Each month, a raft of facts and figures emerge relating to property, whether it is a house price index, investor confidence report or details on who is buying where. This data is then analyzed and absorbed by first-time buyers, existing homeowners and buy-to-let investors alike as they attempt to gaze into the murky future crystal ball of the housing market.
The latest must-read data to arrive today is the British Bankers' Association's (BBA) April lending figures. According to the BBA, gross lending last month increased by seven per cent to £17.8 billion, up from £16.6 billion in March. At first, this may sound like a positive trend for home buying, but upon further examination it is revealed that the number of loans approved for new house purchases was still 40 per cent lower than the same month in 2007.
It seems that potential homebuyers - including prospective property investors - may be showing reluctance to purchase new homes due to a number of factors, such as stricter mortgage lending criteria and rising household bills and costs.
So what type of activity is buoying lending to higher figures? The answer seems to be current homeowners and investors who are seeking better deals. In contrast to a rather weak showing for new home mortgages, a grand total of 74,722 remortgage deals were approved in April - a 24 per cent rise on the previous month.
David Dooks, the BBA's statistics director, cited an "active remortgaging market" as proof that "the mainstream mortgage market has not ground to a halt". And, in fact, separate research conducted by Paragon Mortgages this month supports his comments, revealing that landlords are continuing to seek the best deals for their property investments.
This study found that 45 per cent of
buy-to-let mortgages taken out during the first three months of 2008 were arranged for the purpose of
remortgaging property. In addition, 34 per cent of this type of home loan were directed at
property investors who were adding to their portfolios. Meanwhile, only 16 per cent of buy-to-let mortgages were taken out by new investors during this period.
Paragon said that the data indicates the long-term attitude that many landlords have towards their investments. Nigel Terrington, chief executive of Paragon Group, said at the time that "these landlords represent the core of the buy-to-let market - they are investors that base their purchase decisions on proven tenant demand for long-term returns rather than speculative investment for a quick profit".
