There has been some excellent news for remortgaging home owners and first time buyers, as a new report declares that accessibility to mortgages has hit a three year high. While this is good news for anyone seeking a mortgage or remortgage, it is especially good news for first time buyers who have been suffering a bit in the UK housing market recently, despite there being overall positivity and growth.
The report from the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) reveals that 30% of mortgage brokers have declared they experienced little to no problems finding mortgage deals for all of their clients during the last six months. This means that while there might be significant affordability issues that still need to be overcome within the UK housing market, particularly with regard to first time buyers, there has not been a better time in the last three years to seek a successful mortgage deal than now.
A ‘Wide Variety of Clients’ Acquiring Mortgages
The IMLA’s Executive Director, Peter Williams, was delighted with the report and stressed how important the role of mortgage broker still was to the UK housing market. He said of the latest figures released by his organisation, “It is hugely encouraging to see that a greater number of brokers are reporting that they are successfully arranging mortgages for a wide variety of clients. Over the past few years, regulations like the Mortgage Market Review have raised the bar in terms of borrowers’ requirements, which some have predicted would leave many borrowers locked out of the market.
“This new regulatory regime has made the intermediary channel more important than ever, and brokers are clearly doing a great job of helping people get a foot on the housing ladder.”
Low Rate of Failure for First Time Buyer Mortgages Brokers
While there is hope that the government’s initiatives to create more affordable housing will benefit first time buyers in the long term, the IMLA are adamant that the situation for the lowest rung of the property-owning ladder is still relatively positive.
Mr Williams noted, “House prices have been growing faster than incomes over the past few years, which has challenged affordability. This issue has been particularly acute among first time buyers, which means the fact that just 16% of brokers reported they were unable to source a mortgage for someone in this group over the last six months is very positive news. Low mortgage rates have also continued to support borrowers’ affordability by reducing monthly payments.”
