June gross mortgage lending figures up 9% on May

UK Finance which incorporates the old Council of Mortage Lenders (CML) has released estimated June gross mortgage lending figures showing £22.1 billion of borrowing up 9% on May figures of £20.3 billion.

This is however, only an increase of 3% on the figures in June of last year which were £21.5 billion.

Gross mortgage lending for Q2 2017 was an estimated £60.3bn. This is a 3% increase on Q1 this year and a 6% increase on Q2 last year of £57.1 billion.

Mohammad Jamei, UK Finance senior economist, said: “A period of belt-tightening now seems to be underway as inflation begins to erode consumer spending power, and consumer confidence weakens. Given that the economy and housing market are closely linked, this has contributed to the activity plateau since the start of the year.

“Looking ahead, housing market activity is likely to reflect economic conditions – a deterioration would likely dampen first-time buyer numbers and homeowners remortgaging – the factors that have supported lending recently.”

Jeff Knight, Foundation Home Loans marketing director, told Mortgage Strategy, “on the surface, it may not seem like lending levels are particularly strong but look a little closer and re-mortgaging activity is keeping things moving along quite nicely. This is despite the challenge of inflation outstripping wage growth as we may have seen an unexpected dip at the last reading, but inflation remains on an upward march.

“First-time landlords in particular remain in pole position, with purchase incentives and continued low mortgage rates taking the edge off uncertainty generated by the wider political and economic picture. Looking ahead to the looming PRA changes, however, it’s important the more established landlords are thinking ahead, planning and reviewing their positions.”