12
Jul
Mortgage lending rebounded in May, CML says
Mortgage lending rebounded strongly in May, lenders have
reported.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said the number of new loans
granted to home buyers jumped by 33% from April to 48,300.
The CML said the rise was a rebound from a brief slump that
followed the reintroduction of 1% stamp duty for first time buyers
on 24 March.
Lending in May was up 24% compared with a year earlier, despite the
continued rationing of mortgage lending.
Paul Smee, the CML's director general, said the latest figures were
"positive news".
"Lending is similar to late 2011 levels and showing a healthy
improvement on the same time last year," he said.
"However, the problems in the eurozone have not gone away.
"Economic uncertainty could affect both the supply of mortgage
lending and consumer confidence and we still anticipate a
challenging lending environment for the rest of the year," he
warned.
'Better health'
The most recent figures from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) showed
that the number of completed sales in the first five months of this
year was 11% higher than in the same period last year.
Mark Harris, of mortgage broker SPF Private Clients, said the CML's
figures were encouraging.
"Now that the distorting effect of the stamp duty holiday is out of
the way, the housing market looks to be in better health than
previously thought," he said.
"The number of new mortgages taken out is greater than this time
last year, although still some way off the volume of deals done at
the height of the market."
But Howard Archer, of IHS Global Insight, doubted that the pick up
in May would be sustained.
"While the CML data show a welcome pick up in housing activity
compared to April, it is still very low compared to long-term
norms," he said.
"We seriously doubt that there will be any significant pick up in
housing market activity in the near term at least given the weak
economic fundamentals, uncertain outlook and low consumer
confidence."
Source: BBC News