MORE MORTGAGE WORRIES!

A leading mortgage provider has announced it is set to increase its mortgage rates, leading to claims that the global credit crunch could be starting to affect the rate offered by lenders, the BBC reports.

Standard Life is set to increase its standard variable rate (SVR) by 0.15 per cent to 7.46 per cent, with effect from Monday (November 19th).

In a statement the lender cited recent changes in the mortgage market as the main factor behind the rate increase, while analysts warned that the change could impact on mortgage lenders elsewhere.

"The change in SVR is a consequence of significant changes to the mortgage market in recent months," a Standard Life spokesman said.

Reacting to the news, Julia Harris, mortgage expert at moneyfacts.co.uk, said: "This is a stark warning for anyone on an SVR rate or, indeed anyone with a rate linked to the SVR, as with many discounted rates."

The Bank of England recently revealed that the number of mortgages approved by UK lenders this September was the smallest monthly amount since July 2005.