Overall approvals for those moving home and those remortgaging have soared to decade-high figures in July. With the major high street banks agreeing to a total of 95,126 loans across the month.
According to statistics from trade body, UK Finance, this is the highest level of approvals since July 2009.
The stats
The latest statistics showed that various types of lending have helped to drive the 10-year high increase.
- Mortgage approvals for house purchase were 16.4% higher than in July 2018
- Other secured borrowing also had a 12.7% year-on-year increase.
- Crucially, remortgages saw a dramatic overall increase of 19.4%, compared to July last year.
It appears that those looking to remortgage were the main driving force behind the growing approval figures in July. Many households have seemingly been taking full advantage of the competitive mortgage rates currently available.
Total mortgage advances managed to reach £26.1 billion last month, which was the highest amount since March 2016.
Is this because of Brexit?
These figures seem to suggest that homeowners and first-time-buyers are pushing through the uncertainty of Brexit and getting back onto the property market. It appears that many had put their plans to move home on hold until the Brexit terms had become clearer. However, the figures show a distinct increase in those going ahead with purchases anyway.
The significant increase in remortgages is also likely to reflect the high levels of competition that lenders are currently experiencing, as they fight over a smaller amount of business. Generally the property market slows down significantly in the summer months, so the latest figures show a particularly positive trend.
Undoubtedly, this increase in housing market activity is great news for those looking to purchase or sell property. A return of buyers could see a lot more homes being put up for sale, and end the shortage of properties the market has recently experienced. Buyers will have more choice and homes will be easier to sell.
The rise in remortgaging approvals may also be a sign that the banks are easing up on their strict lending criteria a little.
If you’re looking to remortgage your home in order to benefit from more financial security in the lead up to Brexit - please get in touch with the team at TaylorMade today.
