Equity withdrawal still negative
Housing equity withdrawal remained negative at minus £3.2bn in the first three months of 2010 according to the latest Bank of England (BoE) statistics.
The housing equity withdrawal figures published today (15 July) by the BoE show that housing equity withdrawal continues to decline.
Housing equity withdrawal - where homeowners take advantage of the increased value of their homes and withdraw cash for personal use - was slightly less negative than the preceding three months where it was at minus £3.4bn.
UK home owners have pumped £38.3bn back into their mortgage debt since the second quarter of 2008 when the housing equity withdrawal measure turned negative.
Housing equity withdrawal as a percentage of post-tax income was also slightly less negative than the previous quarter, at minus 1.3 per cent compared to minus 1.4 per cent in the last three months of 2009.
Francis Mogg, director of consultancy firm Promoco, said: "This is another symptom of a market where banks are not able to fund through securitisation.
"People are not being encouraged to borrow in the same way.
"I think it is an indication that people are still paying off their loans and not saving."
