New analysis from Medway Labour reveals how local households are set to be put under more pressure than ever by Conservative mismanagement of the economy.

Mortgages are predicted to rise in Rochester and Strood by a staggering £2,900 a year. They are also expected to rise by more than £2,500 across all the Medway Towns. Across the country mortgage hikes range from annual increases of £1,000 to £13,000:

It follows the Bank of England warning in December that around half of households with a mortgage, a total of 4 million, will be exposed to rate rises this year, and Bloomberg reporting that around 800,000 will see their mortgage rates double.

Leader of the Medway Labour and Co-operative Group Cllr Vince Maple said:

“The cost-of-living crisis is hammering families in Medway, and thanks to the Conservative’s crashing the British economy, the Tory mortgage penalty is set to stretch family finances even further.

“After 13 years of economic failure local people are asking themselves whether they or their family are better off under the Tories. The answer is no.

“But Labour has a plan for places like Medway. By stabilising the economy, making it stronger and getting it growing, Labour will stop us lurching from crisis to crisis, and make Britain thrive again.”

Ends

Notes

• The calculations are based on estimates of the proportion of households in each constituency who own their home with a mortgage or loan. This was requested from the House of Commons Library using 2021 census data.

• This was combined with data sourced from Nomisweb.co.uk using the Annual Population Survey for 2021 on the number of households who live in each constituency overall. https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/

• In August 2022, the month before the government’s mini-budget, Moneyfacts said that a typical two-year fixed mortgage rate was 3.95%.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/19414221/bank-england-interest-rates-hike-mortgage-bills-repayments/

• This month, Moneyfacts said a typical two-year fixed mortgage rate was 5.75%.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/01/09/mortgage-rates-almost-triple-nearly-800000-homeowners-year/

• Using house price data from the House of Commons Library, the analysis assumes an 80% loan to value ratio and compares how much would be paid at an interest rate of 3.95% and how much would be paid at 5.75%.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/constituency-data-house-prices/

ENDS