The Bank of England has today maintained interest rates at 4%.
In a widely predicted move, the Bank of England has today held the base rate of interest at 4%.
Rate watchers will know that this latest decision has been made against a backdrop of market uncertainty that’s been typical of what’s faced the Monetary Policy Committee this calendar year.
A repeat of October’s decision to keep rates unchanged seemed a certainty up to a few weeks ago. But, sentiment started to change, and several major banks began predicting today’s announcement, in particular, Barclays and Goldman Sachs suggesting a split vote would lead to a cut.
But, the majority still favoured the Bank holding firm at 4%.
So, what’s brought the decision?
Fewer job vacancies as companies cut back on hiring, and inflation unexpectedly flattening out in September have certainly both contributed to today’s decision being less straightforward than anticipated. Inflation remained steady at 3.8% in September, still too high, but lower than the BoE’s prediction of 4%. Meanwhile, private-sector wage growth was running at its lowest rate since 2021 in the three months to August.
But, with November’s budget yet to happen and bringing a prospect of a tightening fiscal approach, it was no big surprise that the Bank would wait to understand the outcome of November 26th before making any further monetary policy moves.
What does it mean for housing?
For the housing market, not a lot has changed. Some interest rate cuts were made early in October, with light rate reductions on fixed interest products. Mortgage rate cuts are more intrinsically linked to the swap rate, which predicts future interest rate levels, today is likely to change little.
As we talked about last month, the most likely result is homeowners staying put for now, reducing fresh property stock coming to market. With property moves always down in January and February, it’s likely going to be Spring before we see the market return to normal.
For PLG, we’ve emphasised our efforts to build strong working relationships, not only with clients and stakeholders, but estate agents and landlords, so we can continue to deliver in a slow market. We’re still encountering excellent property opportunities, usually off-market that put us at the front of the queue in key property searches around the UK.
Our thoughts going forward
Weak growth, a slowing jobs market and an improvement in the headline inflation figure could play into the MPC’s view that disinflation is kicking in. On top of this, with a budget just weeks away, there are signals of fiscal policy changes that could shift the balance of an interest rate cut in December. We’ll have to wait and see.
So, it’s onto the budget on November 26th, which should provide a good indication. We’ll be back with our thoughts when the next announcement is made on Thursday, 18 December.
PLG Consultants
06th November 2025
