UK lenders raise mortgage rates amid rising costs and uncertainty, with rates hitting a 2025 high.

Two major UK lenders, Nationwide and Halifax, raised mortgage rates on March 23, 2026, with Nationwide increasing fixed and tracker rates by up to 0.30 percentage points and Halifax hiking all fixed-rate products. Fleet Mortgages withdrew all fixed-rate deals due to market volatility, while the number of available mortgage products dropped by nearly 1,500, a 19.5% decline since early March. Rising inflation, global economic uncertainty, Middle East tensions, and increased funding costs are driving the changes, with the average two-year fixed rate reaching 5.43%—its highest since February 2023. Despite brief optimism from U.S.-Iran diplomatic remarks, lenders remain cautious, urging borrowers to act quickly to lock in current rates before further increases.