Number of fixed and variable rate mortgage sales in the UK 2018-2023, by quarter

In the fourth quarter of 2023, the number of mortgage sales in the UK stood at over 212,000. Of these, the vast majority were taken out with a fixed interest rate. The average mortgage interest rate soared in 2022. That has resulted in an overall decline in mortgage sales and a slight uptick in sales with a variable rate.

A fixed interest rate is simply a mortgage where the rate of repayment is fixed. The source defines a standard variable rate as "the rate that is the lender’s underlying variable interest rate. This rate is a basic variable rate charged to borrowers with no discounts or other special deals. It is also the rate used by the lender as a reference rate when defining a discounted variable rate product (e.g., discounted product ABC is 0.50 percent below the lender’s standard variable or basic rate). This is the rate that mortgage deals will often revert to after a special rate period."