10 lenders by market share have a typical standard variable rate of 4.16% compared to the cheapest 2-year fix of 0.99% and the cheapest 5-year fix of 1.98%.

Hannah Maundrell, editor in chief of money.co.uk, said: “Mortgage rates are currently at rock bottom, so anyone sitting on their lenders’ standard variable rate is almost certainly paying a lot more than they should be.

“Just because you’re not moving house you don’t have to stick with the same mortgage you had when you bought it, or even the same lender.

“If you’ve been in your home more than a couple of years and haven’t switched mortgage since you moved in there is a high chance you are on your lenders SVR and could save a bundle by shifting.”