The latest set of figures released this morning from UK Finance has revealed that mortgage lending dipped by 0.9% during October as would-be buyers continue to hold back making their move.
According to the numbers, gross residential mortgage lending totalled £25.5bn in October, an annual fall of 0.9% and also show that purchase approvals by the main high street banks during the month were 3.0% higher with remortgage approvals 12.7% higher.
Director of Benham and Reeves, Marc von Grundherr said, “Buyer demand in the way of mortgage approvals has remained consistent despite wider market uncertainty but these certainly aren’t the worst set of figures considering the wider landscape and the seasonal influence that slows the market in the lead up to Christmas.
“The good news is that people are still buying homes despite the political paralysis we’ve been subjected to in recent months and while we may have a long winter ahead, there are plenty of positives to take.”
Vikki Jefferies, proposition director at Primis said, “Advisers have played a big part in helping consumers lock in to great deals while they’re still available and remortgage numbers have seen a boost as a result.
However, whilst current homeowners may be able to achieve certainty around their monthly repayments, prospective homeowners still may be wondering what the future holds for them. In particular, new borrowers who miss out on opening a Help to Buy ISA before Saturday’s deadline will need to find other means of boosting their deposit funds.”
Tom Mundy, COO and co-founder at Goodlord said, “There is still stagnation in the market, but these results show important glimmers of hope. High street mortgage approvals being up by 3% compared to this time last year shows a continued appetite from consumers to get onto the property ladder.
“Although, with gross mortgage lending down slightly, it indicates that it’s first time buyers, or those purchasing lower value properties, that are continuing to drive market growth during this time of uncertainty.”
Gareth Lewis, commercial director of property lender MT Finance said, “With Black Friday looming, it’s encouraging that consumers are keeping their credit card debt in check, with many clearing the balance at the end of each month. With plenty of pressure to spend in the run-up to Christmas, it is good to see that people are being responsible.
October was always going to be a hard month for the mortgage market market with the Halloween deadline looming for the Brexit saga. There was a prevailing air of caution as a result, so for gross lending to dip slightly compared with last year is no great surprise.
Thankfully, it’s not been Armageddon. The market is holding up reasonably well and there are positive signs emerging that people are getting on with things. What we need is more property on the market for these people to purchase.”
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