Confidence is slowly returning to the mortgage market, new research has shown. According to specialist lender Precise Mortgages, almost half of respondents to its survey – made of a sample of 200 landlords and 2,000 consumers aged between 18 and 65 – believe the mortgage market is repairing, albeit slowly.
The mortgage market is coming under big change this year, with the implementation of the Mortgage Market Review (MMR) having come into effect on 26 April – which aims to reform the market and ensure it works better for consumers. But there is still a strong sense the current market needs to adapt at a quicker pace to keep up
with consumers. The survey showed 20 per cent feel mortgages are still too difficult to access for the self-employed and freelancers.
Alan Cleary, managing director at Precise Mortgages said, “There are specialist lenders in the market designed to meet this challenge but there is still more to be done across the wider industry to innovate products and ensure they respond to contemporary consumer need.”
Respondents also identified improving rates and access as well as considering lending criteria and eligibility on an individual basis as “paramount” when it comes to improving the mortgage market.
Last year saw new initiatives such as Help to Buy, which boosted the market. But just 22 per cent of survey respondents said they have little knowledge of the product, and 11 per cent believe is it not enough and more innovations are needed to help drive growth in the market.
Recent government figures show 17,000 homes have been bought under the Help to Buy scheme, as illustrated in the Table.
Mr Cleary added this survey shows the realities for consumers. Ensuring all viable homeowners have access to mortgage products should be the aim of lenders across the board, Mr Cleary said. “Both to meet home owning aspirations and continue the recovering British economy.”
charlotte.richards@ft.com
