The number of first-time buyer (FTB) and homemover mortgage completions dropped by 1.5 per cent and 3.6 per cent respectively in June, according to UK Finance’s latest Mortgage Trends data.

In the month, there were 32,760 FTB mortgage completions and 31,000 homemover mortgage completions. Both figures were lower than those reported in June 2018 and Phoebus software sales and marketing director Richard Pike claimed that “it is more surprising” the figures were not lower.

“Given that the country has been in a state of flux for over three years it is hardly surprising that the figures year-on-year have dipped across the mortgage market sectors. When you consider that the mortgages in these June figures were more than likely for applications made in or around the original time we should have been leaving the EU, it is more surprising that the figures weren’t even lower,” he said.

However, while new mortgage completion numbers were down, remortgages with additional borrowing increased 8.3 per cent in June when compared to the same period last year. For these remortgages, the average additional amount borrowed was £56,100, suggesting that homeowners continue to take advantage of a low interest rate environment.

Despite this, there were 15,320 new pound-for-pound remortgages (with no additional borrowing) in June 2019, 23.9 per cent fewer than in June 2018. This has been driven in part by a slight drop in the number of fixed-rate mortgages coming to an end and the growing popularity of product transfers.

Furthermore, buy-to-let (BTL) home purchase mortgages number dipped 3.6 per cent in June on last year’s figure, with 5,300 completed. This trend continued into the BTL remortgage sector as 12,500 were completed – 0.8 per cent lower than in June 2018.

Commenting on the data, Vida Homeloans director of mortgage sales Louise Sedgwick said: “Today’s statistics from UK Finance are still an encouraging sign for first-time buyers and the wider UK housing market. At the end of last year, we saw the highest number of first-time buyers get on the property ladder in the last ten years, as lenders and intermediaries have worked hard to produce the right criteria for this cohort.”

Sedgwick highlighted that data published by Savills found there were 52,400 approved loans in 2018/19, 83 per cent of which were FTBs, with the Help to Buy scheme playing an important role in helping buyers take their first steps on the property ladder. The scheme has supported more than 420,000 people in getting on the ladder so far.

“For the specialist lending industry, it’s vital to continue driving the market forward by catering for the modern borrowers’ needs and circumstances, whether that be through the Help to Buy scheme or by providing an alternative solution for when it does come to an end,” Sedgwick concluded.

TMA director of mortgage services David Copland underlined that a great number of residential remortgages and buy-to-let deals will come to the end of their terms in the third quarter of this year, presenting advisers with a “huge opportunity” to discuss remortgaging with their clients.

“£90.2bn worth of resi-mortgages and almost £8.3bn worth of Buy-to-Let deals will come to the end of their terms between June and October this year. This represents a huge opportunity for advisers to talk to their customers about remortgaging, and to help them lock in the best deals available to them. As more brokers work to secure the best possible outcomes for their clients, there’s no reason why today’s remortgage numbers can’t continue to rise as we look ahead to the rest of the year,” he stated.

“For certain borrowers, a product transfer may be the best option – another reason why advisers should be checking in with clients and reviewing their circumstances regularly. This is an area of the market I hope will be more frequently and robustly reported on in the future.”

Share Story: