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Mortgage activity shows no sign of ‘winter slowdown’

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  • 04/01/2016
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The value of mortgage approvals remained steady towards the end of November, hitting £19.5bn compared to £19.6bn in October but had risen from £15.4bn a year earlier, data shows.

According to the Bank of England’s latest Money and Credit report, the number of approvals totalled 70,410 in November, up from an average of 68,428 over the previous six months.

While monthly remortgage activity cooled slightly in November it remained significantly higher than a year earlier, with 39,161 remortgages approved with a value of £6.8bn. In November 2014, 32,083 remortgages were approved by lenders, with a total value of £5.2bn.

At the same time, the number of house purchase loans increased in November to 70,410, equivalent to £12.3bn and rising from 59,279 and £9.7bn a year earlier.

Richard Sexton, director of esurv, noted that remortgaging delivered a ‘healthy contribution’ to the total number of loans approved in November.

The stats showed that loan repayments dipped slightly in November compared to a month earlier, reaching £16.7bn. However, repayments in October were higher than normal where they totalled £17bn, up from £15.5bn in September and £15.7bn in August.

Brian Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said strong activity in approvals had been encouraged by record low mortgage rates, helping to make monthly payments more affordable for homeowners.

“Mortgage approvals increased for the second successive month in November, with no sign of a winter slowdown,” he said.

“Lenders’ appetite for new business grew significantly over the course of 2015, and this is expected to continue into 2016. This means those who meet affordability criteria will continue to enjoy the excellent deals available in the marketplace.”

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