Remortgage sales hit highest level since before the pandemic outnumbering all other types of home loans
The FCA’s latest data shows that remortgage sales in the fourth quarter of last year, at 92,558, reached their highest level of activity since early 2020, before the outbreak of the pandemic.
In fact, they outnumbered all other types of home loans for the first time since the third quarter of 2020, according to analysis from digital lender Freedom Finance, shared with Morning Wire today.
In contrast, sales of mortgages for first-time buyers (112,005) and house mover mortgages (133,890) both reached a five-year peak in the second quarter of last year but slumped in the fourth quarter to 89,542 and 75,726, respectively.
These mortgages had shot up during the pandemic as people took advantage of the stamp duty holiday, increasing household deposits and changing lifestyle to get on the property ladder or move on.
It marks a continuation of the trend from ‘move’ to ‘improve’ as households prepare for a gloomier economic situation as the cost-of-living crisis bites and the Bank of England began to increase interest rates in Q4.
Andrew Fisher, Chief Commercial Officer at Freedom Finance, said: “The gloomy economic environment and the consecutive rate rises from the Bank of England are only likely to drive further demand in the remortgage market as borrowers look to lock in to fixed-rate loans either from variable rate mortgages or as their existing deals come to a close.”