Borrowers, including those with buy-to-let mortgages, should make sure that they pay attention to mortgage fees when choosing their deal, said Moneysupermarket.com.
The firm found that while 74% of borrowers said that the rate of a new mortgage deal is of vital importance to them, just 40% said that they placed a similar emphasis on fees.

Earlier this week Abbey revealed that almost a third of borrowers would opt for a long-term fixed-rate deal if they were to renew their mortgage immediately.

“Its of grave concern that homeowners are placing more importance on low interest rates. With fees having shot up over the past 12 months, people need to factor in the true cost of a mortgage rather than be tempted by the rate”, said Louise Cuming, Moneysupermarket.com’s head of mortgages.

Outstanding buy-to-let mortgages now account for 12% of the entire market, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML)