UK interest rates rise for first time in 10 years.

The base rate rise is a new experience for the estimated 2.6 million homeowners who have only ever seen static or falling rates after getting on the property ladder in the past decade.

Years of low rates mean mortgage costs have reached record lows.

But in recent weeks, there have been signs of mortgage costs edging up as speculation over a possible base rate rise has mounted – giving borrowers a taste of what could be to come.

When setting mortgage rates, lenders take the base rate into account as well as other factors, such as a lender’s own borrowing costs.

Whether or not a homeowner sees an immediate impact from the base rate rise also depends on what type of deal they are on. Some mortgages are directly linked to the base rate while others are not. Fixed rate deals cushion borrowers against any immediate impact of a base rate increase.

More than nine in 10 (94%) new mortgages taken out in the second quarter of 2017 were fixed rate, according to trade body UK Finance.

Looking at the stock of all outstanding homeowner mortgages taken out since 2005, more than half of UK customers are currently on a fixed rate. Of the 9.2 million outstanding homeowner mortgages, 8.1 million are regulated. Of these, 4.4 million are on a fixed rate, with 3.7 million on a variable rate.