Bank's low rate pledge spurs switch away from fixed mortgages The cost of fixed deals rose while tracker rates fell, also influencing the mortgages chosen. Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: "These figures clearly show how influential the Bank of England can be on borrower sentiment. Analysts may question whether interest rates can remain on hold until 2016 if the economy builds on recent progress and continues to emerge from the gloom. But the house buying public are clearly open to reassurance from the Bank, with more people willing to trade in the security of fixes this month for the benefit of lower rates. The index also showed that first-time buyers continued to overwhelmingly favour fixed rate mortgages, with 91pc of buyers choosing it over a tracker. Fixed rate mortgages have a set interest rate during the initial special period - normally two, three or five years. This gives borrowers peace of mind about how much they will need to repay each month and the security of knowing the rate is fixed regardless of any changes made by the Bank of England. Borrowers, however, are pushed on to the lender's standard variable rate after that honeymoon period which is normally much higher. Variable tracker deals operate in the same way, over similar time periods, but some continue to track for the lifetime of the mortgage. Best fixed rate mortgages on the market How buying trends and rates have changed Purchase deals - fixed Purchase deals - variable Remortgage deals - fixed Remortgage deals - variable August 2013 August 2012 While those remortgaging have made a shift toward trackers, those taking a new mortgage because they are buying continue to stick with fixed-rate deals, as the "puchase deals" figures show above. The shift towards trackers by remortgagers was probably also influenced by increases in the rates of two and three year fixes from July to August of this year. The average two year rate was 3.63pc in July 2013 and 3.69pc in August. Average three year rates rose from 4.02pc in July to 4.06pc in August. These rates were partially driven by the money markets, which affect mortgage pricing, not fully believing Mr Carney's predictions for low rates. In contrast, the rates of two year trackers fell. In July 2013 the average rate was 3.28pc falling to 3.14pc in August. January 2013 2 year fixed rates 3 year fixed rates 5 year fixed rates 2 year trackers