In the survey of almost 200 intermediaries, undertaken as part of Paragon’s Financial Adviser Confidence Tracker (FACT) index, half expect higher levels of buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage business over the coming year against last year, with 21 per cent expecting transactions to increase by 10 per cent or more.
This represents an increase in optimism, which had dipped slightly in Q4 2020 when 41 per cent of intermediaries predicted more business over the year ahead.
Just under half of brokers confirmed BTL demand is already either ‘very strong’ or ‘strong’, up from the 44 per cent reported in the final quarter of 2020. The proportion of intermediaries experiencing ‘weak’ or ‘very weak’ demand was the lowest since before the start of the Covid-19 outbreak at just 12 per cent.
Richard Rowntree, Paragon Bank managing director of mortgages, (pictured) said: “We know that brokers have an excellent grasp of current conditions and can often accurately predict how things will pan out in the coming months so our quarterly FACT survey provides a useful picture of the mortgage market.
“It’s fantastic to see that such high levels of optimism have been recorded following the challenges of the past year or so and that this is being driven by strong levels of demand. The extension of the Stamp Duty holiday is certainly a driver of that, but it is underpinned by longer-term demand for rental property.”
- Register now to secure your free spot at the Buy to Let Online forum on the 21 April, hosted by Mortgage Solutions.
Lenders’ BDMs and underwriters will be available on the day to talk to you directly online about what they can offer and how they can help you place your cases.
Alternatively, email lorraine.francisco@ae3media.co.uk to get registered.
