NatWest hikes rates and other lenders follow suit, signaling tough times for homebuyers and those looking to remortgage.

Bad news for anyone looking to buy a home or remortgage – the mortgage price war seems to be over. NatWest, one of the UK’s biggest lenders, has increased interest rates on most of its two and five-year fixed and tracker mortgages by 0.3%.

This means that from Thursday, NatWest’s popular five-year fixed-rate mortgage for borrowers with a 40% deposit will rise from 3.79% to 4.09%, pushing it back above the 4% mark. For those with a smaller deposit of 25%, the rate on the same five-year fix will increase from 3.89% to 4.19%.

It’s not just fixed-rate deals that are affected. NatWest’s two-year tracker mortgage for buyers with a 40% deposit will jump from 5.61% to a hefty 5.91%.

And NatWest isn’t alone in raising rates. Santander and TSB have also announced increases to their fixed-rate mortgage deals, with some going up by as much as 0.3 percentage points.

This news comes as a blow to borrowers who were hoping for continued low mortgage rates. The Bank of England is still predicted to cut its base rate from 5% to 4.75% at its next meeting, but these recent increases suggest lenders might be less inclined to pass on any savings to customers.