The proportion of borrowers choosing tracker mortgages has trebled over the past year as customers respond to market volatility and expectations around future rates.
The Intermediary · https://theintermediary.co.uk/2026/05/tracker-mortgage-demand-triples-amid-market-uncertainty/
The proportion of borrowers opting for tracker mortgages has trebled over the past year, according to analysis from Stonebridge.
The mortgage and protection network said tracker products accounted for 12% of mortgage choices in April, compared with 4.1% in the same month last year.
At the same time, the share of borrowers selecting fixed rate products fell to 87.6%, down from 95.4% a year earlier.
Stonebridge said the shift reflects changing borrower attitudes towards risk and expectations around the direction of future interest rates.
Rob Clifford, chief executive at Stonebridge, said: “It’s a fascinating time to be a mortgage adviser. At times like this, borrower preferences can give you an inside track on what people really think geopolitically.
“At the moment, they are signalling that they believe the worst may be over. Borrowers are increasingly willing to take on a little more risk for the chance of lowering their monthly payments when the crisis ends and rates start coming down.”
The network said the increased popularity of tracker products suggests some borrowers are prepared to accept potential payment fluctuations in return for lower initial costs and the possibility of future rate reductions.
Stonebridge also pointed to differences in borrower appetite depending on circumstances such as loan-to-value and affordability.
Clifford added: “This is valuable intelligence for advisers, not because all borrowers are the same but because it underlines how important the question of risk is for customers and how we must not assume that all borrowers are risk averse.
“A first-time buyer and someone with a 95% LTV may have identical opinions on international events but they might be in completely different camps when it comes to product type.”
Stonebridge said variable rate products represented 5.5% of deals in the first quarter of the year, according to its latest Mortgage Market Index.
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