Nationwide will now allow existing members to reserve a switcher product six months before their current deal matures.
The change comes into effect from today and is an increase from five months previously. The lender said that this would allow members to lock into a new product earlier.
Nationwide added that it has enabled four switcher start dates, up from three previously.
For instance, for a deal that would end 31 January, borrowers can choose 1 November, 1 December, 1 January or 1 February for when the new rate follows the old rate.
Several lenders have been lengthening their rate switch windows, with Barclays nearly doubling its rate switch window for existing customers from 90 days to 150 days.
Switch window extensions welcomed
Brokers have said that rate switch windows usually range from three to four months but that over the past year more lenders are extending them to six months.
The move has been broadly welcomed by brokers, who say that the move would give customers more options and increased flexibility. It will also improve lender’s client retention as it would match typical remortgage windows.
Product switch and remortgage is expected to become more dominant in the coming months as £100bn of remortgages are due in October and December.
Anna is currently the deputy editor for Mortgage Solutions and editor for Specialist Lending Solutions. She has worked as a journalist since 2019, having secured her Gold Standard NCTJ diploma from News Associates in a fast-track six-month course.
She started her career as a report at specialist publication The Insurance Insider covering a wide range of areas before joining Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions in 2021.
In her role, she helps put together and structure the news agenda for the day and writes up press releases, reports, interviews, analyses and exclusives across both titles. She also commissions blogs for Specialist Lending Solutions and hosts online masterclasses and in-person events across the business.
She has been shortlisted for three journalism awards, which include BIBA Journalist and Media Awards Scoop of Year Award in 2020, Headline Money Mortgage Journalist of the Year Award (B2B) in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to being a journalist, Anna worked in ecommerce across Snow + Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need websites, and before that worked at specialist financial PR firm Rostrum.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading, seeing live music, and cooking for friends and family. When she gets a chance, she also enjoys hiking, skiing and indoor rock climbing.
