The Euribor once again makes mortgages more expensive in April
The evolution of the benchmark for variable-rate loans increases the monthly payment by 55.94 euros, with a trend towards further increases in the coming months
BarcelonaThe daily one-year Euribor, the main reference for variable-rate mortgages, closed April with a new increase, reaching 2.848%. The average stood at 2.747%, compared to 2.143% a year ago, and a new increase is added to that of March. Consequently, this evolution, which places this reference at the levels of September 2024, means the average mortgage (173,280 euros, according to INE data from February, over 25 years) will increase its monthly installment by 55.94 euros or 671.28 annually, to 890.60 euros per month or 10,687.2 euros per year.
The market trend does not only affect those with variable-rate mortgages but also those who plan to take one out to buy an apartment. Some entities have increased their offers due to prudence, according to analysts, and increases are expected in the coming months, as explained this Thursday during the presentation of the first-quarter results by the CEO of CaixaBank, Gonzalo Gortázar.
The spread for variable-rate mortgages in April stood at 0.62, compared to 0.61 in March (a year ago it was 0.64). The average interest rate for fixed-rate mortgages, which are currently being taken out massively, stood at 2.901%, compared to 2.883% last month and 2.773 a year ago. And for mixed-rate mortgages, it was 2.56% in the fixed-rate portion, compared to 2.49% the previous month and 2.53% a year ago; and the spread was 0.77 in the variable-rate portion, compared to 0.75 in March and 0.74 a year ago, according to the comparator Kelisto.
Increase that is added to that of March
From this platform they highlight that the increase, which is added to that of March, "has a trick: and it is that at no time have the maximums reached at the end of last month been exceeded (when it approached 3% on a daily rate). Behind this trick, first, there is a statistical effect, since in the first days of March the value of the index was quite lower, which reduced the monthly average. Secondly, there is also a certain relaxation of the international context." The evolution of the war in Iran, situated in a kind of stalemate, has meant that this reference has gone a few days without strong increases, as happened in March.
Analysts predict that the European Central Bank (ECB) will maintain interest rates for now, given that inflation has not soared as much as expected. In Spain, for example, the advanced consumer price index (CPI) has stood at 3.2%se ha situado en el 3,2%, two tenths below March, which the Spanish government attributes to measures to mitigate the effects of the rise in fuel prices. The forecast for Euribor for this year is less than 2.5%. CaixaBank places it at 2.23%; the foundation of the former savings banks (Funcas) at 2.24%; and Bankinter, between 2.3% and 2.45%.
Market change
As a result of this volatility, banks are detecting a "change" in the mortgage market, as stated by the CEO of BBVA, Onur Genç, this Thursday, during the presentation of the quarterly results. Genç said that almost all of their new mortgages are fixed-rate (96% of the total new mortgage credit in the first quarter). "The market has changed," he reiterated, and assured that half of BBVA's mortgage clients have fixed-rate credit. In the same vein, Banco Santander, which also presented results, spoke out this Wednesday. Ana Botín's bank said that clients choose fixed rates because they want to "protect themselves." Both banks have said they are growing in this market, where prices continue to be among the "most competitive" in Europe, although they also foresee an increase in costs.
