HSBC was the most consistently competitive mortgage lender during the third quarter of 2008 with only Yorkshire Building Society coming close as a rival, according to mform.co.uk.

Also making up the top five are Nationwide, Newcastle Building Society and Halifax. However, October saw Lloyds TSB’s lending arm Cheltenham and Gloucester emerging as the ninth most competitive lender which is its first top 10 placing this year, according to mform.co.uk.

Mform monitors best buy products across all product categories based on the true cost of a mortgage including all fees. In 2007, before the full effects of the credit crunch, the five most competitive lenders were Furness, Skipton, Britannia, Nottingham and Darlington Building Societies.

Francis Ghiloni,mform.co.uk marketing and business development director, said: “HSBC’s financial strength and apparent relative immunity from the ongoing financial crisis has enabled it to stay ahead of rivals as the most consistently competitive. It is striking that it has achieved this by going direct to the consumer rather than using brokers and borrowers should take notice that the best deals are now available direct. It will be interesting to see how this is reflected in the market share of HSBC at the end of the year.

“Our analysis is designed to offer the best possible value to customers and is particularly valuable when there is so much uncertainty in the mortgage market. It is still possible to source good deals but borrowers need to understand that the rapid changes in the market make it essential to regularly monitor competitiveness.”