If the latest figures are anything to go by, the market for mortgages and UK mortgage broker firms is powering ahead. This is the situation regarding the UK mortgage market 2019. There were 5.8% more mortgages by first-time buyers completed in July 2019 in comparison with the same month the previous year. Sources also reveal that mortgages by home-movers were up by 1.4%. As for buy-to-let mortgages, they’re increasing. Since the tax regulations were adjusted after years of decline, they’ve been increasing at a rate of between 5 and 6% annually. That’s a good sign. 5,800 buy-to-let mortgages were completed and there were 15,100 buy-to-let remortgages. This is an increase of 2% in comparison with July 2018.
Sellers Hesitating
20,760 remortgages (with additional money borrowed) were reported in July 2019. That’s down an average of 7.1% per year. The average amount borrowed additionally with these remortgages is £55,500. There were 20,380 brand new remortgages, down 12.9%. Experts believe that this is owing to an end of the fall in the number of fixed-rate mortgages and the increasing acceptance of product transfers. The number of sales agreed that failed this year is the lowest since 2015. according to current reports. The number of sellers on the market is down by between 13 and 14% in comparison with the previous year. There’s a continuing uneasiness because of Brexit. This seems to cause many sellers to wait it out and hesitate. Yet, there’s still a healthy level of sales. It seems that no matter what happens politically or economically, a good number of people are still managing to move from one home to another. More astonishing still, others are even managing to get a foothold on the property ladder. That’s pretty encouraging.
Brexit Unease
It’s been observed that with the increased number of long-term fixed-rate mortgages that have been taken out since the Brexit referendum, it’s not surprising that remortgage figures are down. Until the unease that’s quite apparent the country is in the past, whichever way that may be achieved, the tendency is likely to continue. The least that would-be borrowers require is some guarantee of security, for their financial investments. According to some financial pundits, quite a few buyers are beginning to change their attitude. The wait-and-watch strategy isn’t quite as popular as it might have been in earlier years. This could be due to the fact that in the UK, mortgage rates have remained as competitive as they have ever been, perhaps even more so. Juxtapose this circumstance with the fact that there are low unemployment rates and even improved earnings. The truth is that in this market, it’s still possible to get a bargain. It appears that some daring buyers are making the most of that.
Long Term Plan Required
According to some industry experts, the real problems that the UK housing market faces will go on even long after the Brexit matter has become a part of the past. The need of the hour is a strategy to stimulate action in the market. According to expert opinion, the best place to start is with building more houses. Fix the demand and supply equation and we can watch as the market gets busy again. In the meantime, however, it’s gratifying that the buy-to-let sector is holding its own. This is happening in spite of significant changes in taxes and regulations. It just goes to show that investors will always invest in property when the right opportunities present themselves. That’s the picture for the UK mortgage market 2019.
