April saw the largest rise in mortgage approvals since 2009, it has been confirmed by the Bank of England, whose figures have shown over 68,000 approvals throughout the month. This, of course, comes as a result of the recent record-low mortgage rates fuelled by the on-going price war which is being seen between lenders in the market.
This is the first time in six years that we’ve seen this many mortgage approvals and, if nothing else, it gives confidence that the market is well and truly picking back up. Not since 2009 have we seen so many approvals in a single month, suggesting that buyers have regained the confidence to commit to a house purchase as well as lenders being in a position to lend to a greater number of individuals.
Statistics released on Tuesday show that a total of 68,076 mortgages were approved in April 2015 which equated to 6,100 more approvals than in March, showcasing a growth of 9.9%.
Howard Archer, of IHS Global Insight has stated to The Guardian that this new data, “reinforces our belief that housing market activity is now on the up”. He said he had recently lifted his forecast for UK house price growth in 2015 to 6% from 5%, and added: “There looks to be a very real possibility that it will have to be raised further. This is partly due to the increased upward impact on prices coming from a lack of properties on the market. We also suspect that housing market activity will continue to improve … following the decisive general election result.”
David Sharples, mortgage broker here at Search Mortgage Solutions has commented on the data which was released, suggesting that, “The Bank of England stats show perfectly the confidence which people now have in purchasing property. You only need to walk down any street or look in the window of an estate agents and the number of ‘sold’ signs backs this up as well. With families gifting deposits to first time buyers in many cases as well as the help to buy scheme really starting to kick in and take effect, it’s a promising time which reflects the overall housing market confidence. Of course, we mustn’t forget the low mortgage rates we’re seeing at the moment, further encouraging potential buyers to make the decision that now is the right time to buy.”