First-timers have not yet been deterred by Brexit, but buy-to-let landlords are less bullish when it comes to purchasing property
There were 36,200 new first-time buyer mortgages completed in November 2018, 5.8% more than in the same month a year earlier, according to UK Finance.
They borrowed a total of £6.0bn of new in the month, which was up 9.1% year-on-year.
Keith Haggart, managing director at lifetime mortgage provider Responsible Lending, said: “The march of the first-time buyers shows they are completely unbothered by Brexit, and the political slapstick unfolding in recent months has done nothing to stem their determination to get a foot on the property ladder.
“Brexit — and how the value of their home will hold up — may have been in the backs of their minds when they laid down those hard-won deposits but they have their whole lives ahead of them and are focused on the long term. They aren’t seeing Brexit as a reason to stay at home or keep renting.”
Moving on up
Homemover lending was also up, but only slightly. There were 36,200 new homemover mortgages completed in November 2018, 1.1% more than in the same month a year earlier, and 4% by value.
Remortgages were also up by 1.3% over the same time period.
Buy-to-let deflated
However, there were just 6,100 new buy-to-let home purchase mortgages completed in November 2018, some 9% fewer than in the same month a year earlier.
By value this was £0.8bn of lending in the month, 11.1% down year-on-year.
Remortgage lending to landlords rose 9.5% year-on-year.
Jackie Bennett, director of mortgages at UK Finance said: “A mixture of competitive deals and schemes including Help to Buy saw even more first-time buyers get a foot on the housing ladder during November.
“Meanwhile, homeowner remortgaging activity has steadied, after reaching its highest level in a decade the previous month as a large number of fixed-rate deals came to an end.
“In the buy-to-let market new home purchases remain subdued, while remortgaging continues to grow as landlords lock into attractive rates.”
Article By Christina Hoghton www.yourmortgage.co.uk