GLOPRAGlobal Property Radar

UK mortgage approvals fall to 53,400 in September 2026

UK house-purchase mortgage approvals fell to 53,400 in September while the rate on a new mortgage rose to 4.63%, making entry dearer this month.

The facts

  • Mortgage approvals for house purchase fell to 53,400 in September 2026, from 54,800 in August, in the Money and Credit release the Bank of England published on 29 October 2026.
  • Net mortgage borrowing by individuals decreased to 3.9 billion pounds, from 4.2 billion pounds in August.
  • The effective interest rate on newly drawn mortgages rose to 4.63%, from 4.60% in August; the rate on the outstanding stock of mortgages rose to 4.03%, from 4.00%.
  • Remortgaging approvals moved the other way, climbing to 42,600 from 34,000 in August.
  • Annual growth in net mortgage lending slowed to 3.4%, from 3.6% in August.

What it means for your money

  • The rate on a new mortgage rose again, to 4.63%. Entry costs more this month than last, with no price relief alongside it.
  • Glopra's data put the average UK home at 361,632 dollars and the average monthly rent at 1,862 dollars, so the financing cost is moving against a rental income that has not risen with it, and UK prices are still 0.9% higher than a year earlier.
  • For someone who already owns a let property in the UK, the jump in remortgaging approvals from 34,000 to 42,600 is the clearest sign in the release that borrowers are repricing early rather than waiting.
  • Purchase approvals at 53,400 and annual mortgage lending growth down to 3.4% point to a thinner pipeline of completions over the coming months, which is the resale and liquidity side of the same data.

What to watch

  • The 4.03% average on the outstanding stock is still well below the 4.63% on new lending, so the average cost of UK mortgage debt keeps rising as older fixed deals roll off.
  • Remortgaging approvals rose by roughly a quarter in a single month; whether that was one-off repricing or a trend needs the October figures before it can be read either way.

Sources: Bank of England https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/statistics/money-and-credit/2026/september-2026; Bank of England Effective interest rates https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/statistics/effective-interest-rates/2026/september-2026

Market data: Edinburgh · Manchester · United Kingdom · London