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NatWest, Co-op Latest Lenders to increase Mortgage Rates

ended 06. March 2026

Both NatWest and Co-op have announced increases to their mortgage ranges, in line with a number of other High Street Lenders :

Co-op Changes :

NatWest Changes - via this link : https://www.intermediary.natwest.com/7th-march-product-change.html

Rate increases of up to 0.2% for both remortgages and purchases, adding to the woes of borrowers as the conflict continues.

Comments please.

3 responses from the Newspage community

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Editor
Justin Moy
Managing Director at EHF Mortgages
Unfortunately, more mortgage rate increases from more High Street lenders as the Middle East conflict continues to play havoc with our finances. Increases of up to 0.2% will affect many, bringing rates closer to their levels at the start of 2026. It's not a total disaster, but it will cost around an additional £500 of annual interest on a typical £250,000 mortgage; it's not to be ignored, so if you need a new deal in 2026, engage with your mortgage broker now.
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Richard Davidson
Mortgage Advisor at onlinemortgageadvisor.co.uk
Unfortunately, lender repricing will continue until they have returned to their previous positions. We are seeing changes of 0.2% to 0.25%. This reflects international uncertainty and could be very short term. We expect all lenders to reprice over the next few days, particularly those most sensitive to funding markets. However, this does not necessarily suggest a clear direction of travel. Rates have only returned to levels seen just after Christmas, so this is a short-term correction rather than a significant move.
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Nick Harris
Founding Director at Quarters
Another small rate increase isn’t welcome news for buyers, but a change of around 0.2% isn’t enough to knock the market off course.

What we’re seeing locally is that most buyers have already adjusted their expectations around mortgage rates. The days of ultra-cheap borrowing are behind us, so people are focusing more on the move itself rather than trying to perfectly time the mortgage market.

In markets like Wokingham, demand is still there for well-presented, sensibly priced homes. Buyers might be taking a little longer to make decisions, but when a property is priced correctly it’s still attracting strong interest.

If anything, these small movements just reinforce how important realistic pricing is. The homes that launch at the right level are the ones that keep the market moving.