According to findings published by deVere Mortgages, enquiries at the adviser firm surged by 30% in October, with the vast majority of new enquiries coming from overseas buyers and British expats.
More than 70% of all enquiries came from foreign nationals or British nationals living and working abroad, with around 60% of individuals hailing from Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, Quatar and China.
Mike Coady, managing director of deVere Mortgages, added that the adviser firm has announced a recruitment campaign to deal with the surge in enquiries.
“There are two key drivers that are fuelling the considerable surge in mortgage enquiries,” he said.
“First is that interest rates have been historically low for so long now, that there is a widespread belief that that very low interest rates are now the new normal. Indeed, rates are low in nominal and real terms and against any benchmark you seek and this is encouraging people to invest in property.”
He added: “Second is the strong UK property market outlook and high rental yields, which is driving demand. This is compounded by the perpetual undersupply of properties in key areas such as London, the South East of England and Manchester.”
Coady said that despite an interest rate rise anticipated for some time in 2016, rates were likely to remain ‘very low’ once this occurred.
“Due to these motivating factors, it is our experience that overseas buyers and British expats are keener than ever to purchase property in the UK,” he added.
“A large proportion of British expats will ultimately return to the UK at some stage and, understandably, would like a home to go back to. Yet despite typically earning higher salaries than their contemporaries in the UK, often due to working in a tax-free or low tax environment, many have pushed back this important financial goal due to more immediate issues. Until now.”
