Mortgage Advice Bureau’s research into applications found the average mortgage LTV had risen by 3.3 percentage points to 72.2% following the government scheme’s launch in early October.
Help to Buy had sparked an increase in buyer activity across the country with the North and South West regions seeing 50% and 48% more movement respectively.
London saw the biggest rise in applications for low deposit mortgages. It grew 9.1 percentage points in the month to reach 67.2% although the capital city remains the most difficult place to obtain such loans.
The average salary for a buyer has also fallen in the same period from £39,803 to £38,887, suggesting the mortgage market is opening up to more borrowers.
The number of products on the market grew by almost a thousand month-on month with 8,463 available to brokers, the highest figure for five years.
Brian Murphy, head of lending at MAB, said: “The Help to Buy mortgage guarantee is still in its infancy and it’s reasonable to assume the best deals for consumers are yet to come. What these figures show is that the scheme’s galvanising effects are not limited to lenders who are directly participating at this stage.
“Spreading positivity about property purchases has visibly increased demand and spurred lenders across the market into bidding to win over consumers. It is an encouraging sign that we are already seeing a change in the typical profile of mortgage applicants.”
