Chancellor Rachel Reeves (Image: Getty)
Rachel Reeves’ forthcoming Budget is already sending tremors through the housing market, industry insiders have warned, with HSBC the latest major lender to hike mortgage rates. The term “Doom Budget” is even gaining traction as anxiety mounts among mortgage brokers, who say lenders are responding not only to stubborn inflation and rising gilt yields, but also to growing concerns about the economic fallout of Ms Reeves’ fiscal statement on November 26.
Adam Stiles, Managing Director at Helix Financial Partners, said: “HSBC have followed a long line of other lenders who have increased rates over the past week or so. This could be possibly in anticipation of the upcoming Doom Budget, as well as a number of other economic factors. We expect to see other lenders continue to raise their rates in what is a fraught political and economic climate.”
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Rachel Reeves: All you need to know
Other brokers likewise feared that politics and economics are colliding. Pete Mugleston, Managing Director at onlinemortgageadvisor.co.uk, said: “Even though the Bank of England has been cutting rates, rising gilt yields are pushing up the cost of funding fixed mortgages. Until yields settle, borrowers should expect more of this through September.”
Emma Jones, Managing Director at whenthebanksaysno.co.uk, said: “We’re seeing a domino effect now. Political chaos and market scepticism about the Government’s ability to manage the public finances are not helping. More rate rises look baked in.”
For those with mortgages coming up for renewal, the advice is blunt. Aaron Strutt, Product and Communications Director at Trinity Financial, said: “More of the bigger lenders are raising their rates and even though they are not going up by huge amounts, they are enough to noticeably bump up monthly repayments.
« There will almost certainly be more increases this week, so if you are holding off locking into a fixed deal, then this probably isn’t the time to do so.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (Image: Getty)
Louis Mason, Communications Director at Oportfolio Mortgages, added: “Don’t wait. Act now. If your current deal ends in the next 6 months, your number one job is to secure a new rate today. You can always switch to a cheaper deal later if rates miraculously fall, but you can’t get back a cheap rate that’s gone. Every day you wait could cost you.”
The sense of unease stems from uncertainty around Ms Reeves’ Budget. She has scheduled it for November 26, later than the usual October slot, fuelling speculation about her strategy.
She released a video statement in which she said: “Britain’s economy isn’t broken. But I know it’s not working well enough for working people. Bills are high. Getting ahead feels tougher. You put more in, get less out. That has to change.”
Ms Reeves has also promised discipline in public spending. Speaking last week, she vowed to keep “a tight grip on public finances” while seeking to “deliver growth and stability for the long term.”
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She has been equally clear in dismissing speculation about tax rises.
She told reporters last week: “People who seem to know what is in the Budget before we have made those decisions are just wrong.
« A lot of them are talking rubbish, and frankly, a lot of what they’re saying is irresponsible.”
Nevertheless, reports suggest Ms Reeves is considering a range of measures to raise revenue without breaking Labour’s pledge not to increase income tax, VAT or National Insurance.
Options said to be under review include reforms to pension tax relief, tweaks to capital gains and inheritance tax thresholds, and sector-specific levies such as gambling or banking taxes.
She has also indicated that boosting productivity will be the centrepiece of her plans, with reforms to infrastructure investment, planning, and rail projects such as Northern Powerhouse Rail designed to underpin long-term growth.
Markets, however, remain cautious. Rising gilt yields suggest investors are already pricing in turbulence, reflecting fears that Ms Reeves could struggle to balance her fiscal rules with the demands of funding public services.
For lenders such as HSBC, that means the cost of securing funds for fixed-rate mortgages is rising, and they are passing those costs directly onto borrowers.
