Customers of major banks, including Nationwide, Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest, Santander and TSB, have been hit with new costs. The average five-year fixed mortgage rate has hit 6%, its highest level in around three years, as experts told Newspage that September had been an “extraordinary” month for mortgages.
Excluding products available only in Northern Ireland, the number of sub-5% fixed mortgage deals has plunged by 99%, from 1,494 at the start of September 2026 to just nine on Monday, Moneyfactscompare.co.uk data has found. Including Northern Ireland-only products, sub-5% fixed deals fell from 1,691 to 107, while variable-rate deals dropped from 421 to 395. This represents a combined loss of 1,610 mortgage options.
Multiple rate rises from big lenders
Barclays raised selected fixed rates four times during September, while HSBC, Lloyds, Nationwide, NatWest, Santander and TSB each pushed up rates on three occasions. The squeeze is being blamed on rising funding costs and growing global economic uncertainty, with concerns over inflation, interest rates and government borrowing pushing up the cost of finance.
The average rate on a two-year fixed mortgage has climbed to 5.98%, its highest level since December 2023. Rachel Springall, finance expert at Moneyfactscompare.co.uk, said: “The past few weeks have seen pricing margins among major lenders come under immediate pressure from renewed swap rate volatility. As wholesale funding costs climb on the back of rising gilt yields, fixed rate adjustments are somewhat inevitable. The impact on sub-5% fixed mortgages has been brutal, with around 1,500 deals priced below 5% vanishing since the start of September while the average five-year fixed rate has reached 6%, with the average two-year not far behind. Average fixed mortgage rates have not been above 6% for around three years.”
‘Extraordinary’ disappearance of cheap deals
One adviser told Newspage the sudden disappearance of sub-5% deals was “extraordinary”. Nouran Moustafa, practice principal and IFA at Roxton Wealth, said: “6% mortgages are no longer a scary hypothetical. They are becoming normal again. Going from almost 1,500 sub-5% fixed deals to nine in barely a month is extraordinary. It shows how violently mortgage pricing can move even when Bank Rate itself has not changed. My advice is simple: do not gamble your mortgage on rates magically falling next month.”
Mortgage experts said that not every borrower would face the same rate as deposits, loan-to-value ratios, fees and personal circumstances could still make a significant difference. Stephen Perkins, Norwich mortgage broker and managing director of Norwich-based Yellow Brick Mortgages, said: “6% may now be the average fixed mortgage rate, but that doesn't mean every borrower should expect to pay 6% or more. Pricing still varies significantly depending on deposit, loan-to-value, fees and individual circumstances.”
Advice to mortgage holders as rates rocket
The era of cheaper borrowing looks increasingly over, according to one mortgage expert. Craig Fish, director of London-based Lodestone Mortgages, said: “Don't take the 6% average as the price you'll pay. Averages lump together everyone from borrowers with spotless records to those with patchy credit and complex cases and plenty of my clients are securing rates well below it. What has changed is the direction of travel. Higher rates are becoming the new normal, and the days of cheap money are long gone.”
Homeowners are being urged to check their options now before even more cheap fixes disappear. Harry Goodliffe, director of Winchester-based HTG Mortgages, said: “6% is the price of a rate rise that hasn't happened yet. The Bank of England held at 3.75%, yet lenders have pulled all but 9 of their sub-5% fixes since September because the market is betting on rises and charging for them early.”
Brokers are urging borrowers to reassess the available mortgage amount, monthly cost and any funding gap early. Tracey Dixon, buy-to-let mortgage specialist and Owner of Cardiff-based Pure Mortgage and Protection, said: “A mortgage has to fit a household budget, not a prediction about the next Bank of England meeting. A 6% average does not mean every borrower will pay that rate, but the loss of cheaper fixes narrows the options. The concern is how much room households have left after their mortgage payment.”
