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Data from the intermediary sourcing system provider TrigoldCrystal shows that the average number of live products available to mortgage intermediaries fell by 185 individual products in May, from 2,858 in April.

Meanwhile, year-on-year analysis shows that mortgage product availability is now 80 per cent lower than in May 2008 and a staggering 96 per cent lower than in May 2007.

Even more disappointingly, the drop in May follows an increase in the number of live direct only products available in April, which were up by 109 products to 1,118.

David Aylmer, marketing and business development director at TrigoldCrystal, said: "Although product numbers have fallen for the second month in a row, the speed of descent has definitely slowed suggesting that we might be reaching some welcome stability in the market.

"It is still a tough commercial landscape for brokers although reports of increased house sales and suggestions that prices are on the up should be welcome news."

Aylmer added: "Broker activity – the number of times they physically source the market on behalf of a client – has also fallen by 10 per cent in May but this is likely to be in direct relation to a general slowdown in the housing market.

"The good news for borrowers and intermediaries is that there are still over 2,500 products to choose from including schemes available up to 95 per cent loan-to-value."