The average rate of mortgages registers a minimum of 1,503% in 2021

MADRID, 20 (EUROPA PRESS)

The average rate at which Spanish entities granted loans for mortgages stood at 1.448% in December, which gives an annual average of 1.503%, the lowest since there are records, according to data from the Bank of Spain collected by the Spanish Mortgage Association (AHE).

The annual average is thus below the 1.727% average of 2020, accumulating two consecutive years of declines. Thus, last year financial institutions offered the cheapest mortgages ever registered in Spain.

As for the month of December, the average rate of mortgage loans for more than three years for the purchase of free housing granted by entities in Spain broke with three consecutive months of falls and stood at 1.448%, above the 1.412% of November, although it was lower than the 1.563% of a year earlier.

For its part, the average rate of mortgage loans between one and five years for the purchase of free housing granted by credit institutions in the euro area was 1.480% (referred to the previous month), compared to 1.47% of a month before and 1.54% of the same month of 2020.

In this context, the twelve-month Euribor, the index to which most Spanish mortgages are referenced, closed the month of December at -0.502%, compared to -0.487% in November and -0.497% in December 2020. The average for the Euribor in 2021 was -0.49%, compared to -0.3% in 2020.

EXPERTS FORESEE RISES IN 2022

From the banking comparator HelpMyCash.com they assure, after having interviewed several experts, that mortgage loans, both fixed and variable, will become more expensive in the coming months and that most contracts will continue to be at a fixed rate.

According to those responsible for the mortgage broker Housfy Mortgages, some entities have already begun to raise their rates.

Variable rates will increase hand in hand with the progressive rise in the Euribor. “The forecasts point to an increase in this index throughout 2022, which will increase the variable rates,” said the analyst of the Spanish Mortgage Association Leyre López, who has clarified that “in no case” is it expected that the Euribor is set to positive values.

As for fixed-rate mortgages, the economist Gonzalo Bernardos predicts that they will follow the same path, although the increase will not be very pronounced. “In 2021 you could easily get a fixed mortgage at 1%. In 2022 it is likely that they will offer you a rate of around 1.50%,” he said.

THE VARIABLE RATE WILL GAIN WEIGHT IN THE LAST QUARTER OF 2022

According to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE), in 2021 more fixed-rate mortgages were contracted than ever, 70% of the total. The experts consulted by HelpMyCash agree that most mortgages will continue to be contracted at a fixed rate in 2022.

The economist Gonzalo Bernardos has pointed out that this trend will continue as long as the banks continue to promote these products.

However, the foreseeable general rise in the fixed rate will mean that the variable rate will have more applications in the last quarter of 2022, so the hegemony of fixed interest rates could be compromised at the end of this year, according to Housfy Mortgages.

Analysts consulted by HelpMyCash predict that banks will maintain their rate of mortgage granting in 2022 due to the increase in demand for home ownership.

This scenario of greater competition between entities could benefit mortgage applicants when it comes to obtaining better conditions. Thus, the experts of the financial comparator advise those interested in applying for a mortgage to go to as many banks as possible to compare offers, including both traditional entities and new digital banks.

“With this information, the client can negotiate with the bank that most convinces him to improve the conditions offered by other competitors,” they recommend.

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