Seek out the positive side of interest rate rises
Over the last six months the UK has seen three interest rate rises enforced by the Bank of England. In August 200 the interest rate was put up by the Bank of England by a quarter of a percent taking it from four and a half percent to four and three quarters of a percent.
 In November 2006 the Bank of England pushed up interest rates by a further quarter of a percent, taking them from four and three quarters of a percent to five percent. And in the latest interest rate rise in January 2007, the Bank of England pushed interest rates up by yet another quarter of a percent, taking the rate to five and a quarter percent.
Of course, all of these interest rate rises spell bad news for those with variable rate mortgages as well as for those looking to get onto the property ladder, as it has resulted in higher repayments on large mortgage loans as well as resulting in a number of lenders taking fixed rate products off the market because of the mad flurry of first time buyers trying to get hold of these deals in order to avoid the impact of further interest rate rises.
However, these interest rate rises can also spell good news for some people, namely savers who have money that they can invest in a savings plan. Although banks and building societies are generally slower to apply interest rate rises to savings products than to borrowing, there are some good deals to be had as a result of the interest rate rises, but it is important for consumers to look around to find the one that will best suit them.
Some banks and building societies have boosted the interest rates on certain savings and investments accounts by a generous amount, and by seeking out these accounts UK consumers can try and make the most of interest rate rises rather than simply having to suffer through increased mortgage and secured borrowing rates.
Tom Smith
5th February 2007
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