The number of available mortgage products t has grown for nine months in a row, says Moneyfacts, while rates have dropped at the fastest rate since June 2020.

This continuous increase in product numbers means that today’s 4,512 deals currently on the market makes for the largest choice since March 2020, when borrowers could opt from a total of 5,222 products.

“Over the past six months alone availability has recovered by 1,619 – or 56% – and for the first time in over three years, we tracked improvements in choice across all the LTV brackets this month – great news for borrowers with all levels of equity or deposit,” says Moneyfacts financial expert Eleanor Williams.

Moneyfacts adds that the average two- and five-year fixes having each dropped by 4 basis points since June this year, to 2.55% and 2.78% respectively, makes for a record monthly fall since June 2020, “perhaps reflecting some of the competition we are seeing in the market as of late.”

Compared to last year, however, these rates are far higher. The data shows that in July 2020, the average two-year fix stood at 1.99% and the average five-year fix at 2.25% – which Moneyfacts puts down to there being a lack of available deals, “particularly at the higher-rated, higher-risk top LTV brackets.”

In July 2019, the average two-year fix came to 2.49% and the average five-year fix was 2.85%.

Williams says: “First-time buyers and those considering a mortgage at higher LTVs are amongst those to benefit the most from rate cuts, with the average two- and five-year fixed rates at 90% LTV falling by 0.15% and 0.08% respectively, while at 95% LTV reducing by 0.09% and 0.06%, respectively.

“But equally it is impossible to ignore the growing ranks of providers offering sub-1% deals to tempt borrowers with larger levels of equity or deposit as well.”

Williams continues: “Competition is evident across the residential mortgage sector, but there is no guarantee that rates will continue to fall, or for how long these record-low deals may be available for, therefore seeking advice to assess the best true cost deal for their own circumstances would be a wise move by any prospective borrower.”