As the Bank of England put up interest rates last week, there has been a rush for fixed rate remortgages the Financial Times reports.

Interest rates are expected to rise again this year so it makes fixed rate remortgages even more appealing to buyers.

Buyers are taking the opportunity to lock into fixed-rate mortgages with favorable rates, ranging from a low of 4.95 per cent to about 5.1 per cent depending on the number of years of the contract.

Customers are trying to beat mortgage lenders before they adjust their rate tables’ inline with the higher interest.

Variable-rate mortgage holders have been hit by a third rate rise since last August while fixed-rate mortgages have not been effected.

Economists expect the interest rate rise on mortgages could see the housing market stabilize as buyers become more cautious. The interest rate rise caught everyone by surprise and will make homes even less affordable.

Neil Chegwidden, head of research at Cluttons, cut his forecast for 2007 house price growth from 9 per cent to 2 percent.

Buy to let Property has replaced pensions as the investment choice for millions of people.

The rise in house prices and poorly performing pension funds have given a massive boost to buy-to-let investors.

House prices rose 10.5 per cent last year; a typical home rose £45 a day in value and is now worth £173,746.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors estimate a seven per cent rise in house prices for 2007.

Buy-to-let is now the largest investment sector with over £130bn being invested in the last ten year.

Even if property prices do not move for the next few year property investment remains an attractive proposition as part of a multi-asset portfolio.

The average buy-to-let investor made over £7,700 in 2007 and generated almost £10,000 in rent, a return on an investment of £17,700 or 11.4 per cent.

Buy-to-let mortgages were launched 10 years ago.