Fixed or Variable Rate/ 2 or 5 years

[bananainpjs]

I am sure these threads have been done to death lately. However, I would like some advice.

Our mortgage ends in Feb 2023. We are with Halifax as husband is a contractor and they are 'contractor friendly'.

Our mortgage rate at the moment is 2.57%

Our LTV at the moment is 54%.

On compare the market, for fixed rate, the best deal I can find for 5 years is 3.36% with £1k product fee and our monthly payments go up by £95
For 2 years it is, 3.24% with £1K product fee and our monthly payments will go up by £90.

On compare the market, for variable rate, the best deal I can find for 2 years (I won't consider more than 2 years) is 1.75% with £995 product fee and our monthly payments go down by £100.

I am not really sure about variable, we have always fixed. I am not sure whether to do 2 years or 5 because I have read that the base rate will go down again end of 2023 (not sure how true that is).

What would you do?
Obviously, all the above can change because I don't we can leave Halifax until the term actually ends but it is nice to get a rough idea.

Thank you.

I think I would speak to a broker 6 months before the remortgage is due. See what the best rate is that you can lock in. Things are moving rather swiftly at the moment and there will be another BoE rate meeting on 15th Sep.
Having said that, I think it's fairly optimistic to think that by 2025 all will be fine again. Most current predictions are that both 2023 and 2024 will be bad years. So I would fix for 5 years if you can get a vaguely acceptable rate.