Fixed-rate mortgages became more expensive in Switzerland in the third quarter of 2026 compared with the previous three months. According to a Keystone-SDA news agency report published on 13 October 2026 by SWI swissinfo.ch, this rise is mainly due to the increase in interest rates on the capital markets, which pushed up banks' refinancing costs.
The figures published at the end of September
The figures cited come from the online comparison service Comparis. They relate to an indicative rate, calculated from the average rates of about thirty banks. The values below correspond to the end of the quarter under review, i.e. the end of September 2026:
- Ten-year fixed-rate mortgage: 2.07%;
- Five-year fixed-rate mortgage: 1.9%;
- Three-year fixed-rate mortgage: 1.75%, compared with 1.38% three months earlier.
For the three-year term, the comparison is direct: the indicative rate gained 0.37 percentage points in one quarter. For the five- and ten-year terms, the report does not give the end-of-June level; the exact extent of their rise over the quarter is therefore not available in our sources. It does, however, state that ten-year indicative rates, now above 2%, had not been this high since March 2025.
The end-of-September figures also show a clear hierarchy: the longer the fixed term, the higher the indicative rate, from 1.75% over three years to 2.07% over ten years.
The capital market rather than monetary policy
The most instructive point of this publication lies in the context. This increase comes while the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is keeping its policy rate at 0%. According to the report, rising interest rates abroad are increasingly feeding through to the Swiss capital market, and it is this movement that is weighing on the cost at which banks refinance themselves.
Dirk Renkert, a financial expert quoted in the press release, puts it this way: “This is why fixed-rate mortgages are becoming more expensive, even though the SNB is keeping its policy rate at 0%.” In other words, according to this reading, the price of a fixed-rate mortgage can rise without the central bank changing its policy.
No urgency for the SNB, but tightening seen as more likely
On the outlook, Dirk Renkert offers a nuanced assessment: “In the short term, with inflation remaining low, the Swiss National Bank is unlikely to be in any particular hurry to raise rates. However, the more favourable economic outlook, the weak franc and rising energy prices have increased the likelihood of monetary policy tightening.”
A distinction must be made here between the published figure and the interpretation. The end-of-September indicative rates are measured data; the likelihood of monetary tightening is a matter of expert analysis. The report makes no mention of any decision or communication by the SNB on this subject, and it does not quantify the inflation, the movement of the franc or the energy prices mentioned. The quotations are taken from the English version of the report.
What this means for households
For a household whose fixed-rate mortgage is maturing, or which is financing a purchase, the rate obtained depends on the market level at the time the contract is concluded. A rise in the indicative rate means, for the same amount and term, a heavier interest burden than the previous quarter's level would have allowed. The actual additional cost, however, depends on the amount borrowed, the term chosen and the specific conditions of each case.
It is also worth remembering the nature of these figures: an indicative rate is an average established on a sample of banks. It indicates a trend, not the rate a given borrower will obtain. Individual offers may differ from it, upwards or downwards.
Finally, the gap between terms, as it appears at the end of September, reflects the state of the market on a specific date. This article does not constitute a recommendation on the choice of a term or type of financing: that choice depends on each household's situation and on the interest rate outlook, which remains uncertain.
What the sources do not say
Several elements useful for a complete reading are not included in the report. It provides no data on property price trends over the same period; the link between this rise in the cost of credit and the property market therefore cannot be documented here. More generally, the cost of financing is only one of the factors in access to home ownership, alongside the price of the properties themselves.
The report also covers only fixed-rate mortgages; it says nothing about other forms of financing. Nor does it contain any quantified forecast of mortgage rate trends in the fourth quarter.
