Homeowners withdraw equity for Christmas

This amounts to a withdrawal of £20,906, yet the figure is still 21% lower than November last year.

Total equity withdrawal from remortgaging stood at £509m in November, 14% higher than October and 32% lower than November 2013.

Andy Knee, chief executive of LMS, said: “The latest LMS remortgage report maintains the pattern we’ve witnessed across both the remortgage and entire mortgage market over the past year; one of a series of ups and downs.

“2014 has been a monumental year for the financial sector with implications for Help to Buy 2, the introduction of MMR and tighter regulation as well as changes to Stamp Duty all being felt and playing their part.

“Each of these has been a factor in the lower than anticipated results for remortgaging, especially when compared to last year.”

Gross remortgage lending fell by 12% monthly to stand £3.6bn in November, while average loan amounts dropped by 1% to £148,484 – the lowest amount since July 2013.

The number of remortgage loans being issued fell by 8% to 24,352 in November, while the figure is also 14% lower than the same month last year when there were 28,400 loans.

Knee added: “As we approach 2015 the cooling in the marketplace may well be an indication of a sign of things to come next year.

“We may well see more stability and consistency across the market if uncertainty ahead of the election can be brought under control.

“Significant house price growth earlier in the year has allowed for an increase in the amount of equity withdrawn through remortgaging without increasing the size of LTV – great news for customers who could benefit from this but may have been concerned about increasing their mortgage.”