This is according to a survey of intermediaries by BTL lender Landbay carried out just hours after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) announced inflation had increased sharply to 3% on an annual basis in January.

Inflation is now at its highest point since March 2024 and the Bank of England has stated a target inflation rate of 2%.

Landbay asked brokers “How many 0.25% base rate cuts do you now expect to see this year?”

While a majority of the mortgage introducers surveyed by Landbay (54%) thought there would be two more cuts this year, only one in seven (14%) of those polled thought that three more cuts before the end of 2025 was still realistic.  More than a quarter (26%) forecast one more cut in 2025.

A pessimistic 4% of brokers thought there would be no more cuts at all and that the base rate would still be 4.5% at the end of the year. At the other end of the spectrum, an optimistic but small 2%of brokers said they expected the base rate to have fallen to 3.5%.

Commenting on the findings Landbay director of sales and distribution Rob Stanton said: ““While headline inflation is so far above its 2% target rate, it would be a very bold move to cut borrowing costs – especially with the £25bn increase in employer national insurance contributions and 6.7% rise in the minimum wage due to come into effect from April. That will force businesses to pass on the higher costs of employment to consumers, raising their prices yet further.

He added: “Brokers can’t see the future obviously, but the wisdom of crowds does give us some insight here and suggests that, when they’re talking to landlords, brokers should make it clear that the interest rate landscape has changed. The Bank of England is going to have to change its priorities in face of rising inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer.”