13/02/2012 - Number of FTBs climbs 7pc in Dec

Mortgages advanced to first-time buyers shot up 7% by volume and 10% by value to 18,700 and £2.3bn respectively in December 2011, figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders reveal.

There was also an increase in the proportion of properties bought by first-time buyers within the price band currently exempt from stamp duty, up from 50% to 53%.

The CML said this was likely to be the beginning of a rush of purchases before the concession ends in March.

Lending to those moving home dropped in December from 29,300, worth £4.8bn in November to 28,700 worth £4.6bn.

The number of loans for remortgage, however, declined 15% from November but the 28,100 loans, worth £3.6bn, taken out increased by 10% in volume from December 2010 following a low period for remortgaging.

The CML said it was a mixed picture for the mortgage market in 2011 as a whole. Remortgage lending increased by 17% from 2010 to £47bn, while house purchase lending, at £75bn, was 6% down on the previous year.

Paul Smee, director general of the CML, said: “We have been expecting a flow of first-time buyers onto the market as the stamp duty exemption ends in March and December’s figures appear to show this has now begun.

“The market in 2011, while still subdued, saw a welcome increase in annual gross lending for the first time since 2007 when the financial crisis began. With the eurozone problems still rumbling on however, we believe there is still a real risk that this year’s lending levels will be lower than those seen in 2011.”

Overall, December saw an almost unchanged house purchase market from November according to the CML. House purchasers took out 47,400 loans, worth £6.9bn, a 1% increase in volume with no change in the value from the previous month and 7% up from December 2010.

Source: Mortgage Introducer

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