May second charge lending falls 11 per cent to £120m – FLA

Data from the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA), revealed that in the three months to May new business fell by around 12 per cent to £242m compared to the same period last year.

In the 12 months to May the value of new second charge business rose by 12 per cent to around £1.5bn.

The number of new agreements for May decreased by nine per cent to 2,641, whilst in the three months to May this fell 14 per cent to 7,570.

In the 12 months to May, the number of new agreements increases year-on-year by seven per cent to 32,501.

Fiona Hoyle, director of consumer and mortgage finance and inclusion at the FLA, said: “May saw the second charge mortgage market report its second highest level of new business in 2023 so far, but volumes continued to be lower when compared to the same month in 2022.

“The distribution by purpose of loan in May showed 58 per cent of new agreements were for the consolidation of existing loans, 14 per cent for home improvements, and a further 23 per cent for both loan consolidation and home improvements.”

She added: “As always, customers who are concerned about meeting payments should speak to their lender as soon as possible to find a solution.”