Should I Remortgage in 2026? Everything You Need to Know Right Now

If your mortgage fixed rate is ending in the next few months, you could not have picked a more eventful time to be making this decision. Rates that looked like they were heading down at the start of 2026 have moved sharply upward following the Iran conflict in February, and the Bank of England rate cuts that borrowers were counting on have been put on hold. This guide explains what remortgaging means, when it makes sense, how it compares to a product transfer and what to do right now, given where the market is.

What Is Remortgaging?

Remortgaging simply means switching your mortgage to a new deal. That might be with your existing lender, which is called a product transfer, or it might mean moving to a completely different lender, which is what most people mean when they say remortgage.

The most common reason people remortgage is that their current fixed rate or tracker deal is coming to an end. When that happens, your lender will automatically move you onto their Standard Variable Rate, known as the SVR. The SVR is almost always significantly higher than the rate you were on, which means your monthly payments go up, sometimes by a lot, without you doing anything.

The other reasons people remortgage include wanting to release equity for home improvements, consolidating debts, shortening or extending the mortgage term, or simply because they have found a better deal elsewhere.

One million fixed-rate mortgage deals are due to expire between April and September 2026, according to the Financial Conduct Authority. If yours is one of them, do not leave this until the last minute. Get in touch with us now.

What Is Happening With Mortgage Rates in 2026?

This is the question everyone is asking right now, and the honest answer is that 2026 has been far more volatile than anyone expected.

At the start of the year, the mortgage market was looking positive. Rates had been falling steadily since the peak of 2023, and lenders were competing hard for business. The Bank of England had cut rates six times since August 2024, and another cut was widely expected at the March 2026 meeting.

Then, on 28 February 2026, US and Israeli forces launched military strikes against Iran. Oil prices surged, inflation fears returned, and swap rates, the mechanism through which global events feed into your mortgage costs, jumped sharply. Lenders repriced upward almost overnight. Over 1,500 mortgage products were withdrawn from the market within 11 days. The Bank of England held rates at 3.75% in March rather than cutting them, and another hold or even a rise is possible at the April meeting.

The average two-year fixed rate, which had been around 4.8% in late February, had risen to just over 5% by mid-March, with some lenders pushing above 5.5%. For a £200,000 mortgage over 25 years, that is roughly an extra £90 per month compared to where rates were just weeks earlier.

Despite recent rises, rates are still lower than they were through most of 2023. If you are coming off a deal from that period, you may still be moving to a lower rate. Call us, and we will tell you exactly where you stand.

Remortgage or Product Transfer — Which Is Right for You?

When your fixed rate ends, you have two main options. Understanding the difference is important because the right choice depends on your circumstances.

Product transfer

A product transfer means staying with your current lender but moving onto a new rate they offer. It is faster, simpler and involves far less paperwork than a full remortgage. In most cases, there are no affordability checks, no solicitor, no valuation and no legal fees. Most product transfers are completed within a few working days.

The downside is that you are only looking at one lender's rates. You have no way of knowing whether you are missing a better deal elsewhere unless you check the whole market too.

Full remortgage to a new lender

A full remortgage means moving your mortgage to a different lender entirely. This gives you access to the whole market and may offer a better rate, more flexible terms or the ability to borrow additional funds. The trade-off is that it takes longer, usually four to eight weeks, and involves a solicitor, an affordability reassessment and potentially some fees.

As a whole-of-market broker, we compare both options side by side for every client. Sometimes the product transfer wins, sometimes the remortgage does. We will tell you honestly which one saves you more money.

When is a product transfer usually better?

• You are not looking to borrow more or change the mortgage structure

• Your existing lender's rates are competitive with the market

• You are self-employed and want to avoid a new affordability check

• Speed matters, and you need the new rate sorted quickly

• You have a BM Solutions or TML mortgage, both of which are intermediary-only and product transfers with these lenders are handled by us

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When is a full remortgage usually better?

• Another lender is offering a noticeably better rate for your loan-to-value

• You want to release equity for home improvements or other purposes

• You want to increase or reduce the mortgage term

• You want to add or remove someone from the mortgage

• Your existing lender has tightened their criteria, and you want more options

When Should You Start the Remortgage Process?

The general advice is to start looking around three to six months before your current deal ends. Here is why timing matters so much right now.

Most lenders will let you lock in a new rate up to six months before your deal expires. If you secure a rate today and rates fall further before your deal ends, many lenders will let you switch to a lower rate before it starts. If rates go up, you are protected by the rate you locked in. In a volatile market like the one we are currently in, locking in early is a meaningful form of insurance.

Equally important, do not wait until the last minute. With product availability changing rapidly at the moment, the deal you see today may not be available in two weeks. And if your deal expires before you have sorted a new one, you will land on the SVR and start overpaying immediately.

Already locked in a rate earlier in 2026? Check with us that the offer is still current and whether anything better has come onto the market since you secured it. Some lenders allow you to switch to a lower rate before your deal starts if their pricing improves. Get in touch, and we will check for you.

Can You Remortgage Early?

Yes, but you need to check whether your current deal has an early repayment charge. Most fixed-rate mortgages charge a penalty if you leave before the end of the fixed period. These are typically between 1% and 5% of the outstanding balance and reduce the closer you get to the end of the deal.

In the final three months of most fixed-rate deals, the early repayment charge either drops to zero or becomes very low. This is the window where switching early makes the most sense financially.

In some cases, even with an early repayment charge, it can still be worth switching early if the new rate saves you significantly more over time. We calculate this for clients regularly. It is a straightforward comparison of the penalty versus the long-term savings. Call us, and we can run the numbers for your situation.

What About Buy-to-Let Remortgages?

Everything above applies to buy-to-let mortgages too, with a few extra things to consider.

Buy-to-let remortgages are assessed differently from residential ones. Lenders look at the rental income relative to the mortgage payment, usually requiring the rent to cover the mortgage by at least 125% to 145%, depending on your tax position. In a rising-rate environment, this can affect how much you can borrow and which lenders will accept you.

If you are a portfolio landlord with four or more mortgaged properties, lenders will also assess your entire portfolio, not just the individual property. This is why specialist broker advice matters more at this level. We prepare a full property schedule for every portfolio landlord client before approaching a single lender.

If you hold properties in a limited company, the remortgage process is slightly different again, and the lender options are more specific. We deal with limited-company remortgages regularly and know which lenders are most competitive right now.

What About Self-Employed Borrowers?

Remortgaging when you are self-employed adds a layer of complexity because lenders all assess self-employed income differently. Some will use your most recent year's figures, others average the last two years, and some look at salary plus dividends, while others use net profit.

If your income has changed since you first took out the mortgage, whether it has gone up or down, choosing the right lender for your current income structure is important. The wrong choice can result in a lower offer or a declined application, which wastes time and can affect your credit file.

A product transfer with your existing lender can be a good option if you are self-employed and your income has become more complex, because it usually does not require a new affordability assessment. We will always check both routes and tell you which one is the better option for your situation.

The Short Version

If your mortgage deal is ending in the next few months, here is what you need to know:

• Do not wait until your deal expires and drift onto the SVR. It will cost you more every month

• Start looking three to six months before your deal ends so you can lock in a rate early

• Compare both a product transfer with your existing lender and a full remortgage to a new lender. We do this for every client.

• In the current market, acting quickly matters. Products are being repriced and withdrawn with very little notice

• If you have a BM Solutions or TML mortgage, you must go through a broker. You cannot arrange it directly

• Our standard fee is £899, discussed and agreed upon upfront before any work begins.

If you would like to talk through your options, call us on 0330 1330034, visit our remortgage page, use our mortgage calculator to see what different rates mean for your monthly payments, or browse our mortgage FAQs for answers to common questions.

Last updated April 2026. This post will be updated as the market develops. For the latest on how global events are affecting mortgage rates, see our Iran war mortgage rates guide.