If your mortgage has just gone up by £200 a month, congratulations, you have apparently been promoted. According to a briefing that exists only in the imagination of a think tank wearing a cravat, owning a home is no longer a boring necessity. It is a lifestyle choice, like oat milk or a second passport, and the people who can afford it are, we are told, the cultured ones.
Here is how the trick works, as far as anyone can tell. When the Bank of England raises its base rate (the rate it charges banks to borrow, which then flows through to what lenders charge you), the cost of a mortgage climbs. In ordinary times this gets described as a cost of living problem. In this version, it is a velvet rope. Every extra £200 a month politely turns away anyone who still thinks a roof over their head is a basic thing rather than a curated experience.
So what should you do? Nothing dramatic. Find out when your current deal ends, because that is when the real jump usually lands. Call your lender a few months before that date and ask what they can offer. And if anyone asks why you are suddenly spending so much on your house, tell them you are simply very cultured. It is the one thing this policy seems to reward.