Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by Mortgage Strategy. Read the original article for full details.

Major Lenders Cut Mortgage Rates as Asking Prices Drop in August

HSBC, Gen H, and Nationwide have announced reductions in mortgage rates across various products. Meanwhile, Rightmove reports that average asking prices for newly listed homes fell by 2% in August, marking the largest August decline in eight years.

HSBC is cutting rates across a wide range of residential and buy-to-let mortgage products. Gen H has reduced rates by 15 basis points on its 90% and 95% loan-to-value (LTV) ranges. Virgin is also making selected rate changes, while other lenders such as Nationwide, Santander, and Nottingham Building Society continue to reprice their offerings amid ongoing market volatility.

Nationwide is reducing rates by up to 0.15 percentage points across its two-, three-, and five-year fixed mortgage range from 18 August, with its lowest rate now at 4.48%. These reductions apply to first-time buyers, home movers, and remortgaging customers. Nationwide states that these changes are part of its efforts to support borrowers with smaller deposits and to offer more competitive rates.

Rightmove has reported that average asking prices for newly listed homes dropped by 2% in August, the steepest decline for the month in eight years. This comes as sellers respond to a quieter summer market and a 12-year high in the number of homes available for sale. Rightmove also notes a widening regional divide, with prices rising in northern England but falling in the south, particularly in London.

For letting agents and inventory clerks, these developments may signal increased activity in the rental and sales markets, as rate changes and price adjustments could influence both landlord and tenant decisions.