Nationwide has warned the cost-of-living-crisis and rising interest rates could dampen UK mortgage activity in the coming months - and could also see an increase in the number of homeowners falling into arrears with their mortgage.
Updating investors on Friday (November 18), the Swindon-headquartered building society said it expected the Bank of England to increase the base rate of interest in the short-to-medium term, meaning a hike in the rates its customers pay on their mortgages.
In the six months to the end of September, the high street lender reported underlying profit had risen to £980m - up from £850m in the first half of 2021. It also said rising interest rates had supported growth in total underlying income to £2.1bn from £1.8bn the year previously.
