The current crisis in the US sub-prime market could cause problems for UK borrowers with poor credit ratings who are attempting to take out a mortgage.

According to the Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR) the expected tightening up of lending by banks could bring an end to the availability of cheap and easy mortgages for borrowers with credit troubles, thereby potentially taking the "sting out of the housing market".

Commenting on the potential international effects of the crisis, Jonathan Said, senior economist at CEBR, said: "I think there will be an impact in terms of mortgages because what this is doing is constraining the amount of liquidity that banks and mortgage houses have. Because of that they are going to be a bit more stringent on the types of credit that they give out.

"On the margins - there will be some people who find it more difficult to take out mortgages. The banks will be much more cautious."

According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders, fixed-rate deals now account for 90 per cent of all mortgages taken out by UK first-time buyers, with many opting for a fixed-rate deal as a result of market uncertainty.