Average buy-to-let five-year fixed rates now stand at 6.01 percent, Moneyfacts data shows, while typical two-year residential fixes have climbed to 5.97 percent – within touching distance of 6 percent for the first time since December 2023.
Residential five-year fixes, which crossed 6 percent earlier this month for the first time in nearly three years, have eased marginally to 5.99 percent. Buy-to-let two-year fixes average 5.63 percent. Borrowers can still choose from about 8,560 residential products and 5,192 buy-to-let deals, so shelf choice remains wide even as pricing climbs.
Averages conceal the deals underneath, and landlords who assume 6 percent is the going rate will overpay. Brokered exclusives and lower-LTV tranches still price well inside the average, which makes this a moment to compare live product guides rather than sit out a purchase or remortgage.
Swap pressure pushes averages toward 6 percent
The two-year residential average has risen from 5.68 percent a month ago to 5.97 percent, its closest approach to 6 percent since it stood at 6.01 percent on 7 December 2023. Five-year residential rates are up from 5.73 percent over the same period. The moves track volatile swap rates, which set the funding costs behind fixed-rate pricing.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s September report on Moneyfacts-tracked rate rises from HSBC and NatWest, when swap-driven repricing first spread across high-street shelves. The latest figures confirm that pressure has reached both residential and landlord product ranges.
Landlord shelves hold up as yields offset costs
Buy-to-let pricing tells a steadier story than the headline suggests. Lenders have kept more than 5,000 landlord products live, and recent weeks brought selective cuts – including NatWest’s selected buy-to-let purchase fixes from 4.91 percent – which sit more than a full point inside the 6.01 percent five-year average.
Record rental levels also cushion the rise: with average rents at fresh highs, stronger yields absorb part of the higher debt cost on sensibly geared purchases. Landlords fixing now should weigh fee against rate, check whether a two-year fix bridges to calmer pricing, and lock a rate that can be swapped down if markets ease before completion.
Moneyfacts sets out the 6 percent milestone in its average rate analysis.
What this means for landlords
- If you remortgage in the next six months: lock a rate now that allows a free switch before completion, so further rises cannot hurt you but cuts still can help.
- Compare below the average: with BTL two-year averages at 5.63 percent and live deals from 4.91 percent, brokered and low-LTV products beat the headline by distance.
- Run the fee maths: higher-fee, lower-rate tranches often win on loans above £200,000 – model total cost over the fix, not rate alone.
- Watch five-year value: at 6.01 percent average for BTL, five-year money needs a clear plan to hold – otherwise a two-year fix keeps options open.
- Bottom line: funding costs are up, but choice and yields still give prepared landlords room to do deals.
Editor’s view
Six percent makes noise, but averages are not prices. The landlords who suffer in a rising market are the ones who read the headline and stop shopping. Product counts are healthy and sub-average deals are real – effort at comparison remains the cheapest finance tool available.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 14 October 2026
Sources: Moneyfacts
Related reading: Moneyfacts: HSBC and NatWest raise rates as swaps climb
