My 1.19% Mortgage Is Coming to an End: Here’s How I’m Preparing for 2026

Written by Holly Holland, Financielle Co-Founder

It’s predicted that over 1.8 million people in the UK are coming up to the end of their 5 year fixed mortgage rate in 2026 – with around 1 million of the deals taken out in 2021 when rates below 2% were widely available (Yahoo Finance).

At Financielle we’ve been following the journey of interest rates over the last couple of years with anticipation and honestly, anxiety. I’m personally invested in what happens to the mortgage rates in the UK as I bagged a 1.19% mortgage back in 2021 (yes I know, lucky gal) and I’ve lived in a cushy interest bubble ever since. 

I’ve seen the negative and stressful impact that mortgage rates have had on the Financielle community over the past few years, some have seen monthly mortgage payments increase from £300 – £800 per month. It’s enough to make anyone feel financially unwell!

In preparation for the inevitable increase, I thought I’d get ahead and see what practical steps I could take to retain some level of financial control.

 Get ahead…early ⏰

Start shopping around 3-6 months before your renewal ends, giving you enough time to compare rates. This helps to avoid automatically going onto the standard variable rate on your mortgage (or SVR).

Being on an SVR means the lender puts you on their default mortgage rate; these are almost always higher than fixed or rates and generally cost you more.

Consider overpaying 💰

Look at the benefits of overpaying your monthly mortgage payments. It’s something I did a few months ago and found that a small overpayment went a long way to softening the blow of my likely mortgage rate increase.

Original monthly payments £1,087.25

New monthly payments £1,200.00

Difference £112.65

A £112.65 overpayment felt manageable in our family budget.

The benefit of overpaying 🤑

✅ Roughly reduced our mortgage balance by £2,250 (before our renewal in August 2026)

✅ Could secure a £15 a month (£180 annual) saving when our renewal rate kicks in (approx 4.32% based on the market average)

✅ Reduction in interest over the lifetime of our mortgage (£3,500 – £4000)

✅ Reduced our exposure to the much higher rate by lowering the balance before our renewal

Compare the best deals 🤓

The types of deals available to you depend on your personal circumstances. You can get a range of deals over different fixed term lengths. There are a number of different providers in the market, you just need to find the right one to fit you and your needs.

Stress test your budget 💸

Mortgage payments are often the biggest bill we pay each month, but with a potential increase in mortgage rate, new payments could dwarf what you’re used to.

In the Financielle app, you can model your budget months in advance and stress test your future budgets. Let’s use my current mortgage rate as an example:

Feb 2026

1.19% 5 year fix mortgage payment =  £1,100pm

August 2026

4.32% 2 year fix mortgage payment = £1,480pm

That’s an increase of £380 per month, meaning I need to either increase my income to cover the costs or cut my expenses by that amount.

By planning ahead, I’m at least fully prepared and in control of the impact to my budget ahead of time.

Helpful Financielle tools 🔨