This morning saw the Bank of England Money & Credit Report for May published which showed a stable market for mortgages.
It was interesting in that the May mortgage approvals data doesn’t quite tally with the kind of activity levels we saw on the ground. While June did see a slowdown in approvals for house purchase, April and May were very strong as people shrugged off Brexit concerns and made the decision to get on with their lives.
Approvals rose materially in both April and May, especially outside the capital where prices are more attractive and exposure to Brexit perceived to be less acute.
Remortgage activity has definitely been more subdued in recent months, as many people have been proactively locking into new rates for some time now.
It’s by no means firing on all cylinders but the mortgage market is moving along at a respectable pace as the bottleneck that formed pre-March 29 starts to work its way through.
Lenders themselves are already deep into their “Summer Sizzler” season, offering attractive rates to start to get more business in as the Summer holidays approach. As always, July & August could well be a busier month than many expect and those that keep their focus will reap the rewards.
Rate wise, for standard residential mortgages, borrowers can obtain 2-year fixes at 1.35%, (3.84% APRC) and 5-year fixes from 1.75%, (3.62% APRC) whilst variable tracker rates are around from 1.29%, (3.82% APRC).
Those looking at Buy-To-Let can still obtain products from just 1.39%, (4.71% APRC) for a 2-year tracker or 5-year fixes are available from 1.79% (4.36% APRC).
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