Four Days On: What the Rate Rise Actually Did to Buy-to-Let Pricing
RealYield Team
Property Analyst
Four days after the Bank of England raised Bank Rate to 4%, the mortgage market has barely moved. That's not a contradiction. It's how fixed-rate pricing works. If you want the decision itself, the vote and a worked example of what the quarter point costs, we covered that here. This is what's happened since, and it matters more for anyone fixing or remortgaging in the next year or two.
Fixed rates: nothing much happened, because it had already happened
Moneyfacts' average new mortgage rate stood at 5.89% at the close of trading on 6 November, a single basis point above where it sat the day before the decision. Its average two-year fixed residential rate is 5.97% and its five-year is 6.00%, both roughly where they were at the start of November. The real move in fixed pricing happened over October, when both rates rose from 5.93% and 5.95% respectively, well before the Bank's meeting on 4 and 5 November.
That's the pattern with fixed mortgages. They're priced from swap rates, which move on what the market expects Bank Rate to average over the fix, not on what the Bank actually decides on the day. By the time the MPC voted, a quarter-point rise was close to certain, so lenders had mostly repriced already.
No buy-to-let lender has been found raising a fixed rate since Thursday. If anything, the opposite: a Mortgage Solutions round-up on 6 November reported Kensington, Zephyr and Skipton Building Society cutting rates, though the sizes of those cuts weren't given in the headline. Treat that as a direction, not a guarantee it will hold.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have buy-to-let mortgage rates gone up since the Bank of England's 5 November decision?
Not on fixed deals. Moneyfacts' average new mortgage rate was 5.89% at the close of 6 November, almost unchanged from 5.88% the day before. The average two-year and five-year fixed residential rates had already risen over October, before the decision, because fixed pricing follows swap rates rather than Bank Rate itself. No buy-to-let lender has been found raising a fixed rate since Thursday; Kensington, Zephyr and Skipton Building Society were reported cutting some rates instead.
Why didn't fixed mortgage rates move when the Bank raised rates?
Because the market had already priced the rise in. Fixed-rate mortgages are set from swap rates, which reflect where traders expect Bank Rate to average over the life of the fix, not where it sits today. Swap rates had been climbing for weeks before 5 November on the expectation of a rise, so lenders had already adjusted their fixed pricing. Once the decision landed as expected, two-year and five-year swaps actually eased back, from around 4.65% and 4.75% a week before the meeting to 4.56% and 4.61% by 6 November.
Who is affected by the rate rise if fixed deals haven't moved?
Tracker and standard variable rate borrowers feel it fastest, usually from their next payment. On an interest-only buy-to-let, 0.25 percentage points adds roughly £500 a year in interest per £200,000 borrowed. Fixed-rate borrowers are protected until their current deal ends, at which point they remortgage onto whatever rate the market is offering then, which may be higher or lower than today's.
What does the Bank of England expect to happen to interest rates next?
The Bank doesn't forecast its own rate. Its November report is conditioned on two different paths. The market curve, what traders are pricing, rises to around 4.9% by the end of 2027 before easing slightly. The Bank's own Market Participants Survey, a poll of separate forecasters, has a lower median of 3.5% in two to three years' time. The Bank presents both and is clear that neither is a prediction of what it will do. The next decision is due on 17 December 2026.
Does this rate rise affect the Section 24 tax changes for landlords?
Not directly, but the two compound. Section 24 restricts personal-name landlords to a basic-rate tax credit on mortgage interest, so every extra pound of interest from a higher rate costs a higher-rate taxpayer more after tax than it does before tax. MPs approved a Budget resolution on 3 November confirming property income tax rates will rise to 24%, 44% and 49% from 6 April 2027, which adds to that squeeze from next year. The Finance Bill still has to pass before that becomes law.
Should I fix my buy-to-let mortgage now or wait?
This is a decision for a whole-of-market mortgage broker, not something a calculator can answer alone. What you can do yourself is work out what your payment looks like at today's rate and at a rate a point higher, so you know what you're protecting against either way. The RealYield calculator lets you stress test both scenarios against your actual rent and costs.
Related Insights
The Bank of England Has Raised Rates to 4%. What It Means for Property Investors.
The Bank of England raised Bank Rate from 3.75% to 4% on 5 November 2026, its first rise since August 2023. Here is who pays first, why most fixed rates had already moved, and a worked buy-to-let example showing what a quarter point does to cashflow, stress tests and after-tax returns.
A November Rate Rise Is Now on the Table. What 0.25% or 0.5% More Does to Your Buy-to-Let.
Two Bank of England deputy governors and the Governor himself have all signalled a rate rise could be needed. Here's the actual arithmetic on a £200,000 buy-to-let mortgage if the MPC moves by 0.25 or 0.5 percentage points on 5 November, and why fixed-rate borrowers are already paying for it.