Rise in remortgaging continues into autumn as market heats up
REMORTGAGING is becoming increasingly popular as the housing market begins to heat up again, with lending figures still climbing.
Figures released by LMS today show remortgage lending increased by 27.7 per cent during the year to October.
Both the number of loans issued and the average loan amount have risen over the same period, up by 8.8 and eight per cent respectively.
The average remortgage loan is now worth £149,282, up by over £8,000 since the beginning of 2013.
According to LMS, gross remortgage lending now stands at £4.73bn, £26m higher than the level reported by the Council of Mortgage Lenders last week.
The improved affordability of loans has also boosted the market: the typical interest rate on a new mortgage fell from 3.76 per cent to 3.08 per cent between September 2012 and September this year.
LMS chief executive Andy Knee said: “We are likely to see this buoyancy in the market continue over the coming months as lenders try to feed transactions through the pipeline ahead of the implementation of the mortgage market review in April.”
He added: “Harsh weather may temper the growth in the house purchase market, remortgage activity in the coming winter months is likely to prove much more resilient.”