18 Dec Signs of Life in the UK Mortgage Market
A few surveys on the state of the UK mortgage market provide some hope for those looking to borrow at the moment.
According to E.Serv, the chartered surveyors, lending for house purchases has hit an 11 month high in November. Another survey by the Building Society Association (BSA) shows that people are finding it easier to access mortgages lending than at any time since 2008.
This is good news for those who have previously found mortgage lending being the main obstacle to home ownership.
Better still, interest rates are coming down to levels not seen since the credit crunch.
London Mortgage Broker – UK Mortgage market news
According to the Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB), five-year fixed-rate mortgages are now averaging at 4.57pc, the lowest in five years, and two and three-year deals are the lowest they have been in the last 9 months. Now 90% of new purchases are arranged on a fixed rate basis; the highest rate since 2009.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has witnessed a 5% increase in loans for home movers since last year, with remortgage lending reaching a 6 month high.
Increase in mortgage products
This may well be the positive knock on effect the Government’s funding for lending scheme which has seen the number of mortgage products on the market increase by 20% since the scheme was introduced in August.
Leading on from this, LMS, a leading conveyancing specialist, expects the number of people remortgaging to increase by almost a fifth in 2013.
Savings for homeowners
LMS say that “Intermediaries have a significant role to play in flagging up these new competitive deals to clients who may not otherwise take advantage of the savings available to them.” They go on to suggest a significant proportion of homeowners are not aware of the savings they could make by remortgaging.
Regrettably, many people are content to stay with their current mortgage deal or remain on a bank’s SVR simply because they find their current monthly payments affordable.
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