Year-on-year mortgage lending falls by 60%
It has been revealed today, by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), that only 33,000 mortgages were approved for first-time buys and existing homeowners in November 2008. This is down 17% on the previous month although the year-on-year figure is a concerning 59% lower. This is now a record low for the mortgage industry and despite repeated attempts to get the government to inject significant capital back into the industry, demand seems to be falling yet again.
As the authorities and industry look to breathe life back into the property market it is a disaster to see mortgage approvals at such low levels. Without the necessary finance there is little likelihood of a marked increase in the UK housing market which has the potential to drive the economy lower and lower.
There was also concern at the number of remortgage deals which totalled just 52,000 for November a figure which is 25% down on the previous month and 36% down year-on-year. The CML is suggesting that without government intervention it is highly unlikely that we will see an increase in liquidity in the market place which could lead to further weakness. The reduction in UK base rates from 5% down to 1.5% has injected very little confidence and activity into the sector but there are hopes that it will kick in fairly soon.
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