The push by banks to offer the cheapest mortgage to attract customers is losing intensity in the autumn. Although not yet widespread, some trading networks have stopped entering the price battle and have raised their reference rates; In recent days, the two big ones, Santander and BBVA, as well as Banca March, have increased interest rates. Other entities keep the competition alive, in a moment of effervescence in the real estate market, but the aggressive offers are increasingly punctual and above all for excellent profiles. The mortgage war slows down and prudence takes hold.
The change in trend, after several years of lower mortgage prices, is due to several factors: the stagnation of official rates in the Eurozone and the consequent increase in Euribor, together with the magnificent banking figures this year, which allow commercial pressure to ease and mortgages not to adapt so much to their cost. Proposals remain attractive, but banks are becoming more selective in protecting margins.
“The institutions, without expectations of further rate cuts, have stopped the reduction in mortgage prices and some are already raising them to recover some margin, especially on fixed ones”, comment the analysts of the financial comparator HelpMyCash. “What we see now is that banks that have already reached their targets for the year are slowing down deposits by raising rates and those that have not yet done so continue the battle for the last customers of the year,” says Ricard Garriga, CEO and co-founder of Trioteca.
However, according to the latest data from the European Central Bank (ECB), Spanish banks currently offer the second cheapest mortgages in the eurozone (after Malta) with an interest rate of 2.68% in August, significantly lower than the 3.3% average in the eurozone. And according to Statistics, almost two out of three new mortgages are stipulated at a fixed rate.
Banks that have made their fixed mortgages more expensive since the end of the summer are Unicaja, ING and, more recently, Bankinter, Santander and BBVA. Also Coinc and Cajasiete. Price increases are currently slight. Banco Sabadell, Abanca and Openbank have not yet moved, while Caixabank already increased the interest on its mortgage months ago.
After the latest news, the most convenient 25-year subsidized fixed mortgages in the banking window are offered by Openbank, at an APR of 2.98%; Coinc, Bankinter’s savings portal, which offers an APR of 3.09%, and Ibercaja, with 3.10%. The subsidized fixed mortgage from Banco Santander now has an interest rate of 3.27% APR, satisfying all conditions. Sabadell announces an APR of 3.3% and MyInvestor, an APR of 3.38%. Bankinter places the fixed rate with the maximum bonus at 3.46% APR. BBVA has set the interest on its fixed loan at 3.67% APR, and Banca March increased it from 2.91% to 3.01% yesterday. The fixed rate of the Unicaja mortgage is 3.99% APR for paychecks starting from 2,000 euros net per month with bonus. CaixaBank’s 30-year fixed rate CasaFácil Mortgage sets an APR of 4.259%.
In variable mortgages, the differentials added to the Euribor remain stable, with the most convenient being around 0.50%. Kutxabank offers 0.49%; Unicaja and Sabadell, 0.55%; Ibercaja and BBVA, 0.60%, and Openbank and ING, 0.65%. Bankinter and Abanca hold it at 0.70%, MyInvestor at 0.79% and Santander at 0.84%.
However, most banks require you to purchase additional products to get access to the best prices, such as direct deposit of paychecks, receipts, insurance and card usage. “Today we don’t see any entity making aggressive offers. There are good offers, yes, but not as competitive as in other years,” says Gulias. For his part, Jorge González-Iglesias Baeza, CEO of Gibobs.com, does not expect major changes in the short term, but rather a market of gradual adjustments. “The banks take the opportunity to reposition prices and observe the reaction of the rest of the banks,” he says.
Focusing on solvent customers
In this new scenario, the main banks are betting on high-income customers that they can retain. “The entities offer aggressive bonuses and more flexible terms in exchange for joining,” says Jorge González-Iglesias Baeza, CEO of Gibobs.com. The profile sought is that of individuals or families with incomes exceeding 4,000 euros per month. “There are entities that reserve their best mortgages for high-income profiles. That is, there is no longer an open mortgage war as before, where all the banks wanted the maximum possible volume at the end of the year”, insists Garriga.
“The big difference compared to other years is that banks are much more selective. They analyze in great detail what type of customer they are really interested in”, he clarifies. In this sense, entities verify economic capacity, debt-to-GDP ratio, job stability and a credit history with no outstanding debts.
Upward trend in 2026
Looking ahead to 2026, mortgage competition, especially fixed-rate mortgages, is expected to continue to weaken and prices to rise slightly. Miquel Riera, head of mortgages at HelpMyhCash.com, says that “institutions have no incentive to lower their mortgage offers. Therefore, he does not foresee further market reductions, except in very specific cases.”
The managers of Kelisto.com focus on the Euribor and argue that “as the mortgage indicator increases, the price of the new mortgage offer also increases.” The daily value of the Euribor exceeded 2.2% at the beginning of November, when before the summer it was close to 2%. The comparator therefore estimates that mortgages may maintain their upward trend in the coming months, given that inflation has started to rise again and the market is beginning to hypothesize a possible increase in rates in the first months of 2026.
