3,100 mortgage deals in the UK market
New figures from mortgage analysts have revealed that the number of different mortgage deals available has risen above 3,000 for the first time in 15 months. There are now 3,100 different packages available which represents a 42% increase from the lowest point in July 2009.
This is no doubt good news, but a more illustrative comparison shows that while there are now 3,100 mortgage deals available, in June 2007 that number stood at 28,413. 92% of mortgage deals available at the height of the market have been discontinued.
Of course, many of those products will have been of the reckless and frankly dangerous type that resulted in the crash in the first place and the market as a whole is better off without them, but 92% is still a huge figure and shows the continuing nascent state of the recovery.
It is also interesting to note that the most significant growth in product availability has been in five-year fixed-rate deals, with the choice of these increasing ten times in the past year.
There has also been a very recent trend seen over the past couple of months of relaxation in the number of products for borrowers with small deposits, with a number of lenders reintroducing products offering 85% or even 90% mortgages. This upward trend is expected to continue.
That lenders are seeing potential in returning to the UK mortgage market is good news for borrowers, especially those first time buyers who have had a torrid time for the past three years.
There are all sorts of figures emerging at the moment which taken in isolation can appear to show vastly different views on what is happening in the UK mortgage market. However, when taken together a picture emerges of a market weakened by the ravages of the past years and suffering from a form of shell shock. More assertive growth will come, but slowly, gradually and with a slight sense of trepidation for months if not years to come.
