Overall, the market remained relatively stable in September, with remortgaging loans down 1% in number on August with no change in value.
House purchase loans also recorded a modest fall on a monthly and annual basis, while first-time buyer mortgages increased slightly.
House purchase loans fell 2% in September to 48,200 compared to August, down 5% by value to £7.1bn. However, compared to the same period of 2010, house purchase loans were up 3% in number and value.
In the third quarter 2011, house purchase loans totalled 144,100 worth £21.6bn, up 16% by number and 12% by value on Q2, but down 6% on the same period of 2010.
By comparison, remortgaging for Q3 grew on both a quarterly and annual basis, totalling 100,300 loans, worth £12.6bn – up 23% in number and 24% by value on 2010.
The CML said that the decline in house purchase lending in September was driven entirely by a drop in home mover activity, with home mover loans down 4.3% to 30,100, worth £4.9bn – a decrease of 8.2% in value.
By contrast, first-time buyer loans rose 1.1% to 18,200 in September, worth £2.2bn, compared to 18,000 of the same value in August.
First-time buyer affordability also improved in September, with the average loan accounting for 12.7% of the borrower’s income down from 13.0% in August.
Meanwhile, for the second consecutive month, home movers paid 9.4% of their income towards their mortgage – the lowest proportion since the CML’s monthly records began in 2002.
Paul Smee, CML director general, said: “Although both house purchase and remortgage loans experienced a small drop in September the overall market to date shows a stable picture. However, the backdrop of global and domestic instability makes the future more difficult to call.
“A wider public debate is beginning to open up about how to help the housing market act as an engine of growth for our stuttering economy. The CML looks forward to helping to shape and drive this objective.”
