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Buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage rates have been falling over the past few months, with the average rate now below 5% for the first time since the summer of 2022.
The downward trajectory has been driven by three cuts to the Bank of England base rate this year, reducing it from 4.75% to 4%.
Here, Which? explains what's happening to BTL rates and reveals the cheapest deals currently on the market.
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The average BTL mortgage rate fell for much of 2024. However, between October 2024 and February 2025, it actually increased from 5.25% to 5.49%.
Since February the tide has turned, with the average rate falling every month.
The November average, 4.98%, is lower than the 6.02% recorded two years ago, but well above the 3.14% recorded five years ago.
This means the term length of your last fixed-rate deal will dictate whether you'll be better or worse off when you come to remortgage your property.
Landlords coming off a two-year fixed-rate mortgage will likely find their mortgage costs fall. However, those coming off a five-year fixed-rate mortgage will see their costs rise significantly.
The graph below shows what's happened to fixed BTL mortgage rates over the past year.
Buy-to-let mortgages rates are expected to stay relatively steady over the following months, with the potential to drift slightly up or down depending on key market indicators.
Previously, experts were more optimistic about a rate cut in December, but this seems increasingly unlikely.
If there is an unexpected cut to the base rate in December, we could see fixed rates fall at a faster pace than they have during the autumn.
When we last checked Moneyfacts data on 4 November, there were 4,777 BTL mortgages on the market. Most are available to landlords with deposits of at least 25%, although there are some higher loan-to-value deals.
Looking at average rates gives us a general idea of what's happening in the market, but when you're taking out a mortgage, you'll want to get the cheapest deal you can.
The tables show the lowest initial rates currently available on two-year and five-year fixed-rate buy-to-let mortgages.
| 60% | The Mortgage Works | 2.74 | 7.99 | Arrangement 3.00% Advance |
| 75% | The Mortgage Works | 2.99 | 8.49 | Arrangement 3.00% Advance |
| 80% | ModaMortgages | 3.59 | 8.99 | Arrangement 5.00% Advance |
Source: Moneyfacts. Rates correct as of 4 November 2025. Deals with up-front fees of more than 5% of the amount borrowed and 'green' deals aren't included.
| 60% | Virgin Money | 3.75 | 7.49 | Arrangement 3.00% Advance |
| 75% | Virgin Money | 3.75 | 7.49 | Arrangement 3.00% Advance |
| 80% | Accord Mortgages | 4.68 | 6.99 | None |
Source: Moneyfacts. Rates correct as of 4 November 2025. Deals with up-front fees of more than 5% of the amount borrowed and 'green' deals aren't included.
These rates are significantly more attractive, but there are drawbacks. The cheapest deals here have substantial upfront fees, which you'll need to factor in when comparing overall costs.
For example, the 60% LTV mortgage with the lowest rate has a fee of 3% of the amount you borrow, so if you borrow £200,000, you'll need to pay a fee of £6,000.
Fee-free BTL mortgages are less common, making up just 13% of deals, but some deals do have lower upfront fees of around £999-£1,500.
Hamptons letting index found that despite an increase in the second-home stamp-duty surcharge, the share of homes bought by a landlord in the third quarter of 2025 increased year-on-year.
However, it was lower than the share of properties purchased by a landlord during the same period between 2019 and 2023.
Hamptons also revealed that landlords are increasingly buying properties in northern England: in the third quarter of 2025, 28% of homes sold in the north-east of England were purchased by a landlord, compared with 8% in London.
Property website Zoopla paints a similar picture, reporting that rental supply is higher than last year by 19%.
Despite the recent uplift, the number of available homes remains 10% lower than before the pandemic, meaning there's still strong competition for some types of rental properties.
