Net mortgage approvals for house purchases in the UK, which is an indicator of future borrowing, increased to 62,600 in February 2026 from 60,200 in January, above market expectations of 61,300. Approvals for remortgaging, which only capture remortgaging with a different lender, also increased to 41,200 in February, from 38,500 in January. The ‘effective’ interest rate on newly drawn mortgages slightly increased, to 4.10% in February, from 4.09% in January. The rate on the outstanding stock of mortgages was 3.95% in February, up from 3.90% in January.