Mortgage market remains conservative

The majority of lending continues to be on conservative terms, as lending criteria have tightened in response to the shortage of funding and current market conditions.

The average first time-buyer borrowed 3.33 times their income, down from 3.35 in May. While the average home mover borrowed 2.94 times their income, down from 2.97 in May.

There were 18,100 loans to first-time buyers in June worth £2.3 billion, an 8% decline in volume and 9% decline in value from May. There were 29,100 loans to home movers worth £4.7 billion, down 9% in volume and value from May. The share of house purchase loans to first-time buyers and home movers remained stable at 38% and 62% respectively.

Gross lending decreased slightly to £23.6 billion in June, down 4% from May and 32% lower than June last year. The largest share of gross lending was remortgaging (44%) with 75,000 loans worth £10.3 billion in June. Loans for house purchase accounted for 30% of gross lending with 47,000 loans worth £7 billion.

Fixed-rate mortgages accounted for an increasing share of products taken out at 69%, up from 66% in May. This trend is likely to continue as fixed-rate prices have fallen in recent weeks in line with the decline in swap rates.