Mortgage interest rates determine how much home-buyers are charged to borrow and buy a property, and what monthly repayments will be. Some mortgages offer fixed rates – where monthly repayments - are fixed for a certain period from 2-10 years. Some mortgages offer variable rates where the mortgage interest rate rises and falls over time. A fall in mortgage interest rates increases the effective disposable income of people buying a property. This is because the interest payments on their property will fall leaving them with more money to spend on other goods and services. Over recent years, the average nominal interest rate on a mortgage in the UK has fallen and by the end of 2020, it was below 2 per cent. With positive inflation rates, the real mortgage interest rate for many home-buyers and home-owners has been close to zero or even mildly negative.