Advisers expect better Q4 mortgage activity

Published on

Intermediaries anticipate experiencing strengthening mortgage business levels in the fourth quarter of the year, according to Paragon Mortgages’ latest Financial Adviser Confidence Tracker (FACT) Index.

FACT, a panel-based survey of mortgage brokers, found that, on average, advisers expect to do 6.7% more business in the fourth quarter than in the third. This is the third quarter in a row that brokers have predicted an increase in mortgage business and follows a negative 2008 when the intermediary market, on average, predicted contracting levels of business.

Overall, 55% of brokers expect to see an increase in business in the three months to the end of the year, with 37% expecting business levels to remain stagnant in the period. Just 8% of respondents expect falling business levels over the same period.

Of business conducted in the third quarter, owner-occupied accounted for over three quarters (78%) of brokers’ mortgage business. Buy-to-let accounted for 12% of business, with ‘other’ types of mortgage accounting for 10% of business. Of the owner-occupied mortgage business, 26% of mortgages were for next-time buyers, whilst remortgage levels continued to decline, falling from 45% in the second quarter to 44%. Next-time buyers have grown steadily over the past year, reflecting increased activity in the housing market. First-time buyer levels remained steady at 11%.

John Heron, Paragon Mortgages’ managing director, said: “This is the third quarter in a row that brokers have said they expect business levels to increase and the sense of pessimism that surrounded the market in 2008 finally appears to be dissipating. General housing market activity is picking up

Latest POLL

COMMENT ON MORTGAGE SOUP

We want to hear from you!
Leave a comment and get the conversation started.
You need to register to post, so please login or sign up below.

Latest articles

Bank of England expected to hold interest rates at 4.5% amid economic uncertainty

The Bank of England is widely expected to maintain interest rates at 4.5% when...

£6.5k bill for homebuyers who miss stamp duty deadline

Rent and mortgage spending rose 7.7% year-on-year in February, as more homeowners moved from...

Advice Guru partners with Pure Retirement to support broker education

Financial adviser learning platform Advice Guru has announced a new sponsorship partnership with Pure...

Nationwide ups LTV limits for interest-only and foreign national borrowers

Nationwide has announced changes to its mortgage lending criteria, increasing the maximum loan-to-value (LTV)...

Other news

Why predicting 2025 interest rates feels like a fool’s errand

In my first (and for some reason clearly not my last) article last month,...

Bank of England expected to hold interest rates at 4.5% amid economic uncertainty

The Bank of England is widely expected to maintain interest rates at 4.5% when...

£6.5k bill for homebuyers who miss stamp duty deadline

Rent and mortgage spending rose 7.7% year-on-year in February, as more homeowners moved from...