June saw a spike in buy-to-let purchase activity, according to new data from Legal & General’s SmartrCriteria tool.

Searches on behalf of portfolio landlords soared by 21%, while those for consumer buy-to-let mortgages grew by 7%. ‘Holiday let/Air BnB’ was also the ninth most searched criteria point, up from tenth in May. This latest data comes from Legal & General’s SmartrCriteria tool, which tracks product searches from over 8,000 advisers, shedding light on purchase trends across the UK.

June data suggests that family members continue to play a key role in helping first-time buyers onto the property ladder. ‘First-time buyer/first-time landlord/non-owner occupier’ was the third most used criteria point, while ‘joint borrower sole proprietor’ took the fifth spot.

Despite wider economic pressure, the number of searches for guarantor/family assist mortgages and gifted equity/concessionary purchase mortgages both remained comparable to May (dropping by 1% and rising by 0.4% respectively).

Demand for specialist products remained high in June, with searches on behalf of applicants purchasing discounted market sale properties rocketing by 66%. Let-to-buy applicants also rose by 7%. As in May, most searches were made on behalf of applicants with a Visa.

Danny Belton, head of lender relationships, Legal & General Mortgage Club, said: “It is reassuring to see strong demand across the board despite wider economic pressure. The fifth consecutive base rate rise, which came mid-month, does not seem to have dented the high levels of activity in the market and brokers and lenders alike are still as busy as ever.

“With product criteria changes coming thick and fast, advisers have a crucial role in reassuring and educating buyers through what might be a more difficult mortgage journey.”