Mortgage searches jumped 4.4% to 72,925 yesterday as the Bank of England cut the base rate to 4%, according to Twenty7Tec.

However, the new data found activity fell sharply in the days leading up to the Monetary Policy Committee’s decision, with the daily average at 69,863 in the week before August 7.

In the week prior to the rate decision, total searches fell 7.1% compared to the equivalent period ahead of June’s announcement – down from 400,610 to 372,114, as buyers waited to see what would happen.

Twenty7Tec says the slowdown ahead of the cut suggests many borrowers were deliberately holding back, waiting to see what the MPC would decide.

The data found that borrower preferences are also shifting.

On 7 August, nearly half (49.3%) of product searches were for two-year or shorter fixed terms, mirroring July’s 52.03%. Appetite for longer fixes is slipping, with 10-year products making up only 12% of searches that day — down from 13.14% in July and well below the 2024 average of 20.6%.

Twenty7Tec commercial director Nathan Reilly says: “We’ve spent the last couple of years talking about certainty – and how attractive it is in a volatile economy.

“But now the conversation is shifting. If rates are likely to come down again, many borrowers are happy to ride things out a little longer, even if it means shorter terms or more frequent remortgaging.

“Without context and expertise, this behaviour from end customers makes sense, but in reality, advisers know that there is more to mortgage pricing than just the base rate narrative – which in its own right, seemed to soften yesterday. This is where advisers will need to play an important role in educating customers on the fact that the wait and see approach, may transpire to be more wishful thinking.”

Search volumes from 1–7 August were up 2.3% year-on-year.